Well we arrived safely home and so did all the luggage that accompanied us. (even if the brand new bag we got from the ship got torn up a bit-damn...) We are still awaiting one suitcase from FedEx - tracking says it will arrive today... I have unpacked half the stuff along with the 5 boxes we mailed from Hawaii. Am taking a break but will probably unpack more here in a bit.
If you remember, I mentioned I fell on the ship a week ago - although my knee still hurts it is better - it appears that I also battered an ankle and messed up my back-or should I say re-messed it up... I feel a bit better today, but if I sit too long, I get really stiff. It is HELL getting old...
Thanks to Todd for picking us up at the airport - the house was still standing and it is GREAT to get kisses from my dogs... Looking forward to kisses from Jess too, but won't see him till next week...
I hope you enjoyed reading about our Grand Adventure - we will do another somewhere again, most likely in 2012... Brian and I want to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. This is my Christmas card this year, as I will be lucky to get a tree up...hehe
In the next day or two I will try to post a few more photos and that will be it... Happy Blogging GB
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
back in the USA
We are back in the lower 48 - we arrived in San Diego on Th. In rereading blogs I noticed I did not mention Hawaii. I have not been to Hawaii since Jess was a baby... I had a great time shopping with friends. We went to a muumuu factory and had a blast. I bought 2 dresses and 3 shirts for B. Shopped around the mall a bit but it was "Black Friday" so too crowded for me. I rode the city bus back to the ship and unloaded my packages in my room. Then went out to the Aloha Tower shops and strolled around. Called Jess and it was a pleasure to talk to him for awhile... Bought a beautiful opal bracelet and headed back to the ship. There was luau by the pool so met up with B and friends and enjoyed a great dinner and we sailed away for the last time...
I did win the ladies golf event so I am the champion of the Amsterdam Open! I also opted to play in the last poker tourney and came in 3rd - shudda won it but made a play from the small blind after the button folded (with only 3 players left) and the bb had Jacks... Oh well it was fun and I won more money playing the cash game...
San Diego has been fun too - I have not been here either since Jess was 6... We rode the trolley downtown and had Chinese food for dinner-yum. Yesterday I got a manicure, and my hair done while B got a massage... I think he might of got the better end of the deal...lol! We met with friends for dinner (sdjen) and had great BBQ. We parked nearby and rode in a Cinderella carriage to meet them at the eatery. Today we are meeting up with some of B's George friends... We may go to a casino this evening or tomorrow. My knee is much better from the fall but the whole body is still sore-i think I need a massage... I will write one more blog once we are home in La Vernia - you might check the other blogs as I have added photos to a couple of them... happy reading...
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| ship at Aloha Tower in Hawaii |
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| 2 pigs at the luau |
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Knot Over!
Well our Grand Voyage is coming to an end. We are less than 1000 nautical miles from San Diego... It has been an amazing journey and we are sad that it is almost over... but it will be nice to see old friends, our dogs and our son in a couple of days. We will stay in San Diego for a week then home to Texas.
Unfortunately we have had crummy weather this last couple of sea days. Gloomy, gray and a bit of rain. Up until then I have managed to walk my mile daily, but... the first sea day leaving Hawaii coming out the Lido, I slipped, fell and wrenched my knee... It is MUCH better (I do miss Dr. JoJo tho)even tho I have other aches and pains too from the fall, so no mile walking for me... I did manage to qualify for the Amsterdam Open golf tourney despite my injury and am the Ladies Champion! Yea!! Our trivia team continues to do well even if we don't win every day. We will have 2 more trivia games today and that will be it...<sniff>
All 7 suitcases are just about packed-I have to finish up with the last minute things... Brian has been on a roll in the casino and has won a bit at the slots.I have not won much at poker but been having a blast with my 'game genie" buddies, Joe & Ryan, playing Fun 21... today is the last poker tourney and I am not sure I will play, maybe... Well we will see ya'll soon- I am not sure I am ready to enter the real world again, especially at Christmas time... I will miss my bed being turned down at night, knowing friends are just upstairs along with the casino, having my own seaview walking track and chocolates on my pillow... hope this finds you well... hugs GB
PS: I do have some photos which I will add once we are in San Diego - the ships internet is tooooo slow to handle pics...
Unfortunately we have had crummy weather this last couple of sea days. Gloomy, gray and a bit of rain. Up until then I have managed to walk my mile daily, but... the first sea day leaving Hawaii coming out the Lido, I slipped, fell and wrenched my knee... It is MUCH better (I do miss Dr. JoJo tho)even tho I have other aches and pains too from the fall, so no mile walking for me... I did manage to qualify for the Amsterdam Open golf tourney despite my injury and am the Ladies Champion! Yea!! Our trivia team continues to do well even if we don't win every day. We will have 2 more trivia games today and that will be it...<sniff>
All 7 suitcases are just about packed-I have to finish up with the last minute things... Brian has been on a roll in the casino and has won a bit at the slots.I have not won much at poker but been having a blast with my 'game genie" buddies, Joe & Ryan, playing Fun 21... today is the last poker tourney and I am not sure I will play, maybe... Well we will see ya'll soon- I am not sure I am ready to enter the real world again, especially at Christmas time... I will miss my bed being turned down at night, knowing friends are just upstairs along with the casino, having my own seaview walking track and chocolates on my pillow... hope this finds you well... hugs GB
PS: I do have some photos which I will add once we are in San Diego - the ships internet is tooooo slow to handle pics...
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Western Samoa & beyond
Greetings & Happy Thanksgiving -
We left Samoa about 5 days ago and have been enjoying our sea days-more about that later...
Western Samoa appeared to be a beautiful island however we arrived in their rainy season so it rained from the time we got there till just about when we left.... but like B says, "only 1 rainy port out of 24 ain't bad"... We have had really nice weather so tolerating Samoan climate was tolerable. We docked about 4 miles from the town but you could see it from the ship as it was like a peninsula. B & I grabbed a cab and went into the downtown area-shopping of course. Things were pretty expensive as far as dry goods went - I did buy a dragon t-shirt and paid $12 for it which seemed high after my $3 Cambodian shirt...lol! We were getting drenched so after touring the market, we grabbed a cab and headed back to the ship. There was also a market set up at port so I checked out stuff there. B gave me Samoan money and told me I had to spend it - geewhiz...let me see what I can do...lol! Bought some little gifts for friends-maybe even one of my readers here...hehe
The weather the last 5 days has not been terribly sunny but I have heard it is better than half the US. I have been trying to get a bit of sun so I look like I have been on a cruise... B is winning a bit in the casino on the slots and I chopped a poker tourney the other day... I have also been playing this crazy BlackJack Fun 21 game with these 2 crazy boys-we applaud loudly when we get bj and pairs and they do a "game genie" dance before every cut after the shuffle. I think I am probably down money-wise, but we have so much fun I don't mind. I will miss them when the trip is over... My trivia team is doing well and we got a PERFECT 16-all the answers right yesterday!!!! Ii would like to do this one more time before we are done...
Tonight we are having Thanksgiving with a large group of friends-10 and we will enjoy, laugh, drink and eat lots of turkey. I will try not to think about next Thursday and NOT being aboard ship anymore... <sniff> And ALL the packing that has to be done before then...lol! Before then, we arrive in Hawaii tomorrow and I am shopping (of course) while B is going zip tripping... If I find an internet I will post some photos, so check back later...
Hope you all had a great turkey day - be seeing some of you real soon...
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Fiji
Bula Bula - that is hello and good-bye in Fiji... Two days ago we were in New Caledonia which was a new island/country for us. We rode the hop-on/hop-off bus, but we never hopped off...lol! The island was pretty and the beaches looked ok but we just toured it then checked out the shops... Oh, did I mention this was a French territory? So although the people were nice enough the place was outrageously expensive! They wanted over $40 for cotton mumus and almost $15 for a small round of brie cheese! And butter was almost $7/lb. The best "souvenir" was a loaf of french bread ($1.10) and we took it to dinner that night... lol! Our trivia team has been doing a bit better lately and we actually won yesterday... We got 14 out of 16 correct! It was formal night last night - I had plans for wearing tropical tourquiose, but the weather was crummy so no sunning was possible... We wore lime green instead:
I won a bit in the casino yesterday and so did B... I was playing blackjack and got a pair of eights which I split. I got another eight, split and then another eight!! The dealer busted so I won all four hands!!! $80!
