The Finale

Tues Nov 10, 2015

The Finale

I woke up at 5:30am! ARGH! This happens when I travel. My inner clock is so screwed up! I still have the usual ‘kennel cough’…it started around Ponta Delgada after some windy days at sea. I lounged in bed until 8am and just got up. After I made a shopping list [little to no food in the house] I headed to Denny’s for breakfast. FEED ME! I love my Denny’s breakfast! I even ran into a few friends who were glad to see me back. Always nice. With a full tummy, I went in to work, shocking them! They hadn’t expected to see me at all. My inboxes were full [toxicology reports to be processed and other things to be filed] and there was a new volunteer to meet, Gloria who worked in records…? Or was it the lab??

It was a fairly quiet and uneventful day, so I cut out at 3pm [I make my own hours]. Diane, a Parking Enforcement Officer on light duty…AND retiring shortly!…was there to answer the phones. I was also getting weary…delayed jet lag?

I headed to Pancho Villa’s to get my fruit and veg and then to Von’s for the rest of my list. The cupboards are full again!

I started to unpack. I don’t have much in the way of dirty clothes cuz of the laundry onboard. Just 1 load to do, yeah! Sassy was interested and sniffed at the bags of little goodies I had. She LOVES the sound of a plastic bag!

I had a little sushi, for dinner and I was ready for bed, again! It was only 9pm! Jet lag or just getting old????

So, I am home again. The next [scheduled] trip is in April, 2016. An 11 day land tour of Croatia and then a few extra days in Italy, with Kyle, Kim, Mary and Jan.

More planning to do!!!

Bye, for now!

Ft. Lauderdale-Return to reality

Mon Nov 9, 2015

I woke up realllly early. I thought about going out to get a pic of entering the harbor, but we were already in. There are a row of lovely houses, on the north side, and on one trip, a house had a TV so big, I could read the CNN headlines as we passed it!

As I said before, the entire ship’s crew must go thru Custom’s before they even start with passengers. I got dressed, packed the last of everything and stowed my luggage so it would be out of the way for Victor and Rudy to make the bed…which I’d already stripped. [A weird thing, I know, but it saves them a few minutes.] I ran into Kyle at breakfast. We went out back for our final meal and holy moly, was it warm and steamy! There were two other ships in, the Celebrity Equinox and Seabourn Odyssey, a few berths over. It can get really crazy if the port is full…8 ships, if memory serves. [I counted 75 cruise ships on their Nov calendar, so it’s a busy busy place.]

There was a turkey vulture flying above us and hanging on the currents over the back deck. Of course, when I wanted a photo, he flew off!! Just before that, several crew guys were pretending they were flying the bird with a remote control. It was funny.

We left the ship around 10am, picked up Kyle luggage in the main hall and headed to Customs. Non US to the left…US to the right, and something called Global Entry, which I’d never seen before. For a fee, [$100-150 and filling out a form] you can ‘buy’ an entry card that lets you bypass the long lines and go to a separate Customs line. I’ll hafta think about it. I’ll only need it for 2 trips, next year…it’s good for 5yrs.

The wait in our line wasn’t too bad and we were soon outside dragging our luggage to the cab stand. Although the airport is just a few miles away, it’s a ways to get there. I’m not sure why the driver took us the ‘long’ way…out the port gate at the far end, vs. the gate by the berth where he picked us up…but, maybe they all must come and go thru that gate now. It added a few miles to the trip. He dropped me at Southwest, I bade goodbye to Kyle, who was headed to Delta, in another terminal. After I checked my bags, I headed to the gate, which of course was forever down the terminal. I got some coffee and a sandwich, for later. Because my flights are broken up, they don’t hafta feed us. Right as I was boarding, I went to turn off my phone and realized I didn’t have it!!! Well %$#@!! I raced back down the gangway, weaving through confused people, and back to where I was sitting…another gate area, and thankfulllllly, the phone was STILL siting on the seat of my chair! By the time I got back to the gate, they were boarding the last group and I was literalllly, the last person to get on the plane. I found a middle seat, my least favorite, and plopped my butt down! People in the back were still fighting for seats. Several people were upset they could not sit together. The flight attendant basically told them, ‘See a seat? Sit in it!’ One guy kept wandering, looking for a seat near his friend and another attendant said…’Seat’, pointing to one ahead of me, And then, ‘SIT!’ as she kept pointing to him and then the seat. He finally gave up and sat down.

