May 12, 2013 - On May 8 we docked at Ponta Delgada on the island of San Miguel which is one of 9 islands making up the Azores. The Azores sit on an active mid Atlantic volcanic range, the most recent eruption in 1957-1958. This eruption was caused by Mt. Capelinhos and expanded Faial Island. San Miguel rests 900 nautical miles off the west coast of Portugal and is the largest island of the Azores. All nine islands have a total population of 230,000 and the islands are a territory of Portugal but have their own government agencies. The Azores were discovered by Diogo de Silves in 1427. The Iberians saw many birds. Mistaking the great birds for hawks the Iberians named the islands Acores meaning hawks. Settlements appeared about mid 1400s. The islands played a part in the world and European history. By the end of the 15th century all nine islands were inhabited and trade was expanding with Portugal. From 1580 to 1640 all Portugal and the Azores were ruled by Spain. The Azores became a rendezvous point for Spanish treasure ships returning to Spain from the new world. They have continued to play a part in the world and European affairs as air bases and communication center during WW11. A 1951 agreement gave the US rights to use defense facilities in the Azores. Evidence of the Azores volcanic activity can be see in the Furnas Valley where steam vents, hot springs and boiling mud pools exist. As in most of our ports there is the Sao Bras Fort (built in 1552) which was just outside the port. Pineapples, tea, sugar beets, and tobacco with hand-made cigars are exported from this island. Pineapples were brought to the island in 1820 but they are grown in greenhouses in a temperature range of 78 to 100 degrees F. It take from 18 to 24 months for a pineapple to mature. No chemicals are used. Oranges were also imported and grow well on the island. San Miguel has an international airport and flights from Montreal and Toronto come from May to October. There are a lot of dairy cows and on our trip around the island we saw the dairy. Japanese Cedar trees have been imported from Canada and are planted to hold the water in the soil and the soil in place. The trees are used in building but it takes about 30 years to mature so the wood can be used. The National Parks Board stocks lakes with fish as many of the lakes are not fed by streams. The islands get about 90 days of rain a year but fresh water is in abundance from under ground. Our tour took us to Sete Cidades which is a small village that is nestled between two crater lakes, the blue lake and the emerald green lake.There are small lakes all over the island that have been formed by centuries of geo-thermal activity or relentless winter surf. Mez visited a tea plantation that had production equipment dating back to before the Civil War from England manufactured by Marshall and Sons of Gainsborough, England. Five o`clock tea is not British in origin but comes from a Portuguese princess who lived in England and enjoyed her tea on Portuguese porcelain. The Dutch also had this custom as formal tea drinkers before the British. In fact, Orange Pekoe Tea is named after the Dutch Royal House of Orange. The famous 12 acre Terra Nostra Gardens of Sao Miguel were constructed by a US Consulate General, Thomas Hickling, and a British gardener. It is more than 200 years old with Sequoias and some Norfolk pines 13 feet in circumferance. In the 1970s school children studied at night using sperm whale oil lanterns. Curiously it was Nantucket whalers who hired and taught Azore fisherman how to hunt whales in the mid 1800s. There are close to 1 million people with Azorian heritage who live in the US.
May 9th we were suppose to stop for a day at Faial Island another island of the Azores and see the town of Horta. The swells for tendering were, as has been mentioned before, too big for the tendering to be done safely so we sailed slowly passed and took pictures of the island. As now we were going to be ahead of schedule the captain made arrangements for us to dock early in Bermuda. We arrived and were cleared in the port of Hamilton by late afternoon allowing many of those wishing to spend the evening having dinner on land. Mez and I had booked a dinner at the Pinnacle Grill on the ship and we enjoyed the view of the town as we ate. Bermuda is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean which is the oldest remaining British overseas territory and is located 1100 miles northeast of Miami.The following day I purchased a day pass and headed for the town of St. George's on the northeast end of the island. Public transit includes both ferries and buses running between the Royal Navy Dockyard and both Hamilton and St. George's. The natives call the buses the "Pink and Blue" as that is the color of the buses. Blue poles designate stops for buses leaving Hamilton and pink designate stops to Hamilton for all of us who are use to cars going on the right side of the road. Bermuda follows the UK in driving habits. Bermuda has history with ties to the Civil War. I walked into an old building in St. George's, a hotel with a museum on the first floor. That building had been an outpost for goods being supplied to the Confederate Army. Bermuda is 20.6 square miles with a population of 64,700 making it the 9th largest population density in the world. Tucker's town is where the wealthy reside. There is a lot to see on this island and as we moved along I was in awe of the local flowers and trees that were growing. A day pass was 15 dollars which also includes the ferries. Getting around was very simple and there are express buses and more scenic routes you can travel. I didn't have a lot of time but we were back from the upper end of the island in about 25 minutes.