Today we are in Fiji and we have been here before... It is a busy city of Suva much like any city except the clerks wear floral prints and strange attire...
Fiji is much cheaper than the French island as the exchange rate is $1=1.75... The people are friendly but a bit pushy in the markets - the won't let you look without following you around... In the regular stores too but you can politely ask them to go away and they will... Tommorow we cross the equator again so we have the same day twice... We will get a change to do Saturday all over again - our own private Ground Hog Day...lol So we will be in Somoa in two days...see you then
Today we are in Fiji and we have been here before... It is a busy city of Suva much like any city except the clerks wear floral prints and strange attire...
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Sydney - No Worries...
G'Day again from Sydney. We are thoroughly enjoying our stay down-under. Went to the Star Casino and played a bit of poker. Minimum buy-in was $80 and I played $1-$2 but I only won one hand... This casino charges $5/person/hour to play poker and they deal the cards from a shoe... All the players are called runners & if you win a pot you are not allowed to tip the dealer... The most amazing thing was I sat down at the table and checked out the players and one guy looked really familiar. Turns out he was on a poker cruise with me last year and lives in Sydney - talk about small world...
We ate dinner last night on shore at a German bier-garten and had a very enjoyable time. One of our waiters looked a lot like Fargo from the sci-fi show Eureka...lol! We were pretty tired after dinner so went back to the room, read some and off to beddy-bye land...
Woke up early (for me: 845am) and went to breakfast for only the second time on this cruise....lol! After our meal we hooked up with some friends and told them about the great market we were heading to. Brian ended up "leading" the tour with 3 other couples to Paddy Market... I bought all kinds of goodies/xmas gifts and had a great time spending money....lol! As this computer does not have a card reader you will have to wait for photos on our next stop. Hope this finds you all well - oh and PTL! Jess finally wrote! LOL!!! hugs to all
We ate dinner last night on shore at a German bier-garten and had a very enjoyable time. One of our waiters looked a lot like Fargo from the sci-fi show Eureka...lol! We were pretty tired after dinner so went back to the room, read some and off to beddy-bye land...
Woke up early (for me: 845am) and went to breakfast for only the second time on this cruise....lol! After our meal we hooked up with some friends and told them about the great market we were heading to. Brian ended up "leading" the tour with 3 other couples to Paddy Market... I bought all kinds of goodies/xmas gifts and had a great time spending money....lol! As this computer does not have a card reader you will have to wait for photos on our next stop. Hope this finds you all well - oh and PTL! Jess finally wrote! LOL!!! hugs to all
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Short: Brisbane
G'day Mates
Picking up where we left off, the ship had a great poolside BBQ the night we were in Cairns. We ate grilled lambchops, ribs, drunk chickens and whole pig. It was delicious... We went to the night market and explored a bit. It was fun but not a great market...
The next day was a sea day and I was VERY lazy: slept till 1130am, went to trivia; slept out by the pool went to 3pm trivia; played a bit of poker, walked a mile and napped before dinner...guess I was tired... We are working so hard on our vacation...LOL! Like Jess' sign says, "it's great to do nothing, then rest afterwards..."
Today we are in Brisbane strolling the shops promenade, using the internet with plans to take the ferry later for a bite to eat on the South Bank, then back to play at the Treasury Casino. We have spent several days before in Brisbane and we like this city. There is an animal sanctuary nearby where we held a koala and fed the roos on our last trip. We leave late tonight and have a day at sea before arriving in Sydney... Will touch base again there...
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Cairns
Greetings blog followers:
We are in Cairns today having spent the last 2 days in the Great Barrier Reef seas. Unfortunately the weather was VERY crummy and the viewing was terrible... It was gray and rainy and late today is the first we have seen sunshine - but we decided not to fight the weather and canceled our snorkel trip in the Reef. It is possible that it turned out ok but I was afraid of being on a catamaran for 7 hours and not being able to enjoy the sun... We will just have to come back to this area as it is beautiful and we still need to see the GB Reef...
In Darwin the ship picked up some new passengers that were just on for a test run. They are Aussy travel agents and are a great group. We hung out with them at several events and closed the bar with them last night in the Piano Lounge. It was their last night on board so we joined them in the sing-along. It was such great fun and they are a terrific bunch! You know we were having a blast when Brian stays up past midnight still partying!! LOL! One of the agents was Jess' age and her name is Samantha - we suggested she consider Jess for a possible boyfriend... So now you have your pick JD: a Russian, a Chinese or an Aussy girl...LOL! She lives in Perth and may contact you on FB J... | ||
| Sam & Brian |
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| Brian with the Aussys: Paul, (Ryan) Sam, Sue, KIM!, Jill, Shane and Julie |
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| Shane leads us in Hey Jude while Striker plays the piano |
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Indonesia & Beyond
Today is Thursday and we are in Darwin, Australia. We left Semarang, Indonesia two days ago. It was an interesting port but we did not do much picture taking. There was a shuttle from the ship to the downtown area. We got off the bus and headed into a local mall. On the third floor was a shop with Indonesian style fabrics (batiks) and clothes. We asked if they had a shirt to fit B and the clerks just laughed...LOL! We did buy a couple of gorgeous silk batiks and the price was amazingly cheap.
That evening was Halloween and we dressed up as Egyptian noveau-rich... Lots of folks were eager to see our costumes so we debuted them in the casino... We had our picture taken often by other passengers and had a grand time parading around. After dinner there was a TERRIFIC Halloween party upstairs in the Crow's Nest. We danced, did a conga line, entered the couples costume contest (which we lost-again...) and had a great time. Over 200 people attended and the party went on past midnight - which is pretty astounding as most of these old folks go to bed by 10pm - the ship is "closed" usually by 11pm. LOL! On the dance floor one of the crew was dancing doing Yoga's tree pose - I started copying him and we danced for about 10 minutes and the folks cleared the dance floor rooting us on... The party was a total blast!!!!!!!
Hope this finds you all well - would be great to hear from some of you - especially JD! blessings....
That evening was Halloween and we dressed up as Egyptian noveau-rich... Lots of folks were eager to see our costumes so we debuted them in the casino... We had our picture taken often by other passengers and had a grand time parading around. After dinner there was a TERRIFIC Halloween party upstairs in the Crow's Nest. We danced, did a conga line, entered the couples costume contest (which we lost-again...) and had a great time. Over 200 people attended and the party went on past midnight - which is pretty astounding as most of these old folks go to bed by 10pm - the ship is "closed" usually by 11pm. LOL! On the dance floor one of the crew was dancing doing Yoga's tree pose - I started copying him and we danced for about 10 minutes and the folks cleared the dance floor rooting us on... The party was a total blast!!!!!!!
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| The Sheik & his subjects: The Cruise Staff-Katie, Brook & Kristin |
Yesterday was a sea day and our 33rd wedding anniversary. We played sports, swam in the pool and drank a bottle of wine at dinner that the Casino sprang for. It was a Riesling, so was pretty good...
Today in Darwin I had my legs waxed and got a haircut. Brian has been to the grocery store and now we are here at the internet... We have a couple of days at sea anchoring around the Great Barrier Reef before we make port in Cairns. There we have our only other tour booked as we will snorkel the Reef - should be amazing even tho the water will be cold.... Hope this finds you all well - would be great to hear from some of you - especially JD! blessings....
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Cambodia & Singapore
Yesterday was a short stop in Cambodia... There was a shuttle into the nearby town, so we headed out about 1030. When the bus arrived in the parking lot we were surrounded by the locals with signs held up to the windows trying to get our attention. They wanted to sell us "tuk-tuk" rides; bracelets; postcards or just outright begging for dollars - as it did not looks as if any of the beggars would "hit" one of B's marked george bills, we declined...lol!