The first leg was to Milwaukee, just about 2 1/2hrs, then to Las Vegas, about 4hrs. I thought I’d set my watch on Pac time, but I was off one hour….so, as we were landing at 5:45pm, my watch said 6:45pm and I knew my SD connection was boarding for a 7:10pm flight. I finally figured out the problem and laughed. Still, I had to walk about a mile [well, it sure seemed like it!] to get from the B gates to the C gates and then [of course!] my gate was as far as you could go at the end terminal. I got another coffee, played a slot [only lost $2] and it was time to go. Just as we’re boarding, I saw this really animated guy talking to a SW employee by our gate. He was really overly hyper/cheerful. I boarded, got my seat of choice and then…he boarded at the last second and sat across the aisle from me by an older couple. They moved to give him the window seat. And he was talking a mile a minute, with his headphones on and turned up loud enough for us around him to hear it too. He did turn it down, but kept talking to the lady, non stop. Before we took off, the attendants came around for drink orders, cuz we’re only in the air for 45min. He ordered a beer and she asked for payment [after she’d already made the announcement about no cash] he gave her this whole speech about not carrying cards, just cash, etc…..and she’s trying to tell him….then you get no beer. He finally stopped talking…for about 1min. Once we were in the air, he stopped, turned his music back on and settled in. just before landing he got up to use the bathroom at the front of the plane and then walked right by his seat and headed to the back of the plane…with a flight attendant on his tail. They must have found a spot for him back there, cuz she stopped by to ask the couple a few questions about his behavior. She had noticed his animation during the beer incident and was keeping an eye on him. I mentioned his hyper chat with a gate agent. I thin she was trying to decide if security was going to be needed when we landed. We landed a few minutes late [we were delayed by air traffic at McCarren] and we all got off. I watched, from a distance, to see if he had an escort, but he came bee bopping out the front door, headphones cranked up, by-passed the luggage area and was walking around outside…jumping up and then off, then on a bench. I saw a Harbor PD guy watching him from another door.

The luggage off load was delayed, and then, JUST as they started arriving on the belt…beep beep beeeeep…a luggage jam. Lights flashing, horn beeping. That took about 5min to fix. I love [not really] how everyone stands right at the belt waiting for their luggage instead of standing back so others can get theirs without knocking them out of the way. Stand back….when you see yours arrive step forward to get it and get out of the way. I had to chase mine to find an opening to grab it. Apparently, ‘Excuse me…excuse me, excuuuuuse me’ doesn’t work.  😡  I wrangled my suitcases up the escalator, over the walkway, down the escalator and over to the cab area. I was finalllly enroute home.

I could hear Sassy, as usual, when I came in the back gate. HOW DOES SHE KNOW? After dragging my 49.5lb suitcase up the stairs…the 38lb’er was EASY after that…I was able to hold her and smother her with kisses. She chatted at me while I brushed her and scratched her ears. We were both happy. After that, I collapsed on the couch! It was only about 9pm and I was wiped out! Shortly after that, I was in my jammies and in my own bed….with a window!!! I had missed my window!

Tomorrow, I’ll work on unpacking…for now…SLEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

Nassau, Bahamas

Sun Nov 8, 2015

Nassau, Bahamas 

2pm

It’s flippin’ HOT here! We went out around 9am and made a quick tour of part of the town. There are two other ships in, the Carnival Valor and RCCL Majesty of the Seas. In fact, the Carnival is just pulling out…they got here after us, so they had a really short day!

Today is Remembrance Day and town was gearing up for a celebration. We stopped at a little side street hotel for coffee and, of course, Wi-Fi. It was a cute, older place with a nice lounge and bar. I was pleasantly surprised that our 2 coffees were just $2 total, after all of the cheap coffee we’d had in Europe I was expecting to be gouged, a bit. There was a big blue macaw by the entrance that sat still long enough for me to get a few shots. They were quite gracious, I thought, for allowing us to come in and sit for coffee. The manager/owner greeted us as we left.

The Catholic Church was just a few doors down and the crowds were gathering. People were all dressed up, children in their school or Red Cross uniforms, young men and women in military uniforms and the high mucketies in their royal best. Some arrived in cars with a crown on the front bumper and with a motorcycle escorts. The streets were blocked off so there was no muss no fuss for the arrivees. There was an overflow seating area where we stopped to watch part of the mass on TV, for a few minutes. The Pirate Museum was right there, but we just went into the store. HOLY COW some of their stuff was expensive. $25-$36 for a t shirt!? We walked back to the main street where the uber expensive shops are mixed with the cheaper souvenir shops, and found the little beer place we saw earlier. We split a pitcher of local beer and had some ‘loaded’ fries…cheese and bacon….well, a few little bits of bacon, anyway. It was getting pretty crowded and toasty, so we headed back to the ship. It was just too uncomfortable to stay in town.

I found a spot, just off the ship and between us and Carnival, where there was a nice cool breeze! Very refreshing. Kyle went indoors. After I went aboard, I went straight to the back porch, hoping there was a breeze. Unfortunately, the sun was blazing up there, too. Every time it got covered by a cloud, it dropped 5*…which doesn’t sound like much until your half roasted. Wendy was there and we had a cold soda. But, it was just toooo hot. Time to move on.