Tomorrow morning we dock in Fort Lauderdale and then fly home on Saturday. Cruising is many different concepts to people. Some want to meet others, some want to relax and read, some want to learn and see the world around them and learn about other cultures. This was probably my reason with a little of the others thrown in. No matter what we have picked up from the media, or what our early learning institutions taught us there will always be 2 sides to a story. For those who grew up with the vision of Sir Francis Drake and his explorations around North America and his various discoveries he was not a nice man to many Spanish and Portuguese villages as he looted and killed many people. One of our passengers gave a very interesting talk about the 1967-1968 seizure of the USS Pueblo by the North Koreans and what really happened. He was the navigator on that ship and also was imprisoned by them along with the rest of the crew. For those who have never cruised build up to it by taking a short cruise. Cruises are excellent value and some can be purchased for under 100 dollars a day. Considering room, food, travel, entertainment, hot tubs and pools for that price I would suggest that one should try it.
Anyone wishing more information I can be reached at thowe@shaw.ca . In the subject box please state blog content as I do not open mail from those I do not know. Meanwhile get out and travel and see what a glorious world we share with one another, the animals, the flora, and the starry skies. HAPPY CRUISING!
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Atlantic Ocean heading WEST
May 5, 2013 - Today I want to focus on our two days in Barcelona, Spain though Prinsendam is docked in Cadiz. The monetary concerns are barely seen in Barcelona as construction carries on and stores are full of people. Visitors continue to pour into this city and buy beautiful leather and porcelain items. Lots of work is being done on restoring many old churches and museums. The first day there I needed to take a tour of the city. The tour started by taking us to Vilana Hill which held many venues for the 1992 Olympics. A funicular runs up the hill to the Collserola Tower which was designed by an English architect named Norman Foster. The tower is the tallest in the city at 1,000 feet and allows a view on a clear day of the Pyrennees Mountains which make a natural boundary between Spain and France. There are 70 museums, 3 universities and 16 parks serving 3 million people who call Barcelona and the surrounding area their home. Interestingly Barcelona has an el bicing network which is seen along main streets. It maintains 100 bicycle stations throughout the metropolitan area. Rental is free for the first 30 minutes and then a few euros per hour after that with a small registration fee. We saw many Hop On and Hop Off buses around the town and one route stopped right outside the port terminal. Barcelona is probably the most avant garde city in the world. The vibrant, colorful districts draw all kinds of artisans to it. Some famous artists are Picasso, Milo, Dali, and Casals but the favorite of the residents is Antonio Gaudi. Not knowing a lot about hiI found many of his projects almost overdone. Casa Mila was Gaudi's home but his obsession was the Holy Family Cathedral. Gaudi did not plan for it to be a church when it started construction in 1882. He designed it and knew all the intricacies of the plan while no one else knew exactly what it was to look like in the end. Well in 1926 he was hit by a bus and died so construction came to a halt. It wasn't until the 1980s that the plans were found among his posessions. Today the inside of the church is finished with stone, iron and ceramics allowing the natural light from above to reflect. The entrance fee is 14.8 euros and up to 25,000 people per day have passed through it. Outside it has 12 spires representing the 12 apostles and then there are 4 smaller ones representing the 4 gospels. The fee is used on the construction and the maintanence of the church. Two years ago bull fighting was outlawed by Barcelona so the arena is now used as a large shopping area with restaurants and coffee bars. Another famous store in Barcelona is Stella McCartney clothing store whose highend stores are found all over Europe. Navarios Flower Shop opened in 1937 and has never been closed. It is open 24 hours 365/366 days a year and is in the old section of town. Barcelona is a vibrant and colorful town with great restaurants and the Catalunyan culture. You can almost see the people as they dance down the street. Barcelonian women seem to be very classy dressers when leaving home. Barcelona gets about 3.8 million visitors a year. Barcelona has its nature that is beautiful with sub tropical plants. We saw dolphins and a brides whale and migrating birds that hitch rides on cruise and cargo ships across the Mediterranean. No rain and what nice temperature we had.