As we exited the bus, Brian became my fullback and we proceeded to the market... Once in the market most of harassing ended,except one guy who persistently followed us for 10minutes... B & he finally agreed on a "tuk-tuk" ride price so we followed him back out of the market. The ride was about an hour long and was very enjoyable. We saw some of the beautiful beaches & resorts as well as monkeys along the side of the road. The contrast between the amazing hotels/construction and the tin roof hovels the locals lived in is unbelievable. When our tuk-tuk ride ended we braved the market once again. It is a HUGE covered establishment with a range of items from t-shirts, hair adornments and fabrics to fresh fruits and fish... The people are incredibly friendly and we truly enjoyed ourselves. We bought something from 3 ladies and figured to make a couple of balloons - but after making just one it seemed this shop had a never-ending supply of kids and others hiding in the back...LOL!
Lots of folks did not like Cambodia because of the crush of people and the poorness of the area, but B & I liked it well enough to go back again if we cruised here another time.
Oh last night we had dinner with the Captain. I enjoyed it and the Captain is a great guy. This dinner was my prize for winning the build-a-ship contest...
Today we are in Singapore and we have been here before for a 5 day stay. So we are not really exploring just browsing in the mall that is at the terminal. And of course using the internet at McDonald's...hehe Singapore is the most expensive country in south-east asia so not much shopping - just some soda...
Our next port is in Indonesia which will be a new country for us. Attached here are some photos that cover several diffefrent nights as this was one of the first times I had to upload them... enjoy
As we exited the bus, Brian became my fullback and we proceeded to the market... Once in the market most of harassing ended,except one guy who persistently followed us for 10minutes... B & he finally agreed on a "tuk-tuk" ride price so we followed him back out of the market. The ride was about an hour long and was very enjoyable. We saw some of the beautiful beaches & resorts as well as monkeys along the side of the road. The contrast between the amazing hotels/construction and the tin roof hovels the locals lived in is unbelievable. When our tuk-tuk ride ended we braved the market once again. It is a HUGE covered establishment with a range of items from t-shirts, hair adornments and fabrics to fresh fruits and fish... The people are incredibly friendly and we truly enjoyed ourselves. We bought something from 3 ladies and figured to make a couple of balloons - but after making just one it seemed this shop had a never-ending supply of kids and others hiding in the back...LOL!
Lots of folks did not like Cambodia because of the crush of people and the poorness of the area, but B & I liked it well enough to go back again if we cruised here another time.
Oh last night we had dinner with the Captain. I enjoyed it and the Captain is a great guy. This dinner was my prize for winning the build-a-ship contest...
Today we are in Singapore and we have been here before for a 5 day stay. So we are not really exploring just browsing in the mall that is at the terminal. And of course using the internet at McDonald's...hehe Singapore is the most expensive country in south-east asia so not much shopping - just some soda...
Our next port is in Indonesia which will be a new country for us. Attached here are some photos that cover several diffefrent nights as this was one of the first times I had to upload them... enjoy
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| B makes balloons in Cambodia |
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| 3 monkeys in Cambodia |
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| tuk-tuk |
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| Cambodian market |
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| Tweedledee and Malice attent Alice in Wonderland Ball |
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| Russian night |
Monday, October 25, 2010
More Asia
Greetings friends:
Well today is our second day in Thailand - we are docked at Lam Chbang which is the closest port to Bangkok. As B & I have already been to Bangkok several times, we opted to go to the local beach town, Patayaya. It was time for a mani-pedi, so we found a spot and asked how much. "100baht" - about $4! B went and got a foot massage-200baht for one hour-he said it was so great he went back today for the 4 hour full body massage, which would be about $15! We did a bit of shopping but mostly for soda and dragon looking...I think that I mentioned we were in Hong Kong before this & that we also went to Macau. I was a bit disappointed about Macau, as there was no poker and all the table games cost about $30 to play one hand. So I played about 4 hands of blackjack, pushed one and lost the rest, then quit. Brian played a few asian style slot machines then we headed back on the ferry to Hong Kong. We got a bite to eat and decided to go to the night market. NOW that was some FUN shopping... They would give you their price, I cut it in half and we would settle for just a bit more than half... I bought some kewl stuff but can't tell you about it as it is presents...lol! I really like Hong Kong with their crazy markets & upscale malls and a lot of English speaking people. It has that hustle & bustle air of a big city with lots of crowds but you don't feel as crowded as Shanghai...
The next day was a sea day and we headed for Viet Nam... fortunately Typhoon Megi decided to pick anther route than ours, so we just had a bit of rough seas but nothing drastic... On board ship that night was The Alice in Wonderland Ball. Brian dressed up as Tweedledee and I went as Malice in Wonderland. See the pics below. We had fun but we did not win the contest even tho we looked the best... I was bummed...hehe
Arriving in Viet Nam I chose to stay aboard the ship. B was going to take the shuttle too the front gate just to see what there was to see... While walking out he met some of his friends-the casino staff-and followed them onto a bus marked shuttle. After about riding for 45 minutes, he finally asked where they were going - "oh to the nearby beach town" Oops B was on the wrong bus but ended up having a great time anyways. I was mildly worried as I had expected him back hours before...lol! So Jess - I guess getting on the wrong transportation is hereditary...LOL!!!!
Well tonight we are headed for Cambodia, which will be a new country for us... I understand they have a great market with bargining...yay! Hope this finds you well.... Jess write please... hugs GB
Striker, the Piano Man with Malice & Tweedledee
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
China
Xingang, China is the closted port city for Beijing, which is about 3 hours away. Since B & I have been to China before, we opted not to travel into Beijing and instead "toured" Xingang. There was a free shuttle bus provided so we headed off the ship to explore. We stood in line waiting for the shuttle for almost 45 minutes before not one but 3 buses show up. We arrived in Xingang after a harrowi8ng bus rid, as the driver must be part Italian...lol! They dropped us off in the Starbuck's parking lot... We asked several returing passengers what's to see/do and they all responded not much... But being the adventures we are, we turned up the first side street we came too and found a shop whre I purchased a leather dragon. We too photos, checked out fruit stands and read shop signs which said things like spa, massage, Texas BBQ Bar & Music, KFC, and lots of Chinese restaurants. We found a park with some lovely topiary and a plaza shopping center. The plaza had a bakery, hair salons and shops upstairs. We rode the outdoor escalator up and found mostly spa-massage centers. But there was one large sign (movie poster size) that was gaming/grapics so we poker our head in hoping for internet. When I mimed computer they pointed upstairs: the second floor was a group video game in a circular setting, sort of like the large Wheel of Fortune slots; and the third floor had individual hanging macnines that might have been plinko/pachinko... It also had a western toilet for which I was grateful...lol! I took photos and returned to the ground floor – we bought a soda, made the lady a poodle and I gave them an American dollar that was “georged”-someone may get a strange hit…lol!
We were tiring so we headed back to the bus but stopped in Tesa, a large department store, sort of… The ground floor held small shops and kiosks that surrounded a large electronics store. Upstairs was a huge grocery store. B & I split up for 30 minutes and explored on our own. I found a great dragon ring, but B said he would have to return to the grocery store the next day for a longer visit. As we were in Xingang for two days that is what he did. On the second day, he explored the market for several house and I stayed on board relaxing by the pool and participating in shipboard activities.
department store, sort of… The ground floor held small shops and kiosks that surrounded a large electronics store. Upstairs was a huge grocery store. B & I split up for 30 minutes and explored on our own.
And speaking of on board activities, the future Cruise folks sponsored a 4 day event which included a trivia questionnaire, a scavenger hunt, a build-a-ship contest and a crazy game show. We were allowed a team of 6, but I was the only one who actually participated in all 4 events. My girlfriend, Lynn, helped me with trivia-which we came in fourth; & the game show-which we came in first… My ship was also the BEST looking one of the 4 entries and I won a medal for that. The overall prize was dinner with the Captain, which I also won and will be allowed to invite Lynn & her husband as well as Brian too… I am looking forward to it as in all our cruising, we have never had dinner with the Captain…
Brian & I are also collecting many “grand dollars”, which are the prize for participating in all the on-board activities. We probably have over 40 so far & at the end of the voyage we will be able to redeem them for “dam” t-shirts, hats and other “dam” crap…lol! I refer you back to my original saying: “it’s not the prize; it’s the winning that counts!” I have been just about even in the casino lately, but today folded my way to second place in the poker tournament and then tripled my money on the cash table! Which is great as we are going to Macau tomorrow & I can play there on my winnings… Brian is still just playing slots and “washing” his George money through them… He did win a small jackpot yesterday – yeah! BTW on sea days I continue to walk a mile and figure on shore days we walk at least a mile – have not been as successful at going to the gym but have gone to stretch class one or two times per week.