10:30pm

We had our ‘last supper’ and I am stuffed. I didn’t even eat that much. I think it’s the cumulative effect of allllll of the food. During dinner, the lights are dimmed and the chefs, some of the room staff and waiter’s dance around the room. We all applaud to show our thanks and they scurry back to their posts. We said our goodbyes to Bambang and Faishol [fossil] and hugs all around. They are two nice guys! I [we] waddled out of the dining room and took a look at the photos taken during the trip, and for sale at $40a pop! I avoided the photogs at every stop. Kyle returned to her room and Nancy and I made one last walk thru the shops and said our goodbyes. She was headed to the casino for one last run at the machine she likes. They head back to Canada, but….will be on this ship when it returns to the Med, in April. I passed thru the Lido where the chefs were having a staff meeting. Tomorrow is the BIG health and safety inspection and the head chef was giving them a pep talk.

I’d left a ‘little extra’ tip for my cabin stewards and when I ran into Victor he bowed down to me. He is funny! In addition, Kyle gave him a silly [in a good way!] pair of black glasses with a mustache attached. They suit him well! He has such a great sense of humor! His 3mo. vacation starts next month and he is looking forward to it!

Now, it’s just last minute packing and preparing for the mad house, tomorrow. Breakfast will be the usual crowded affair. There were a lot of room service tags hanging from door handles, when I walked down the hall. And, all of the luggage that lines the walls is beginning to obstruct the walkway. That will start disappearing in a few hours and be taken to the hold for inspection before we disembark.

Time to finish what needs to be done and go to bed. It’s a long trip, tomorrow, to get back to SD. 2 stops and 2 planes, just to get there. It was the only flight available that wasn’t a late afternoon flight. I’ll get in just after 8pm.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZ time.

6th, and final, Day at Sea

Sat Nov 7, 2015

6^th, and final, Day at Sea

9pm

I’m tired. It hasn’t been a particularly busy day. Breakfast, reading on the back porch, a double cappuccino, more reading, a spot of time in the casino…

Kyle and I, along with a few hundred people, took a tour of the ship’s galley. I haven’t done that in years. 134 people, working 24/7, keep the food supply going so that none of us ever goes hungry. 90% of the food served is made onboard. 12 people just wash dishes….alllll day long…3000 dinner plates, 7000 dessert plates, 2000 mid-sized plates, 5000 glasses and all of the assorted silverware, plate covers, platters and ramekins that goes with all of those. Each area has its own work area…room service, breakfast preps, the cold kitchen [cheeses, fruit, salads], the hot kitchen [soups, hot appetizers, grills, fryers] and the bakery [20 different kinds of bread, 120 loaves of French bread 4000 dinner rolls, 800 croissants, etc., all made daily] and the pastry shop [making pies, cakes cookies, scones, for high tea, etc.] There’s so much more! The crew have their own chefs [1 Filipino and 3 Indonesian] who prepare their meals in their quarters. The ship averages 11,000lbs of meat, 4000lbs of chicken, 3000lbs of fish and 2500lbs of seafood, per cruise. 24,000 eggs, 7600lbs of potatoes, 13,700lbs of fresh veg….The list goes on! And all of the waste MUST be recycled or properly dealt with. Some is mulched, dried and burned with dry waste in an incinerator. The cans and bottles are crushed into bricks and recycled on shore. Stuff that cannot be recycled is compacted, boxed and put in cold storage for disposal in port. It really is a fascinating place.

We did our final Canaletto dinner with the Wade sisters, from Canada. We only made it as far as the appetizers and pasta course. We had no more room for a main course! Of course, we had dessert! I only managed a few bites of my Tiramisu, which was a very large piece!

I checked out back and the air is very tropical, almost muggy. It should be another warm day, tomorrow, in port.

I did a little more packing, putting away the things I’ve worn the last 2 days. I have enough dirty clothes for another load of laundry, but there’s not enough time left. The last of everything goes in tomorrow night. We got our disembarkation and Customs paperwork. We are ‘independent travelers’ [Pink 1] and must be off the ship by 10:30am. That gives plenty of time for people, rushing to get away, to clear out.

10pm and time for bed. We want to get to town ‘early’, cuz rumor has it, some shops will close t 1pm. I also think out cheap cheap cappuccinos have come to an end. We’ll see how much they cost in the real world!

 

5th Day at Sea

Fri Nov 6, 2015

5^th Day at sea

Noon

The Cpt. is explaining old/current nautical terms, while he gives us our daily time, lat. and long stats. Now I finally know the true meaning of ‘freezing the balls off a brass monkey’!  Who knew!?

It’s a beautiful and warm day out. 81* with a slight breeze. The back porch is packed. I have yet to be in the pool, but I may rethink that today. It’s toasty!

I keep running [several times, literally!] into the same cute officer, who does some food procurement. Several days ago we had a talk about bagels. Yesterday he asked me if I’d found my sesame seed bagel, yet. He was going to get me one if I hadn’t. Now he just says ‘bagel’ as he passes!

Tonight is the Dem Forum [9pm our time] and we may get to see some of it if we don’t dawdle at dinner. I think Rachel is an excellent choice for a moderator. We’ll see how it goes.