Cadiz is located on the southwest coast of Spain on the Atlantic Ocean. It is so much smaller than Barcelona but very beautiful. The area was first known to be inhabited in 1100 BC. It was a trade and commercial port for north south ships. In 1596 Francis Drake totally destroyed the city and those that escaped wondered if they should return or not. They did and built a wall around the new city in 1598. The city stayed within the walls until the 1960s when development came in the form of new hotel complexes. Today one can see the colonial influence on the city. Cadiz has 40% unemployment compared to the federal amount of 26-27%. There are 180,000 residents and another 20,000 in the surrounding area. Our guide spoke a lot about how the EU has affected their lives. Her husband was laid off from a metal working job and got hired as a bus driver and today was to be his last day doing that. I felt for her and her husband. The city has a number of unfinished projects due to the downturn in the economy. There are buildings left unfinished and a bridge is partway erected. One happy thing she said was that the mayor is a very strong, opinionated woman who has no problem with telling it like it is. You graffiti a building and you are up at 6 am on a weekend cleaning. There are no graffitti pictures on any building. The beaches are cleaned daily in winter and twice daily in the summer. The streets are cleaned nightly with a wash. It is Sunday today and I saon herbs and combinations and what they do for you..w no less than a dozen people sweeping sidewalks and gutters and picking up litter on the beach. We took a tour of Cadiz and continued to Jerez where we visited a sherry making establishment. Years ago the property had been a religious establishment and some of the rooms are still intact but additions have been added to create the sherry plant. I have been impressed with the Spanish and their concern for the environment and the pride they take in looking after their city and making visitors welcome. Mez spent the day in Seville and saw Our Lady of the Holy See. He spoke of the elaborate angels and an old robe of some king which hung in the entrance of the church. The brocade design on this 1000 year old robe was impressive. Many of the buildings here in Spain have structures that mix Gothic, Moorish and Baroque art and for those who are well-versed in architectural design one can almost see the eras that they were built. Jerez is home to the Andalusian horse fair which is due to open tomorrow and so we drove by the area where the fair takes place.
May 6 and 7 have been days at sea and though they give us some relaxing time there is always activities to keep you busy. We have just started a program Dancing With the Stars at Sea and today was a foxtrot competition. It was fun to watch. We have also had very interesting speakers. Danny Catt from BCIT has been on board teaching us about photography and how to use our cameras and take interesting pictures. He also gave a lecture on whales and dolphins. Peter Watson is a retired professor from Carlton University and was in the Department of Physics. He continues to teach and do research and is giving us a group of lectures on astronomy. He is doing a historical synopsis of astronomy through the ages. There are health seminars that I have attended- one on herbs and their affect on the body. Jane A Gorden is on board teaching pearl stringing and I have been having fun watching fellow passengers design necklaces with pearls and beads. One couple had bought a necklace for 6 dollars in Morroco and decided to restring it by adding pearls making it astoundingly gorgeous. It was fun to watch them redo it and make it their own. Then there was the night of karaoke and I actually have a fan base here on ship, not a lot but what fun we all had. The casino is a big item for some but I just walk through and watch. One movie is shown 3 times per day in the theater and then the following day on the TV. Then I decided to see what Skydrive can do as there is no compatability issue with it. It was given in the Microsoft workshop. Tomorrow we will be in Ponta Delgada in the Azores. Currently we have plans to dock at 8 AM and we will leave tomorrow night at just before midnight. Cruising is an adventure and we have a ship mechanical problem that hopefully will be fixed by tomorrow night but our midnight departure will allow us to see more of Sao Migual which is the largest of the nine islands of the Azores. I will be heading up to see Sete Cidades Crater Lake in the morning and if time allows I will head off on my own in the afternoon. After Ponta Delgada our plans carry us to Horta, Portugal and after a few days to Bermuda. I will probably send my last post of the last three ports when I arrive in Fort Lauderdale on May 17.