After we left Xingang our next port of call was Shanghai – this is our second time there also & I liked it even better this time. In fact it is probably my favorite city in China. The architecture is amazing and futuristic and the people are fantastically friendly. On our first day there we went to the Shanghai World Expo which is a World’s Fair. We wore crazy American hats and brought over 200 flag pins to distribute. We were a bit disappointed in the exhibits themselves – each country sponsored one but if you’ve been to Disney’s Epcot Center, you’ve seen better. It was estimated that over a half-a-million people were there and it took 30 minutes or more in lines to see the displays which were movies & slides about the specific country. We went to the USA one, Croatia, Austria & one other… BUT we truly enjoyed ourselves because the Chinese people could not take our picture too many times. At first, B & I would just pop into a pose (like at RenFest) and they would laugh and take more pictures. But once one group started, we would have to pose for dozens of photos. We would finally say “ok just one more” which would end up being 10 more, before we would continue walking. Usually then someone would chase us down and say “please” or “scuse” and mime a photo – if we agreed, we would be surrounded again with photo takers and Chinese who wanted us to hold their baby or kiss their grandma or…. At one point B was having his picture taken with a lady on his left while I had a guy on my right who was with a different group. We would swing them out and others would pop in to take their place. We met several adorable Chinese girls & tried to ask if they would like “American boyfriend” but we just got giggles in response…lol! Finally we decided we were hungry and took off our hats so we could make our way across the grounds to get some lunch. We still had our photo taken a couple of times but we were not interrupted while eating… We could have sold tons of our $1.00 hats if we had them with us – in fact they all asked where we got them and I showed one man the label in mine – it said “made in china”! LOL! It was a wonderful experience and we enjoyed the whole day but we were pooped after walking so much. As we were leaving I traded my hat for a Chinese bucket hat for Jess and we caught a cab back to the ship.
The Port of Shanghai and the skyline are beautiful and all the buildings are lit up at night. Also small tour boats travel the harbor and they are lit up as well. It was a gorgeous sight from the ship.
The next day in Shanghai was Saturday and we decided to do a bit of shopping, along with a million other people… Shanghai seems to be the “big” city for tourists from everywhere but particularly other Chinese from rural areas. The shops on the main street were literally jammed with people shoulder to shoulder – if I saw something of interest I would say to B “I am gonna dive in here” and just start elbowing my way in… These people are not rude, they just do not have the sense of personal space that Americans have. Occasionally if I was shoved I would just shove back but I tried to remember that it wasn’t personal… We bought a few things and shuttled back to the ship. Brian decided to walk to a grocery store and took his camera along to shoot the sites. I went to the Jacuzzi and soaked… That evening Lynn & I played “Name that Tune” & won – after we went to her “la-de-dah” suite and watched the sail away oohing and ahhing over the pretty lights and beautiful bridge. As we left the fantastic harbor I commented again on how much I like Shanghai – I hope to visit here again some day.
We have been sailing for 2 days now and will arrive in Hong Kong on Tuesday 19 Oct. Remember we are almost a day ahead of you… So far the tropical storm that is heading for the Philippines has only affected us by rocky seas. The Captain assures us we will arrive in Hong Kong without any difficulties and we are to stay there for 2 full days. Hopefully the storm will have decreased some by then or we may not have a port in Viet Nam to call… Hope this finds you all well – will someone please check on my dogs and Sarah and let us know all is well? Thanks – oh and Jess, write…lol!
We were tiring so we headed back to the bus but stopped in Tesa, a large department store, sort of… The ground floor held small shops and kiosks that surrounded a large electronics store. Upstairs was a huge grocery store. B & I split up for 30 minutes and explored on our own. I found a great dragon ring, but B said he would have to return to the grocery store the next day for a longer visit. As we were in Xingang for two days that is what he did. On the second day, he explored the market for several house and I stayed on board relaxing by the pool and participating in shipboard activities.
department store, sort of… The ground floor held small shops and kiosks that surrounded a large electronics store. Upstairs was a huge grocery store. B & I split up for 30 minutes and explored on our own.
And speaking of on board activities, the future Cruise folks sponsored a 4 day event which included a trivia questionnaire, a scavenger hunt, a build-a-ship contest and a crazy game show. We were allowed a team of 6, but I was the only one who actually participated in all 4 events. My girlfriend, Lynn, helped me with trivia-which we came in fourth; & the game show-which we came in first… My ship was also the BEST looking one of the 4 entries and I won a medal for that. The overall prize was dinner with the Captain, which I also won and will be allowed to invite Lynn & her husband as well as Brian too… I am looking forward to it as in all our cruising, we have never had dinner with the Captain…
Brian & I are also collecting many “grand dollars”, which are the prize for participating in all the on-board activities. We probably have over 40 so far & at the end of the voyage we will be able to redeem them for “dam” t-shirts, hats and other “dam” crap…lol! I refer you back to my original saying: “it’s not the prize; it’s the winning that counts!” I have been just about even in the casino lately, but today folded my way to second place in the poker tournament and then tripled my money on the cash table! Which is great as we are going to Macau tomorrow & I can play there on my winnings… Brian is still just playing slots and “washing” his George money through them… He did win a small jackpot yesterday – yeah! BTW on sea days I continue to walk a mile and figure on shore days we walk at least a mile – have not been as successful at going to the gym but have gone to stretch class one or two times per week.
After we left Xingang our next port of call was Shanghai – this is our second time there also & I liked it even better this time. In fact it is probably my favorite city in China. The architecture is amazing and futuristic and the people are fantastically friendly. On our first day there we went to the Shanghai World Expo which is a World’s Fair. We wore crazy American hats and brought over 200 flag pins to distribute. We were a bit disappointed in the exhibits themselves – each country sponsored one but if you’ve been to Disney’s Epcot Center, you’ve seen better. It was estimated that over a half-a-million people were there and it took 30 minutes or more in lines to see the displays which were movies & slides about the specific country. We went to the USA one, Croatia, Austria & one other… BUT we truly enjoyed ourselves because the Chinese people could not take our picture too many times. At first, B & I would just pop into a pose (like at RenFest) and they would laugh and take more pictures. But once one group started, we would have to pose for dozens of photos. We would finally say “ok just one more” which would end up being 10 more, before we would continue walking. Usually then someone would chase us down and say “please” or “scuse” and mime a photo – if we agreed, we would be surrounded again with photo takers and Chinese who wanted us to hold their baby or kiss their grandma or…. At one point B was having his picture taken with a lady on his left while I had a guy on my right who was with a different group. We would swing them out and others would pop in to take their place. We met several adorable Chinese girls & tried to ask if they would like “American boyfriend” but we just got giggles in response…lol! Finally we decided we were hungry and took off our hats so we could make our way across the grounds to get some lunch. We still had our photo taken a couple of times but we were not interrupted while eating… We could have sold tons of our $1.00 hats if we had them with us – in fact they all asked where we got them and I showed one man the label in mine – it said “made in china”! LOL! It was a wonderful experience and we enjoyed the whole day but we were pooped after walking so much. As we were leaving I traded my hat for a Chinese bucket hat for Jess and we caught a cab back to the ship.
The Port of Shanghai and the skyline are beautiful and all the buildings are lit up at night. Also small tour boats travel the harbor and they are lit up as well. It was a gorgeous sight from the ship.