5:30pm

I spent a pleasant afternoon on the back porch. It got a little warm, at one point, so I went indoors and had a sammich. I never did swim…too much effort to change clothes! After a while I decided to start packing. I’m 85% done. I just had to leave out a few things for the next few days. Easy peasy! The weird thing is, so far, they don’t seem to weigh as much as when I started the trip! The last few things will go in the night before, or the morning, we land. Since we’re carrying our own stuff, we don’t need to leave our luggage outside the door for pick up, by 2am. Oh, I just remembered I have chocolate in a drawer…can’t forget that! BRB…OK, that’s packed!

The cable signal to the TV keeps freezing and always right in the middle of something interesting! ARGH! This started yesterday. I think we’re just in an awkward area at sea. It should get better as we get closer to land. One more day at sea until we hit the Bahamas.

1am

I went to the casino, after dinner. I was ONLY gonna stay for a little while. Well…I was winning, so I stayed. And…then I wasn’t, so I left. I’m only $10 down…not bad, in the grand scheme of things. I’ll cash out my casino card tomorrow. The cashier closed at midnight.

This is the last time change. In an hour [we make the change at 2am] we’ll be back on US time.

I’m watching the replay of the Forum. I like the way it’s set up. No posturing and yelling to be heard over the others. One on one interviews! I like it! Off to bed to watch it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4th Day at Sea

Thur Nov 5, 2015

4^th Day at sea

10am

One would think that gaining an hour, every day or so, would be beneficial for sleeping. It’s screwing up my sleep pattern! I wake up wondering what time it is, feeling that I’ve slept for hours and it’s still the middle of the night. ARGH! We have one last change and then we’re done! With that comes a sun setting so early! I think it sets at 5:10, or so, tonight.

It’s a beautifully warm and sunny day out. I sat in the sun for a while, warming my old bones.  The back porch is littered with shirtless men and women in various forms of dress…bikinis to Mumu’s…getting their share of the rays.

Our Pinnacle lunch is at 12:15pm, so I had a light breakfast…a little bagel, cream cheese and some lovely lox. I shared part of my honey stash with some guy this morning. He was hunting for some [already gone by 8:30am] and so I slipped him 2 spares. It’s like contraband! I told him to grab a few for himself, if he saw some later. I still have 2, just in case. The silly things we do!

Warning…politics ahead…feel free to skip this section…

I am so tired of seeing Donald Trump’s face on every flippin’ TV channel. We get BBC, MSNBC, FOX and CNBC…ALLLL of them had either a live interview, a taped interview or story about him this morning. What an awful way to wake up! I cannot stand the man’s voice anymore. WHAT A BLOWHARD!!! On the other hand, I can’t stand to listen to Ben Carson, either. The man’s flat toned speech pattern is so scary psychotic, to me. It’s like he is just an empty shell of a person. If this was [were?] a Men in Black movie, I’d expect him to shed his earthly shell and some bizarre space alien to burst forth! I’ve said this several times…Carson is both disturbed and disturbing on so many levels, to me.

FOX just posted a new ‘poll’…73% of FOX viewers don’t like Hillary. Well, duh! They’re FOX viewers on a FOX poll! And, having once been called by a poll company doing a [secret] FOX poll, I can tell you the questions are sooooo skewed that it’s not even funny. Initially, the guy refused to tell me who the poll was for, until the end when he whispered, something like…’Check FOX.com later for results’. BINGO!

End of politics…!

5pm

Our Pinnacle lunch was delish, as usual. We took the last bottle of bubbly to add to the decadence. Kyle said she could eat there daily. I see more Pinnacle meals ahead, on our next cruise.

Speaking of future cruise…there are 2 future cruise consultants, on this ship. They are a husband and wife team and they are very busy!!! Kyle wanted to speak to one of them and people were waiting, 6-8 deep for each consultant. A couple of the trips she and I are interested in aren’t really listed, yet. Very little is available for 2017, this far ahead. We’re interested in both the Arctic and Antarctic areas. Sadly, the Prinsendam has some of those routes, and even though it’s their smallest ship, it has a hefty price!

Time for a bit o’ coffee.

10pm

Full, again, from too much food. Dinner was…interesting. Roberta ‘regaled’ us with her tummy woes. Oy! Sorta took the joy out of eating. She should have just stayed in her room and ordered in. Talk of a previous surgery, ‘gas’, her ‘swollen belly’ and all of the water she’s had to drink, today, was just a bit much for dinner conversation. They finally left and went back to their room. Like I said…nice, but wearing thin.

Bambang, our man waiter, came by the table and we had a nice long chat. He is funny and has a very infectious smile. His wife is due, very soon, and he is a little anxious. Last night, we ran thru possible names for the baby. They don’t know if it’s a boy or girl so, we were going thru names beginning with ‘A’…to match the ‘A’ names of his 2 girls. It was funny to watch his face as we came up with ridiculous names. Finally he said, she’s doing all the hard work, she gets to name the baby! He won’t get home until February to see them all.