Cadiz is located on the southwest coast of Spain on the Atlantic Ocean. It is so much smaller than Barcelona but very beautiful. The area was first known to be inhabited in 1100 BC. It was a trade and commercial port for north south ships. In 1596 Francis Drake totally destroyed the city and those that escaped wondered if they should return or not. They did and built a wall around the new city in 1598. The city stayed within the walls until the 1960s when development came in the form of new hotel complexes. Today one can see the colonial influence on the city. Cadiz has 40% unemployment compared to the federal amount of 26-27%. There are 180,000 residents and another 20,000 in the surrounding area. Our guide spoke a lot about how the EU has affected their lives. Her husband was laid off from a metal working job and got hired as a bus driver and today was to be his last day doing that. I felt for her and her husband. The city has a number of unfinished projects due to the downturn in the economy. There are buildings left unfinished and a bridge is partway erected. One happy thing she said was that the mayor is a very strong, opinionated woman who has no problem with telling it like it is. You graffiti a building and you are up at 6 am on a weekend cleaning. There are no graffitti pictures on any building. The beaches are cleaned daily in winter and twice daily in the summer. The streets are cleaned nightly with a wash. It is Sunday today and I saon herbs and combinations and what they do for you..w no less than a dozen people sweeping sidewalks and gutters and picking up litter on the beach. We took a tour of Cadiz and continued to Jerez where we visited a sherry making establishment. Years ago the property had been a religious establishment and some of the rooms are still intact but additions have been added to create the sherry plant. I have been impressed with the Spanish and their concern for the environment and the pride they take in looking after their city and making visitors welcome. Mez spent the day in Seville and saw Our Lady of the Holy See. He spoke of the elaborate angels and an old robe of some king which hung in the entrance of the church. The brocade design on this 1000 year old robe was impressive. Many of the buildings here in Spain have structures that mix Gothic, Moorish and Baroque art and for those who are well-versed in architectural design one can almost see the eras that they were built. Jerez is home to the Andalusian horse fair which is due to open tomorrow and so we drove by the area where the fair takes place.
May 6 and 7 have been days at sea and though they give us some relaxing time there is always activities to keep you busy. We have just started a program Dancing With the Stars at Sea and today was a foxtrot competition. It was fun to watch. We have also had very interesting speakers. Danny Catt from BCIT has been on board teaching us about photography and how to use our cameras and take interesting pictures. He also gave a lecture on whales and dolphins. Peter Watson is a retired professor from Carlton University and was in the Department of Physics. He continues to teach and do research and is giving us a group of lectures on astronomy. He is doing a historical synopsis of astronomy through the ages. There are health seminars that I have attended- one on herbs and their affect on the body. Jane A Gorden is on board teaching pearl stringing and I have been having fun watching fellow passengers design necklaces with pearls and beads. One couple had bought a necklace for 6 dollars in Morroco and decided to restring it by adding pearls making it astoundingly gorgeous. It was fun to watch them redo it and make it their own. Then there was the night of karaoke and I actually have a fan base here on ship, not a lot but what fun we all had. The casino is a big item for some but I just walk through and watch. One movie is shown 3 times per day in the theater and then the following day on the TV. Then I decided to see what Skydrive can do as there is no compatability issue with it. It was given in the Microsoft workshop. Tomorrow we will be in Ponta Delgada in the Azores. Currently we have plans to dock at 8 AM and we will leave tomorrow night at just before midnight. Cruising is an adventure and we have a ship mechanical problem that hopefully will be fixed by tomorrow night but our midnight departure will allow us to see more of Sao Migual which is the largest of the nine islands of the Azores. I will be heading up to see Sete Cidades Crater Lake in the morning and if time allows I will head off on my own in the afternoon. After Ponta Delgada our plans carry us to Horta, Portugal and after a few days to Bermuda. I will probably send my last post of the last three ports when I arrive in Fort Lauderdale on May 17.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Heading West - toward home