The next day in Shanghai was Saturday and we decided to do a bit of shopping, along with a million other people… Shanghai seems to be the “big” city for tourists from everywhere but particularly other Chinese from rural areas. The shops on the main street were literally jammed with people shoulder to shoulder – if I saw something of interest I would say to B “I am gonna dive in here” and just start elbowing my way in… These people are not rude, they just do not have the sense of personal space that Americans have. Occasionally if I was shoved I would just shove back but I tried to remember that it wasn’t personal… We bought a few things and shuttled back to the ship. Brian decided to walk to a grocery store and took his camera along to shoot the sites. I went to the Jacuzzi and soaked… That evening Lynn & I played “Name that Tune” & won – after we went to her “la-de-dah” suite and watched the sail away oohing and ahhing over the pretty lights and beautiful bridge. As we left the fantastic harbor I commented again on how much I like Shanghai – I hope to visit here again some day.
We have been sailing for 2 days now and will arrive in Hong Kong on Tuesday 19 Oct. Remember we are almost a day ahead of you… So far the tropical storm that is heading for the Philippines has only affected us by rocky seas. The Captain assures us we will arrive in Hong Kong without any difficulties and we are to stay there for 2 full days. Hopefully the storm will have decreased some by then or we may not have a port in Viet Nam to call… Hope this finds you all well – will someone please check on my dogs and Sarah and let us know all is well? Thanks – oh and Jess, write…lol!
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| Winning Sailboat and the above is Shanghai at night |
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Japan-4 Ports
Two days ago we left Japanese waters and we are headed for China. We thoroughly enjoyed Japan – we have visited one other port before but this was our first time to see more of the country.
Our first port was Sendai and the only place we had booked a tour. Brian & I and 14 others went to a Japanese mineral bath. When we arrived in Sendai there was a drum band “entertaining” us with a Japanese welcome at 7am! UGH!!! Luckily the customs authorities needed to see everyone but they took forever to clear the ship for debarkation. They wanted us to have our passports (which we had to get back from HAL), take our fingerprints and have a face-face with a customs officer. As there are over 1100 passengers you can imagine how long this took. They started serving juice and cookies while we stood in line waiting and the Captain even bought drinks that evening. I was concerned that our bath would be cut short, but when we finally left the ship we were only an hour late… We headed to a mountainous region about 40 minutes away – we stopped at the hotel first for all the “old” folks to use a western toilet then off to a local arts & crafts stop. There was a very famous, tiny, old Japanese artist who taught us about India dye and fabric weaving. We got to try our hand at dyeing handkerchiefs using rubber bands – basically our version of tye-dye… It was fun but hard on the knees as we had to squat/kneel down to reach the dye vat and stay like that for over 3 minutes. Brian made a balloon poodle for the lady and she was delighted. We then boarded the bus and headed back to the spa/hotel for our traditional Japanese lunch and bath. The lunch was a bento box and it looked beautiful – for B & I, it only tasted so-so…lol! There was a small piece of cooked salmon and raw tuna that we ate and pretty much left the rest. The other passengers said it was all terrific but… After that the guides showed us how to put on cotton kimonos – we asked if they had sumo wrestler size for Brian, but they just laughed. The ladies changed in one area and the men in another… Brian came out wearing 2 kimonos – one the correct way and one like a hospital gown: back to front…LOL!!! We then went down to the lower level and experienced out baths. For this tour we were segregated, men and women, which was a bit disappointing for B & me as we wanted to enjoy together… for the bath part we washed/showered first so we were clean then got to try any of the 10 different mineral baths that were available. There were a variety of sizes and temperatures but the best was an outside natural looking one with a waterfall and rocks for seats. It was a wonderful experience and we definitely napped on the way back to the bus…lol!
Our second port was Yokohama with access into Tokyo. We opted to just visit Yokohama & took the free shuttle into the train station, where there was an underground shopping mall. It was very clean and beautiful but VERY expensive… I looked at UG boots that run about $120 in Australia and US, which were $500 in Japan! A whole cake from a fancy bakery was over $100!! Luckily we didn’t need to buy anything but just enjoyed looking. I tried on a couple of kimonos but they were all too small – or I was too big?? Not sure which…lol!
Our next stop was Shimizu which is the viewing city for Mt Fuji – unfortunately the mountain was fogged in for the whole day so we only got a sense of where it was. But otherwise it was a beautiful day and we were able to just walk off the ship and explore the city. We went to the 125yen store – the equivalent of our dollar store and bought some silly things. The unusual thing so far is that none of these ports had typical souvenirs of Japan – no hats, t-shirts or junk… sort of strange… This was the first time a large cruise ship had docked in Shimizu so it appeared that the whole town had taken a long break to visit the port… Kids from 3-83 were fascinated with the large white ship and the large white Americans…LOL! We enjoyed this port because we could explore it by walking right off the ship into the city… They had geisha dancing, tuna carving and other music for us to enjoy just at the dock.
Kobe was our last port of call in Japan and probably my favorite. It is a beautiful city and we took a local bus tour around it – which once we got a seat on the bus was fun… As it was a hop-on/hop-off bus we picked up people at every stop. They did not seem to care how many they crammed into the bus and at one time a little Japanese lady fell right into my lap… We opted not to get off as we were afraid we might not get a seat the next bus that came along – but we enjoyed the sights and then got off after circling the city. Kobe has some amazing shopping plazas and the people are terrific. So B & I walked around and explored the shops. The prices were a bit better and we also found an internet café. For my son it would have been paradise: it was a third floor filled with computers and manga-Japanese comic books. We checked email etc and had fun trying to use the keyboard and not type in Japanese…Kobe is the city I would revisit given the opportunity… There were actual souvenir shops at the port in Kobe – I finally found a kimono that fit me and bought some other items as gifts.
We have been enjoying our sea days also. The hardest part has been moving the clock back one hour almost every night. We have been adjusting our sleep but just barely… I am usually up by 930am, which is early for me…lol! Last night was formal night but also kimono night. So I wore my new turquoise kimono and B was a Samurai warrior. We looked great. After my recent victories at poker and blackjack, I am back to losing and will actually have to play on my own money when I play again. We have continued to participate in the sporting events and they have been giving out “grand dollars” to the winners. We will eventually get to spend these on HAL crap-I mean souvenirs…lol! Today was the first day the weather has been sunny enough to lay by the pool. I did not as I was playing too many games – I am in first place so far in a shipboard competition to have dinner with the Captain… The next activity we have to build a ship, so we will look for stuff in China to make a pretty boat. Our next couple of ports will be in China: Xigang for Beijing; Shanghai & Hong Kong.
Hope this blog finds you all well-would love to hear from some of you: just leave a comment or send an email or write on Facebook, but stay in touch. I think that means you Jess…LOL!
See you next in China - GB
B in 2 kimonos (frontwards & backwards) at Bath
Our first port was Sendai and the only place we had booked a tour. Brian & I and 14 others went to a Japanese mineral bath. When we arrived in Sendai there was a drum band “entertaining” us with a Japanese welcome at 7am! UGH!!! Luckily the customs authorities needed to see everyone but they took forever to clear the ship for debarkation. They wanted us to have our passports (which we had to get back from HAL), take our fingerprints and have a face-face with a customs officer. As there are over 1100 passengers you can imagine how long this took. They started serving juice and cookies while we stood in line waiting and the Captain even bought drinks that evening. I was concerned that our bath would be cut short, but when we finally left the ship we were only an hour late… We headed to a mountainous region about 40 minutes away – we stopped at the hotel first for all the “old” folks to use a western toilet then off to a local arts & crafts stop. There was a very famous, tiny, old Japanese artist who taught us about India dye and fabric weaving. We got to try our hand at dyeing handkerchiefs using rubber bands – basically our version of tye-dye… It was fun but hard on the knees as we had to squat/kneel down to reach the dye vat and stay like that for over 3 minutes. Brian made a balloon poodle for the lady and she was delighted. We then boarded the bus and headed back to the spa/hotel for our traditional Japanese lunch and bath. The lunch was a bento box and it looked beautiful – for B & I, it only tasted so-so…lol! There was a small piece of cooked salmon and raw tuna that we ate and pretty much left the rest. The other passengers said it was all terrific but… After that the guides showed us how to put on cotton kimonos – we asked if they had sumo wrestler size for Brian, but they just laughed. The ladies changed in one area and the men in another… Brian came out wearing 2 kimonos – one the correct way and one like a hospital gown: back to front…LOL!!! We then went down to the lower level and experienced out baths. For this tour we were segregated, men and women, which was a bit disappointing for B & me as we wanted to enjoy together… for the bath part we washed/showered first so we were clean then got to try any of the 10 different mineral baths that were available. There were a variety of sizes and temperatures but the best was an outside natural looking one with a waterfall and rocks for seats. It was a wonderful experience and we definitely napped on the way back to the bus…lol!