I went out back and it was really nice out. No wind, calm seas and you could see stars…although, not well due to the bright lighting onboard. It’s supposed to be HOT tomorrow. Tomorrow is also the last Gala night and the Captain’s Black and White Ball. The big to-do of the trip. Maybe I’ll stop by. I don’t think I’ve ever been… I rarely go to the shows or musicales in the evening. Not interested. So, I’ll watch Rachel [I’m watching her as I do this] and then it’s reading time.

G’night

3rd Day at Sea

Wed Nov 4, 2015

3^rd Day at sea 

3pm

I used one of my ‘hoarded’ honeys this morning and I was glad I had it. The honey was gone by 8:30am! I have 2 left!

The day started out warm and sunny. You could actually see the horizon, it was so clear. It was beautiful! Now it’s cold and windy and wet! I was up on the back porch, sitting in the sun and within 5min, the sun disappeared, the wind whipped up and then the rain started to fall. Brrrr!

The Mariner’s awards luncheon was today. We met the Cpt. and he actually shook hands, which many do not do due to germs. When he awarded a medallion, he did the 3 cheek kiss to seal the deal. It was a nice ceremony. Kyle got her copper medallion, and kisses, for her 100+ days. I thought I was to get a pin for my 400 days, but…nope. My 400 are ‘cumulative’ days…meaning, added bonus days for the $$$ I’ve spent on tours, wine and other things on board. They differentiate between those and actual sea days. So, mine comes later. Which is fine. When I reach 500 days, I’ll be a 5 star Mariner, so I have a bit to go, yet. I am happy Kyle finally got her medallion. She wore it proudly to lunch. And, we got our commemorative tiles! Silly little things, but I like them.

We also made reservations for one more Pinnacle lunch and Canaletto dinner. These last days seem to be going by quickly! The last Gala night is the 6^th, giving us 2 days to pack and prepare for reality on the 9^th.

We’re going to try the Crow’s Nest, today. On some days they have other events there that interfere with the 4pm happy hour! Trivia players take up all the happy hour seats. How rude! Ha! I’ll pick Kyle up at 3:45pm and we’ll stake out our chairs, hopefully before the crowd descends. 

6:30pm

Right before we left, there was a blurb on MSNBC about shots fired in Little Italy. Kyle said it was really Bankers Hill by her old address. If I’d had internet access, I could have pulled up SDPD dispatch and listen in. Maybe they’ll have another blurb later with the outcome.

We made it to Crow’s Nest and got window seats. Yay! We had a nice view of the rain and ugly weather in front of us. But, that soon stopped and it was a pretty, albeit, cloud covered sunset.

It’s gotten quite blustery, out back, but it’s not really cold. The wind is just annoying. I think we have more of the same tomorrow.

10pm

I am stufffffed! I didn’t even eat all of my dinner, either. It was so much food, and a weird mixture. Slices of lamb loin, pearl couscous [not my favorite] and moussaka [?], which was really good. it could have been its own meal. The Snickers cake was outstanding! I could still only eat about half. I took a bottle of champagne and we all shared that. 1 down and 1 to go. Nancy and Wendy each have a bottle and we may drink those, too. They are also going to join us for Canaletto. We asked Marty and Roberta, but they can’t seem to make up their minds. She says he is a picky eater, but Wendy says she’s seen him at breakfast and he eats like there is no tomorrow! Actually, I’d rather they didn’t join us…they are nice, but wearing a tad thin on my nerves. They’ve lead interesting lives, know interesting people and have a lot of stories. Our table can get a bit boisterous at times.

Another hour change tonight….getting closer to US time zones. Time for a little reading.

2nd Day at Sea

I can’t find Nov 2nd! It disappeared during editing and I’ve been unable to retrieve it! Grrr!

Tues Nov 3, 2015

2^nd Day at sea

1:30pm

I am so lost for date and time. I have to keep checking! We’ve changed time zones every night, with several more to go….I think. I’M SO CONFUSED! My fuggy head isn’t helping. Kyle and I exchange drugs this morning. My Advil for her Claritin-D.

I had a little sushi for lunch. They have a nice sushi selection. Small, but nice. They were also serving Indonesians food in the Asian section today. The menu changes a little every day.

I’ve been drinking hot lemon and honey, but honey is in short supply. I grabbed two at breakfast and am using the 2^nd now. There are none in the bin by the tea. I’ve seen people grab 3 or 4 at a time, so they disappear quickly.

I’m outback where it’s not really cold, just blustery…with intermittent rain showers. Grey and more grey all around! The ‘nice’ thing is that we’re sailing into the rain so there’s no blowing wet from the side when you’re on the back deck. It could be worse. High seas and rain, like before. So, I am happy as is!

From the looks of the food on the plates passing by, the weather hasn’t affected any appetites.

Just swallowed the last of the honey lemon concoction. Time to scout for more honey. Where’s Pooh when ya need him!