April 29, 2013- It is late afternoon and I have returned from a day in Rome. Our ship is docked in Civitavecchia at the Port of Michaelangelo. Civitavecchia has about 500,000 people. (The port is a powerful maritime engine that fuels Rome's Lazio region.*) Today there are 5 cruise ships in the port and there are also commercial freighters that are loading and unloading. The train station is about a 20 minute walk along the seaside promenade. The ride into Rome took about 60 minutes and the traffic did not seem congested. Once there I was blown away by the buildings and the areas that are preserved from milleniums ago. The Vatican was very busy but our tour did not include a walk through it. I did take some pictures of it and we had a nice lunch across the street from it. The Colosseum was the most impressive building to me but at just about every turn a different structure appeared. Our tour was a leisurely drive around Rome except for our lunch and some shopping time. We saw the Roman Forum , various temples to Kings, and an inauguration of the new Italian President on the front stairs of the government building with all the guards dressed in their regal clothing and holding flags. The Circus Maximus sits below the Palatiine Hill and is 664 meters by 123 meters. Efforts to landscape the area have been fruitless as they have not been maintained. The structure was established under the Etruscan kings who transformed the village of Rome into a monumental city. As time passed the Circus Maximus slowly had additions made to it as a new conquering king came into power. It grew from seating 50,000 spectators to almost 250,000 who watched the chariot races. We saw king Hadrian's Mausoleum, the Roman Forum, the window Mussolini used to speak from and St. Peter's Square. We saw where the Baths of Caracalla were and so many other interesting buildings : some have been fixed and maintained while others are still in a destroyed condition. We did not see Trevi Fountain or the Pantheon. We crossed the Tiber River as we entered the historic center of Rome. Rome is the largest city in Italy with 3.5 million people while Italy has about 55 million. I found Rome to be a facinating city with its history easily seen. The Vatican sits on 108 acres west of the Tiber River where about 1000 residents live in an independent nation under the terms of the Laterna Treaty which was signed in 1929 between the Vatican and Mussolini.
* taken from Holland America Brochure
April 30, 2013 is a day in the history of the Netherlands as the queen stepped down and her son took over. We can keep up with all the news here on ship if we choose. Today was a relaxing day as the captain made a decision not to tender into Sardinia. I had a tour of the island and was disappointed to not have seen it. There is no dock for large cruise ships so it meant that tenders would be used. A tender is a small boat used also as a lifeboat if necessary. The swells around Sardinia were about 5 meters or 18 feet which would cause a tender boat to rise and fall some distance making transfers from the ship to the tender quite difficult as people step onto it and since 90% of our current passenger load is over 60 years old the captain decided to not take chances with the safety of the crew or the passengers. Usually on tour days little happens on board so the staff hurried and put together some of the sea day activities so the guests could keep busy. I decided to take a nap and to read a book on Rome that I had purchased yesterday at the Vatican store which sits across the street from the Vatican. Mez had a tour that had taken him to the Sistine Chapel and he saw Michaelangelo's paintings. That chapel was completed in 1484. As with all of the Mediterranean history, conquests, and groups of people come and go and those remaining asimilate into the conquering culture. We have found that English is spoken by many in the tourism industry so I always ask " Do you speak English? ". Some say "no" others say "a little". So you know where you stand. Every annoucement is in English on the ship. Tomorrow we are due to dock in Mahon or Mao on the island of Minorca (or Menorca).