Our second port was Yokohama with access into Tokyo. We opted to just visit Yokohama & took the free shuttle into the train station, where there was an underground shopping mall. It was very clean and beautiful but VERY expensive… I looked at UG boots that run about $120 in Australia and US, which were $500 in Japan! A whole cake from a fancy bakery was over $100!! Luckily we didn’t need to buy anything but just enjoyed looking. I tried on a couple of kimonos but they were all too small – or I was too big?? Not sure which…lol!
Our next stop was Shimizu which is the viewing city for Mt Fuji – unfortunately the mountain was fogged in for the whole day so we only got a sense of where it was. But otherwise it was a beautiful day and we were able to just walk off the ship and explore the city. We went to the 125yen store – the equivalent of our dollar store and bought some silly things. The unusual thing so far is that none of these ports had typical souvenirs of Japan – no hats, t-shirts or junk… sort of strange… This was the first time a large cruise ship had docked in Shimizu so it appeared that the whole town had taken a long break to visit the port… Kids from 3-83 were fascinated with the large white ship and the large white Americans…LOL! We enjoyed this port because we could explore it by walking right off the ship into the city… They had geisha dancing, tuna carving and other music for us to enjoy just at the dock.
Kobe was our last port of call in Japan and probably my favorite. It is a beautiful city and we took a local bus tour around it – which once we got a seat on the bus was fun… As it was a hop-on/hop-off bus we picked up people at every stop. They did not seem to care how many they crammed into the bus and at one time a little Japanese lady fell right into my lap… We opted not to get off as we were afraid we might not get a seat the next bus that came along – but we enjoyed the sights and then got off after circling the city. Kobe has some amazing shopping plazas and the people are terrific. So B & I walked around and explored the shops. The prices were a bit better and we also found an internet café. For my son it would have been paradise: it was a third floor filled with computers and manga-Japanese comic books. We checked email etc and had fun trying to use the keyboard and not type in Japanese…Kobe is the city I would revisit given the opportunity… There were actual souvenir shops at the port in Kobe – I finally found a kimono that fit me and bought some other items as gifts.
We have been enjoying our sea days also. The hardest part has been moving the clock back one hour almost every night. We have been adjusting our sleep but just barely… I am usually up by 930am, which is early for me…lol! Last night was formal night but also kimono night. So I wore my new turquoise kimono and B was a Samurai warrior. We looked great. After my recent victories at poker and blackjack, I am back to losing and will actually have to play on my own money when I play again. We have continued to participate in the sporting events and they have been giving out “grand dollars” to the winners. We will eventually get to spend these on HAL crap-I mean souvenirs…lol! Today was the first day the weather has been sunny enough to lay by the pool. I did not as I was playing too many games – I am in first place so far in a shipboard competition to have dinner with the Captain… The next activity we have to build a ship, so we will look for stuff in China to make a pretty boat. Our next couple of ports will be in China: Xigang for Beijing; Shanghai & Hong Kong.
Hope this blog finds you all well-would love to hear from some of you: just leave a comment or send an email or write on Facebook, but stay in touch. I think that means you Jess…LOL!
See you next in China - GB
B in 2 kimonos (frontwards & backwards) at Bath
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| beautiful Japanese bath in Sendai |
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Japan Preview
We are in Kobe which is our last stop in Japan. We have found an internet here but it is challenging to type on this keyboard. We like Japan but it is very expensive. A piece of cake/pie costs $10 and the whole thing is $100! B found a betty crocker cake mix in store and it was $8...
I will write more about our Japanese experience in the next day or two.
I will write more about our Japanese experience in the next day or two.
Petropavlovsk, Russia
I know u have read this but i wanted to post it here...
It turns out that this city is a fishing port of Siberia! I was very glad to have packed sweatshirts, jackets, hats and gloves – even tho B gave me a “is that really necessary” look… It is also one of the few tender ports on this cruise. We dropped anchor about a half mile from the shore around 7am. Organized tours were allowed off first and finally about 12noon the Russian customs were willing to clear independent passengers. So we got all our cold weather gear together and headed for the Queen’s Lounge, where we received our passport and a tender ticket #15. They had just called #’s 9 & 10. There was a long delay and finally the cruise director announced that where there had been 3 Russians checking passports, 2 had decided they needed a coffee break… Finally they called our number and we boarded the tender-which is a small 40 passenger boat, for those that have never been cruising. It was about a 10 minute ride and we finally put our feet on Siberian terra firma… The weather was cold, about 40*, and drizzly. There was a small table of souvenirs set up in the port hangar but we opted to walk the half mile into to town to see what was there. We walked past the statue of Lenin and into the first store which was a tiny version of a Best Buy. We wandered the store and found the prices high and we were pretty much ignored by the clerks. We continued down the street and noticed another street above us. At the corner there was a beautiful church made of logs that I photographed. It was pouring by this time so we did not explore around it. We were still in search of a grocery store, as B loves to explore foreign markets on our travels. I stopped a young couple and asked if they spoke English. The young girl did and told me there was a market farther down the street-but we opted to climb the stairs to the street above and found a shop with several stores/counters in it. We walked in dripping wet and I had to wait 5 minutes before my glasses unfogged. This shop was sort of a mini-mall, only about half the size of a gym but with different kiosks and counters of merchandise. There was jewelry, baby clothes, toys, shoes, kitchen ware and ladies clothes. Brian and I carried American flag pins and balloons. The jewelry clerk was very friendly so I gave her a pin – she then gave me a calendar. While I was looking at the clothes, B made a balloon animal for a young girl while half the store watched. I made one for a young boy and then we left those shops. We were still in search of a food store and somewhere to buy the chotskys I wanted. The rain had stopped and we walked a few stores down where we found a tiny store with snacks. We bought some very Russian looking chocolate bars and made balloon poodles for the 2 ladies. They gave us another chocolate bar… We were enjoying ourselves immensely & so were the Russians we were meeting. Walking a few blocks more, I has just about given up finding items in town when we saw a building with English signs proclaiming Russian souvenirs, postcards etc. Hurray! We found hat pins, lacquer boxes, nesting dolls and postcards. And they even took my Visa! The young clerks were delightful and we made more poodles and gave out more American flag pins. One of the girls had a t-shirt on for Jess: it read “will you be my boyfriend? Check box: yes-no-maybe”. Jess, she was not Japanese, but what do you think about Russian? LOL!