4pm

Victor and Rudy were happy to see me up and around, today. They were concerned I was ill and were quite pleased to have access to change my bedding, yet again. They saw that I’d used a whole box of Kleenex and left me a couple of new boxes. I am less drippy, which pleases me, too!  They are sweet guys. They are always singing and joking around. Kyle taught them a new ‘good morning’ song to replace the one they sing to all of us, every morning, when we pass by them.

I went up to the Explorations Café to get a coffee and use their computers to read the NY Times. Nothing of interest, there. But, they had 1 honey, in their bin, and I grabbed it! They also had some lovely little sweet treats in their display case, but nothing yelled out, ‘Eat me!’ I took my coffee out back where the weather was still mild, but cool and still very grey! I was warm enough while I had the hot coffee. It seemed to get much cooler after I finished it, forcing me back indoors.

I can’t decide if I’m too hot or too cold. I keep changing the temp in my room! It was too warm when I left and now it’s cold. I had to put my little booties on to warm my feet.

Michael, the cruise director…aka…the fun and games guy, is announcing that the $15,000 bingo game is about to start. Quick, get your cards and come play! There’s also the $148,000 Paradise lotto drawing, later, in the casino. Just $2 a game. I wonder if anyone ever wins these things? And, let’s not leave out the pub crawl. For $25 you can go from bar to bar and drink.

10pm

Dinner was just Kyle, Nancy and me so, dinner was rather quick. No long conversations between courses, with just 3 of us. Tomorrow we’re bringing one of our bottles of champagne…we have 2 left…to dinner. We just haven’t gotten around to drinking all of them. [I think I did earlier, but just in case, THANK YOU, Kim, for the bubbly.] We still have 3 bottle of wine to go thru, too. It’s worked out pretty well. Kyle and I have 2 different wine packages, so we have a bigger selection to choose from. If she wants a red from mine, have at it! If I want a white from her list, it’s all good.

And, I found more honey! I’m ‘hoarding’ 3 of them! Funny the things that become ‘important’! HA! Now I know I can have my lemon/honey drink in the morning.

TV isn’t tooooo bad, tonight. Pirate of the Caribbean, On Stranger Tides…not the best of the series, but watchable.  RIPD, dead cops come back to capture other dead people? I haven’t figured out the [stupid] plot yet, but it’s a pretty hokey movie. Z is for Zachariah, or something like that…not a clue on this one! And, finally, This is Where I Leave You. I’ve seen it before. Not too bad. I’ll just read for a bit. At least there’s no time change tonight!

Nighty night!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Horta, Azores

Sun Nov 1, 2015

Horta, Azores 

4pm

The wakeup call sounded at 6:30am and I was up and off to breakfast by 7. We had to be in the lounge by 7:50am to catch our tender for the tour. Faial is a beautiful island, from what I can see from our spot outside the harbor. Lots of green terraced hillsides with white house’s dotting the hills and city center. When we sat in the lounge, we were told the tenders would be loaded in small groups. The ShorEx guy said he’d start with the center section and had us get up and move to the door to be counted and get our bus stickers. As we got up, several people from another section bolted for the door to the cries of ‘CENTER SECTION ONLY’, from people sitting around them. They didn’t even flinch…just jumped the line and headed for the door! We made it to the 1^st tender and onto land after a short ride. Filomena was our guide on bus #1. She was born and raised on Pico Island. Horta is located at the south east corner of the island. We drove west through town, along the southern coast. Today, being Sunday, most everything is closed except some of the café’s and a few grocery stores. The airport clings to the coast on the south end. I never saw a plane, but there were a lot of cars parked there. They have a 4 ½hr flight from NYC that caught Kyle’s attention! Other flights go to Lisbon and other European cities. The coastline is black volcanic rock and it makes for an interesting shoreline. There are lots of little parks with public ‘fireplaces’ used for summer BBQ’s, along with tables and benches for seating. They’re very nice! Some of the island is dense and very lush with trees and bushes…like the rain forest. We stopped in an area where there are ‘summer’ homes and only a few year ‘round inhabitants. We got out of the bus by a boat launch area, at the bottom of a road, and there was a small, nice looking hotel/restaurant with 4 or 5 little bungalows. All closed for the winter. What was surprising was how mild the weather was for being right on the water. At the top of the road I pointed out a ruin to Kyle that would make a nice fixer upper! [We both have lots of Google work to do when we return!] There are a lot of ruins here. During 1957-1958 a volcano rose from the sea, just a few km N/W of our beach stop, at Ponta do Varadouro. The raining ash collapsed roofs and burnt up the land. Amazingly, no one died! But, many left the island and have never returned. Starting in Oct 1957, this volcano formed, collapsed, reformed, collapsed and reformed off what was the far west coast of the island. Over all, it was 13months of major volcanic and earthquake activity. The lava temperature reached 1100*C, or over 2000*F. There is a light house and a sea wall that was, before the eruption, the furthest point west. Now there is an additional 2.4 sq. km beyond that point. Three ‘mountains’ make up what’s left of the volcano. The foundations of a few houses that were by the lighthouse are visible under the black ash sand.