It turns out that this city is a fishing port of Siberia! I was very glad to have packed sweatshirts, jackets, hats and gloves – even tho B gave me a “is that really necessary” look… It is also one of the few tender ports on this cruise. We dropped anchor about a half mile from the shore around 7am. Organized tours were allowed off first and finally about 12noon the Russian customs were willing to clear independent passengers. So we got all our cold weather gear together and headed for the Queen’s Lounge, where we received our passport and a tender ticket #15. They had just called #’s 9 & 10. There was a long delay and finally the cruise director announced that where there had been 3 Russians checking passports, 2 had decided they needed a coffee break… Finally they called our number and we boarded the tender-which is a small 40 passenger boat, for those that have never been cruising. It was about a 10 minute ride and we finally put our feet on Siberian terra firma… The weather was cold, about 40*, and drizzly. There was a small table of souvenirs set up in the port hangar but we opted to walk the half mile into to town to see what was there. We walked past the statue of Lenin and into the first store which was a tiny version of a Best Buy. We wandered the store and found the prices high and we were pretty much ignored by the clerks. We continued down the street and noticed another street above us. At the corner there was a beautiful church made of logs that I photographed. It was pouring by this time so we did not explore around it. We were still in search of a grocery store, as B loves to explore foreign markets on our travels. I stopped a young couple and asked if they spoke English. The young girl did and told me there was a market farther down the street-but we opted to climb the stairs to the street above and found a shop with several stores/counters in it. We walked in dripping wet and I had to wait 5 minutes before my glasses unfogged. This shop was sort of a mini-mall, only about half the size of a gym but with different kiosks and counters of merchandise. There was jewelry, baby clothes, toys, shoes, kitchen ware and ladies clothes. Brian and I carried American flag pins and balloons. The jewelry clerk was very friendly so I gave her a pin – she then gave me a calendar. While I was looking at the clothes, B made a balloon animal for a young girl while half the store watched. I made one for a young boy and then we left those shops. We were still in search of a food store and somewhere to buy the chotskys I wanted. The rain had stopped and we walked a few stores down where we found a tiny store with snacks. We bought some very Russian looking chocolate bars and made balloon poodles for the 2 ladies. They gave us another chocolate bar… We were enjoying ourselves immensely & so were the Russians we were meeting. Walking a few blocks more, I has just about given up finding items in town when we saw a building with English signs proclaiming Russian souvenirs, postcards etc. Hurray! We found hat pins, lacquer boxes, nesting dolls and postcards. And they even took my Visa! The young clerks were delightful and we made more poodles and gave out more American flag pins. One of the girls had a t-shirt on for Jess: it read “will you be my boyfriend? Check box: yes-no-maybe”. Jess, she was not Japanese, but what do you think about Russian? LOL!
It was still cold, but now the sun was shining as we headed back to the ship. The hills were gorgeous- covered with trees in fall colors and brightly painted houses dotting the landscape. The dreary weather and fog of the earlier hour had faded away to reveal pretty scenery and snowcapped mountains. Brian & I thoroughly enjoyed our visit to Russia.
When we got back to the ship we grabbed a snack and a nap then attired ourselves in Russian costumes for Russian theme night. We were about the only passengers appropriately attired, but we looked great and enjoyed the attention of the whole crew and fellow cruisers.
Since Russia we have been two days at sea participating in badminton, golf, basketball free throw shooting, quoits, hockey slap shots and more. B & I usually win these events so we have accrued a vast collection of crappy prizes, but I refer you back to my philosophy about winning…lol! I have also managed to walk a mile each morning even in the cold weather. I am still up in the casino and we established a core group of about 15 poker players, so there is a bit of play there too.
We are headed for Japan and will have 4 consecutive port stops there – see the map in blog 2. However we just found out that the internet aboard ship will be blocked while we are in Japan. So while I will try to keep track of our Japanese travels, I will be unable to post anything until the 9 of Oct – we will look for an internet café on shore but we’ll have to see. We are looking forward to our visits to Japan – Sayonara
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Somewhere in the Northern Pacific Ocean
We are on our 4th sea day, sailing in the Bering Straits, heading towards the Aleutian Islands. Our first night at sea was very rough and continued rough seas thru the first sea day. Brian was fine and I was uncomfortable, but not really sick. As long as I kept somewhat busy, I did not have to think about being miserable…lol! Brian, of course went to all 3 meals but I only managed dinner and then only had a baked potato. Thank God the seas have been calm for the last two days, but they are expecting stormy weather once again tomorrow.
Brian and I have been exploring all the ship board activities and I am happy to say that there is very little down time… They have sports activities from 10am in the morning, so I am actually up and almost awake for those. We have participated in Wii tennis & bowling, ring toss, bean bag toss, ping pong, & shuffle board. There are usually 3 of these sporting events per day, so you can see we are very athletic and should be in great shape when we return…lol! I have won a couple of these events so have started a great “crappy” prize collection… But like I always say, “it’s not the prize that matters; it’s the winning that counts!”
And speaking of winning, I have done a bit of that in the casino. There is Texas Hold ‘Em/poker and I won the tournament the other day. Then last night I tripled my money at 3 card poker and today won a Black Jack tourney. Not big bucks and it certainly won’t pay for the cruise, but I refer you back to what I always say…lol! Brian has made friends with all the casino staff, bribing them with chocolates and other goodies. The pit boss keeps trying to buy us drinks as repayment, but so far we have not accepted – I will soon tho…hehe B has been feeding the slots, “washing Georges” & not really won but not really down either.
Since I finally felt better today, I managed to walk a mile this morning and worked out in the gym this afternoon. I did a stretch class then used the machines to lift weights, and finally did sit-ups. Since I have not been to the gym the past two weeks at home, I only managed 10 reps and 50 sit-ups. Will have to build that back up again.
The Amsterdam ship is very nice and easily traversed. Most of the activities are on the 5th floor: the casino, the library, the coffee bar, the Ocean bar and the dining room. Our room is on the 2nd floor towards the back, not quite midship. Above us on the 8th floor is the buffet and the pool/Jacuzzis and the 9th is the spa/gym. There are probably 20 folks we know from our pervious cruise on HAL around Africa in 2008. The ship has about 1100 passengers total and we have made friends so far with about 100, only a thousand more to go. Of course I have managed to annoy a few at the poker table already, lol!, but I am not the only stickler at the table…hehe There is only 1 trivia game each day and the cruise director, Bruce, runs it. It is called Bruce’s Brainbusters and it somewhat hard. There are 16 questions and the best we have done is 8 correct. Some of my teammates are discouraged and grumble that it is too hard, but I like it and enjoy the camaraderie and competition. We will eventually get more correct as I think we are up to the challenge. We have also played Taboo and Scattergories with better success.
We had our first formal night last night and it was lovely. The Captain’s Welcome party was nice as anytime you can get a free drink it is great. Most everyone looked elegant and appropriately dressed. Of course you always get the guys who only wears t-shirts, wearing a guava shirt and thinking that is formal or the lady that puts on a shiny sh*t top with sweats and says she is dressed up to make a formal evening interesting. Brian & I wore our purple outfits last night and we looked marvelous… As we hate ship photos, I do not have proof of this but will soon. I had rack of lamb and B had a steak. I am making an attempt to eat beef only once a week and so far have been succeeding in this effort. I am hoping you all will keep me accountable as I know you read this and I can post my efforts.
We will arrive in Russia soon and I will post again then. Happy Sailings
Brian and I have been exploring all the ship board activities and I am happy to say that there is very little down time… They have sports activities from 10am in the morning, so I am actually up and almost awake for those. We have participated in Wii tennis & bowling, ring toss, bean bag toss, ping pong, & shuffle board. There are usually 3 of these sporting events per day, so you can see we are very athletic and should be in great shape when we return…lol! I have won a couple of these events so have started a great “crappy” prize collection… But like I always say, “it’s not the prize that matters; it’s the winning that counts!”
And speaking of winning, I have done a bit of that in the casino. There is Texas Hold ‘Em/poker and I won the tournament the other day. Then last night I tripled my money at 3 card poker and today won a Black Jack tourney. Not big bucks and it certainly won’t pay for the cruise, but I refer you back to what I always say…lol! Brian has made friends with all the casino staff, bribing them with chocolates and other goodies. The pit boss keeps trying to buy us drinks as repayment, but so far we have not accepted – I will soon tho…hehe B has been feeding the slots, “washing Georges” & not really won but not really down either.
Since I finally felt better today, I managed to walk a mile this morning and worked out in the gym this afternoon. I did a stretch class then used the machines to lift weights, and finally did sit-ups. Since I have not been to the gym the past two weeks at home, I only managed 10 reps and 50 sit-ups. Will have to build that back up again.
The Amsterdam ship is very nice and easily traversed. Most of the activities are on the 5th floor: the casino, the library, the coffee bar, the Ocean bar and the dining room. Our room is on the 2nd floor towards the back, not quite midship. Above us on the 8th floor is the buffet and the pool/Jacuzzis and the 9th is the spa/gym. There are probably 20 folks we know from our pervious cruise on HAL around Africa in 2008. The ship has about 1100 passengers total and we have made friends so far with about 100, only a thousand more to go. Of course I have managed to annoy a few at the poker table already, lol!, but I am not the only stickler at the table…hehe There is only 1 trivia game each day and the cruise director, Bruce, runs it. It is called Bruce’s Brainbusters and it somewhat hard. There are 16 questions and the best we have done is 8 correct. Some of my teammates are discouraged and grumble that it is too hard, but I like it and enjoy the camaraderie and competition. We will eventually get more correct as I think we are up to the challenge. We have also played Taboo and Scattergories with better success.
We had our first formal night last night and it was lovely. The Captain’s Welcome party was nice as anytime you can get a free drink it is great. Most everyone looked elegant and appropriately dressed. Of course you always get the guys who only wears t-shirts, wearing a guava shirt and thinking that is formal or the lady that puts on a shiny sh*t top with sweats and says she is dressed up to make a formal evening interesting. Brian & I wore our purple outfits last night and we looked marvelous… As we hate ship photos, I do not have proof of this but will soon. I had rack of lamb and B had a steak. I am making an attempt to eat beef only once a week and so far have been succeeding in this effort. I am hoping you all will keep me accountable as I know you read this and I can post my efforts.
We will arrive in Russia soon and I will post again then. Happy Sailings
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Seattle
23 September 2010
Greetings Blogger Followers:
Well we have spent a week in Seattle and truly enjoyed ourselves. I believe this is the first time Brian or I have spent any time in this city. Exploring the downtown is a lot like walking around San Francisco – hilly, interesting architecture, and even more interesting people. Pike’s Place Market has a somewhat foreign flavor to it as folks of all nationalities mingle together enjoying the sites and sounds. We watched the famous, flying fish – where the fish mongers tossed fish back to be filleted and packaged for purchase; listened to a variety of bands/singers as there was a buskers festival; watched a magician and a silver mannequin/statue perform; and ate a great breakfast, drank a coffee and enjoyed clam chowder. Seattle is a fun city with but a few drawbacks – the weather for one, as it was rainy 60% of the time; parking is outrageous costing UPWARDS from $8; and although the food/lodging is good it is not cheap either. A coffee & a donut cost at least $5 and that’s not even Starbuck’s…lol!
We had a marvelous time with our Canadian friends, Ginny & Chris. Our first meal together was a Brazilian chorizo, where they bring all kinds of meat to your table and cut it right off the skewer. I enjoyed the buffalo and the pineapple the best-they also had wild boar, but we did not try it. B filled up on tri-tip, pork and sirloin. All of it was tasty, but it was the company that was the best.
Others days, Brian did some georging: entering bills and spending bills in new Washington zip codes. We went to a mini-gathering where we met up with some fellow georgers-we will also have breakfast with Tim tomorrow morning…
I met up with Bonnie and Kim at the Tulalip Casino where we enjoyed playing poker together. This casino is beautiful, well laid out & has a great poker room with a high hand jackpot every hour. I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling to WA… It was fun to take a break and walk over to the Outlet Mall, get a little exercise and go back to the casino. We had a good meal and I even got a free dessert, as I was wearing a necklace that the casino had given me indicating it was recently my birthday…
Today we sorted & packed – Brian likes to gift the casino staff on the ship with treats, so he purchased 3 shipping boxes worth of candy, nuts & snacks – it’s a good thing there is no limit to what the porters will take to your stateroom! HA!
We went to see The American, George Clooney’s new movie, but I would not recommend it – was kind of strange…
We embark tomorrow, Friday 24 September, and will depart around 5pm.
I will blog again if a few days… Bon Voyage my friends… GB
Greetings Blogger Followers:
Well we have spent a week in Seattle and truly enjoyed ourselves. I believe this is the first time Brian or I have spent any time in this city. Exploring the downtown is a lot like walking around San Francisco – hilly, interesting architecture, and even more interesting people. Pike’s Place Market has a somewhat foreign flavor to it as folks of all nationalities mingle together enjoying the sites and sounds. We watched the famous, flying fish – where the fish mongers tossed fish back to be filleted and packaged for purchase; listened to a variety of bands/singers as there was a buskers festival; watched a magician and a silver mannequin/statue perform; and ate a great breakfast, drank a coffee and enjoyed clam chowder. Seattle is a fun city with but a few drawbacks – the weather for one, as it was rainy 60% of the time; parking is outrageous costing UPWARDS from $8; and although the food/lodging is good it is not cheap either. A coffee & a donut cost at least $5 and that’s not even Starbuck’s…lol!
We had a marvelous time with our Canadian friends, Ginny & Chris. Our first meal together was a Brazilian chorizo, where they bring all kinds of meat to your table and cut it right off the skewer. I enjoyed the buffalo and the pineapple the best-they also had wild boar, but we did not try it. B filled up on tri-tip, pork and sirloin. All of it was tasty, but it was the company that was the best.
Others days, Brian did some georging: entering bills and spending bills in new Washington zip codes. We went to a mini-gathering where we met up with some fellow georgers-we will also have breakfast with Tim tomorrow morning…
I met up with Bonnie and Kim at the Tulalip Casino where we enjoyed playing poker together. This casino is beautiful, well laid out & has a great poker room with a high hand jackpot every hour. I would highly recommend it to anyone traveling to WA… It was fun to take a break and walk over to the Outlet Mall, get a little exercise and go back to the casino. We had a good meal and I even got a free dessert, as I was wearing a necklace that the casino had given me indicating it was recently my birthday…
Today we sorted & packed – Brian likes to gift the casino staff on the ship with treats, so he purchased 3 shipping boxes worth of candy, nuts & snacks – it’s a good thing there is no limit to what the porters will take to your stateroom! HA!
We went to see The American, George Clooney’s new movie, but I would not recommend it – was kind of strange…
We embark tomorrow, Friday 24 September, and will depart around 5pm.
I will blog again if a few days… Bon Voyage my friends… GB
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Destinations
 |
| Holland America Grand Voyage |
So the above is a map of where we will soon travel. The complete voyage is 70 days. We actually get to overnight in 5 ports: Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Cairns & Sydney. We have been to these destinations on previous cruises, so it will be fun to return to some of our favorite haunts. New countries/ports for us are Japan, New Caledonia, Russia, Cambodia and Indonesia.
One of the best perks of a Grand Voyage with HAL, is that they pick up baggage a week early and deliver it right to your stateroom. So I am busy packing: have the formal wear in one suitcase, Brian's other clothes in another, costumes for theme nights & other misc sh*t in the foot locker, so am just about done. WAIT! where is all my stuff gonna go? I only have one more allotted piece of luggage! AGH!! Guess we will have to bring extra on the plane - "phew" - flying SouthWest so can get another 4 suitcases for free...LOL!
Next update will most likely be from Seattle - happy sailing....
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Voyage PreQuel
Greetings Friends -
Once again Brian and I are blessed and excited to be embarking on a long sea voyage. We leave Sept 17th for Seattle, board the ship on Sept 24th and return to San Diego on Dec 7th. On previous occasions, I have sent emails and posted our adventures on forums. For this trip, I have decided to actually create a blog - which can be found at this link: http://bngcruisin.blogspot.com/
As I write entries, I will email/post the link so you will know there are updates. You can also register to "follow this blog and I believe you will get notifications. Using this format will allow me more flexibility, be able to post photos easier, you can add comments without sending an email and you can read along at your leisure. So sit back, grab a cup o' joe and let's cruise.
Once again Brian and I are blessed and excited to be embarking on a long sea voyage. We leave Sept 17th for Seattle, board the ship on Sept 24th and return to San Diego on Dec 7th. On previous occasions, I have sent emails and posted our adventures on forums. For this trip, I have decided to actually create a blog - which can be found at this link: http://bngcruisin.blogspot.com/
As I write entries, I will email/post the link so you will know there are updates. You can also register to "follow this blog and I believe you will get notifications. Using this format will allow me more flexibility, be able to post photos easier, you can add comments without sending an email and you can read along at your leisure. So sit back, grab a cup o' joe and let's cruise.
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