We stopped at this little café for a potty break and a chance for coffee or a galea [?], the type of coffee the locals drink. It’s a latte, for all intents and purposes, but made with milk from island cows. It was tasty, but the poor ‘baristas’ where overwhelmed with busloads of folks arriving. I was glad that we got there first! We continued along the north side and then turned south to head up the hill to the Capelinhos Caldeira, the OTHER volcano at the center of the island. It’s been dormant for years. As we climbed the hill [3000ft up] you could see 3 other Azorean islands. I can’t tell what 2 of them were, but the 3^rd was Pico Island, which was closer than I thought! It’s quite high, with a pointy peak and snow on top. It was periodically covered with clouds, but I think I got a few good shots. Going up the hillside there are more lovely cottage/homes and lots of cows in beautifully manicured fields. It’s very reminiscent of the interior of Ireland, to me. Here the terraced hills are divided by hydrangea or island bamboo. All of the hydrangeas are blue. We are at the very end of their season, so very little blue was to be seen. Someone goes around and trims the bushes along the roadway, using the dead/dried flowers for floral arrangements.

It was COLD at the top of the caldera. There is a tunnel thru the rock that takes you to a viewing platform. There used to be 2 large lakes in the crater, but many years ago the earth opened and swallowed them. Lush plants grew in the moist earth and there are now 2 little ‘lakes’ surrounded by greenery. It was huge and it was just toooo cold to stay there for too long. We were very lucky cuz fog sometimes covers the top of the crater and you can see nada.

As we drove down the S/W side of Capelinhos, we had a nice view of Horta, the ship and Pico. We passed above a village called Flamengos, after the Flemish who settled there, many years ago. Kyle and I both noticed the giant ‘manor house’ with huge grounds off to one side. [More Google work!] Our final stop was a ‘vista point’ looking down on the city, the harbor and, behind us, another lovely valley of fields, cows and houses. Someone asked about ‘wild animals’ on the island. The answer…we have wild rabbits!

 After we were dropped back at the terminal, we headed towards town. The center of town is about a 20min walk, so we opted for a closer café…with Wi-Fi. It was packed, as were most of the little cafés closest to the terminal. [The terminal had free Wi-Fi, but why sit there when you can have a nice view.] We got a table inside and had a little snackie. A simple ‘tosta’ or grilled sammich and more galea for me. Kyle opts for the local beer. From where we sat, we could see the long lines for the tender. NO RUSH! There’s no way we were gonna be late with the line that long. And it’s only a short jog back to the terminal. There were several hundred in line, more in the terminal and a bunch in line at Customs…for their VAT refunds. No need to hurry! The tenders only hold about 50 people…when used as tenders, twice that in emergencies. People kept rushing, just to stand in line forever. We sauntered back and hung out in the terminal and still had to wait 30+min for a tender spot. We were the last boat to leave…which was fine with me!

Tonight is Canaletto. Kyle hasn’t been since they changed the menu, a few yrs back. Even with 2, it’s a lot of food.

9:30pm

OINK! OINK! Holy cow we ate too much! The menu has changed, as I mentioned, but holy cow! First they bring you bread with olive oil and the BEST balsamic for dipping. [It pours like thick sweet honey]. Then, they arrive with an Amuse Bouche…a dollop of soft as a cloud mascarpone cheese with a sweet tomato jam on a crisp little slice of Italian bread. YUM! Then we shared a bib lettuce salad with a big slab of creamy, and somewhat subtle, bleu cheese, candied walnuts with a raspberry vinaigrette. AND a beef Carpaccio with shaved parmesan and some lightly dressed greens. AND the veal and chicken meatballs with little chipolini onions in a luscious tomato sauce. AND 2 of the biggest ravioli’s I’ve ever seen! Mascarpone filled raviolis covered in a leek, dill and white cheese sauce…OMG! I swear, these raviolis were 4’’ square, each! And those were just the starters!!! Since the food is based on ‘sharing’, they will make the mains for a single portion, if requested. WE REQUESTED! I had the white sea bass, with caper and lemon sauce, some little fingerling potatoes and dressed greens. Kyle had the veal with angel hair pasta and crispy [deep fried] kale. BUT, THERE’S MORE!!! For dessert we chose the little fudge-like chocolate cakes covered in chocolate and small scoops of very good vanilla ice cream…a cappuccino for me and an espresso for Kyle. This feast set us back…..$5 each! [The usual fee is $10, but I only have to pay 50% due to my ‘loyalty’ to HAL]. Even at $10, it’s worth every pennnny!  We then waddled home, by way of the back porch. It’s raining, but the air feels pretty tropical.

We found out today that we can’t use the baggage service. If we do, we MUST leave the ship with our baggage at like 7:45-8:15am. AIN’T GONNA HAPPEN! Luggage and owners now must travel together in case there is an inspection. We’ll wheel our stuff off.

Another time change tonight. I plan on sleeping late. No rush to go anywhere. There will always be food and drink, whenever I wake up. Food…OMG I am so full! Isn’t gluttony a deadly sin? Then, I have sinnnned!

On that note….good night!

Ponta Delgada, Azores

Sat Oct 31, 2015

Ponta Delgada, Azores

HAPPY HALLOWEEEEN 

5:30pm

The rock and roll started to subside about 1am. When I woke about 7am, it was very calm as we headed into the port. Finally, you could move without the fear of being thrown around. I ran into Kyle at breakfast and we decided to go ashore when we finished. Just as we were leaving Victor brought me a brand new hairdryer. YAY! I didn’t have one when I washed my hair, this morning. I had to drip dry, which wasn’t all that bad. It’s not like have a lot of hair!

 I’d forgotten what a pretty city this is. Our first stop…cappuccino and Wi-Fi…at a little café on the harbor. As usual, we laughed when the bill came…1.80Euro each. The sidewalks are made of square white stones with black designs. Each street has a little different pattern. We found a nice discount clothing store and Kyle bought a lightweight jacket. Her sweater got a bad snag that needs to be repaired. [Later, I went back, before we headed to the ship, and got a really nice red ’sweater’ scarf for under 3Euro.] We walked through narrow streets, through plazas, around churches and back again. We stopped at little cafeteria and had some lunch. It started to rain, just as we sat down, and people started scattering. There was a corner table under an awning and we ran for that! I had an interesting ham and cheese crepe and more cappuccino. Then, more streets, more alleyways, more shops. We stopped so I could see where the public market was and we were standing next to the place! It was the end of their market day and they were starting to pack up. Fish is in a far corner, meat on the outside and fresh fruit and veg in the middle. There was a shop that printed shirts to order. You pick the color, the size and what you wanted printed on it and they make it. So, I got one printed for a friend of mine. I also stopped in a local grocery and got more ground coffee…cheap! Roughly ½lb for 1.35Euro. Adding it to my ‘coffees from around the world’ collection.

We topped back at the original café for one more snack before re-boarding. We saw our waitress making crepes and asked for some. Yummy chocolate crepes. Kyle sampled their wine and I had the usual cappuccino. Again, very affordable food.

The cruise terminal is well thought out. Some nice shops and a lot of restaurants/bistros/bars. And a Burger King, which is where we saw a lot of the crew using the internet. There is a roped off area, just off the terminal, in a sorta of concrete bay, where people can swim in the ocean. There were several people doing laps in the water. Just off the bow were windsurfers. There is also a beautiful pool/spa in the same area. I’m not sure if it’s public or attached to the 2 ‘Atlantico’ Hotels just across the road.

There is a beautiful house, across from the terminal, up above the street, and Kyle has decided it’s ‘her’ wannabe house. I took her pic with it. When she buys it, we’ll all come visit and sit on the lovely verandah and look out at the sea.

We sailed away at 5pm. The sun was hitting the city and the green hillsides at just the right angle and it was all lit up. We are headed to Horta. It’s only 150, or so, nautical miles, so there’s no rush. In fact, the Cpt. told us that he is extending our stay by 2hrs. It was to be a short day…back onboard by 12:30pm…but we’ll now have the extra time. Which is good for us. I booked a tour cuz it was a short day and I wanted to see some of the island. Now, we may have time to see town, as well.

I should know this for sure, but I believe my Great grandfather, Giherme Jose Frago, came from Flores Island. I forgot my family tree sheet for the Portuguese side of the family! [Vatti will correct me!] I’ll check it when I get home.

Kyle and I, not wanting to do the group dinner thing tonight, tried to get a res. at Canaletto for tonight. They are fully booked so, we’ll just do it tomorrow when we already have a res.

10pm

I wore my devil ears and some bat earrings to dinner. Wendy had a full on witches outfit. Many others wore things as, well. I OD’d on crab cakes…my main course…and had a nice chocolate ‘devil’ cupcake with a very light filling and frosting. Very tasty! Now I am miserably full! Just before dinner started, we hit a few rough ‘speed bumps’ and we all groaned….Oh, no….not again! The waters have since calmed down, thank goodness!

Tomorrow is a tender port. Kyle and I have an 8am tour to the Caldeira and the volcano of Capelinhos. We’ll first stop at a viewpoint for a look back to Horta and the harbor and then ascend 3,000ft to the volcanic crater, in the center of the island. The caldera is a mile in diameter and 1200ft deep, ‘surrounded by some of the most luxuriant vegetation imaginable’. After that we’ll pass thru some typical Azorean villages and catch a ‘magnificent view of Capelinos, the volcano that rose from the sea in 1957’…all weather permitting!  We’ll use the extra 2hrs the Cpt. gave us to look around town.

TV is realllly ^%$# tonight. Too late to get a movie from the front desk. Oh, how I suffer!!!!

Boa Noite

 

P.S.

This will be the last of the ‘Sea Tweets’ until Bermuda. 6 days at sea, starting tomorrow, thereby giving your eyes some needed rest.