May 1, 2013 we awoke docked in the Port of Mao. Menorca or Minorca is governed under Spain. It is the 2nd largest island of the Balearic Islands located off the southeastern coast of Spain. The island has a permanent population but the summer brings in tourists and visitors. Our day there was wonderful making getting around interesting and it has an esthically pleasing design to the town. Prinsendam was right across the street from a main square where kiosks sat and sellers sold. A set of white stairs went up the hill to the upper part of the town but the road coming down curved around crossing the crosswalks for the stairs. I had not booked a tour but had a great experience riding the train express around the town. I picked it up on the curving street at the bottom of the hill. The train drove on the road but had a clanging bell and a toot-toot horn. For 6 Euros the train went along the beach and then climbed to the older section of town where it stopped to allow us to take pictures. A great female tour host collected the fares and made announcements about Mahon and the various old buildings as we drove by. Many streets are one-way crushed between high walls and old buildings making picture taking a challenge as there was a great deal of shadowing along the narrow streets. Mahon was under British control for most of the 1700s so Georgian architecture still lingers here. Menorca came under Spain in 1802 when the Treat of Ameins was signed between England and Spain. People are most responsive as the train goes by. Some yell "Hola" ( we say "Hi"), others wave and some just watch this train with two coaches drive by. Ferries service the Mediterranean between mainland and the islands. We saw Grimaldi ships at many of the ports. Private yaucts and sailboats are seen here from Norway as the jet setters make their home here in the winter. Menorca is part of the UNESCO World Biosphere Preserve. No fertilizers, contaminents, or pollutants are allowed on the island. They have a large amount of fresh water and they look after the surrounding sea habitat. The ecological system is very delicate that both the land and the sea needs protection. The people are easy going, there seems to be no one in any hurry. I found traffic around the island very peaceful as people stopped and talked to each other as they drove opposite directions. Along the harbour road were many restaurants, stores and places to visit. I enjoyed seeing my traveling companions out and about as I rode the train express. An overnight sailing will take us to Barcelona, Spain where we will be able to spend two days.
* taken from Holland America Brochure
April 30, 2013 is a day in the history of the Netherlands as the queen stepped down and her son took over. We can keep up with all the news here on ship if we choose. Today was a relaxing day as the captain made a decision not to tender into Sardinia. I had a tour of the island and was disappointed to not have seen it. There is no dock for large cruise ships so it meant that tenders would be used. A tender is a small boat used also as a lifeboat if necessary. The swells around Sardinia were about 5 meters or 18 feet which would cause a tender boat to rise and fall some distance making transfers from the ship to the tender quite difficult as people step onto it and since 90% of our current passenger load is over 60 years old the captain decided to not take chances with the safety of the crew or the passengers. Usually on tour days little happens on board so the staff hurried and put together some of the sea day activities so the guests could keep busy. I decided to take a nap and to read a book on Rome that I had purchased yesterday at the Vatican store which sits across the street from the Vatican. Mez had a tour that had taken him to the Sistine Chapel and he saw Michaelangelo's paintings. That chapel was completed in 1484. As with all of the Mediterranean history, conquests, and groups of people come and go and those remaining asimilate into the conquering culture. We have found that English is spoken by many in the tourism industry so I always ask " Do you speak English? ". Some say "no" others say "a little". So you know where you stand. Every annoucement is in English on the ship. Tomorrow we are due to dock in Mahon or Mao on the island of Minorca (or Menorca).
May 1, 2013 we awoke docked in the Port of Mao. Menorca or Minorca is governed under Spain. It is the 2nd largest island of the Balearic Islands located off the southeastern coast of Spain. The island has a permanent population but the summer brings in tourists and visitors. Our day there was wonderful making getting around interesting and it has an esthically pleasing design to the town. Prinsendam was right across the street from a main square where kiosks sat and sellers sold. A set of white stairs went up the hill to the upper part of the town but the road coming down curved around crossing the crosswalks for the stairs. I had not booked a tour but had a great experience riding the train express around the town. I picked it up on the curving street at the bottom of the hill. The train drove on the road but had a clanging bell and a toot-toot horn. For 6 Euros the train went along the beach and then climbed to the older section of town where it stopped to allow us to take pictures. A great female tour host collected the fares and made announcements about Mahon and the various old buildings as we drove by. Many streets are one-way crushed between high walls and old buildings making picture taking a challenge as there was a great deal of shadowing along the narrow streets. Mahon was under British control for most of the 1700s so Georgian architecture still lingers here. Menorca came under Spain in 1802 when the Treat of Ameins was signed between England and Spain. People are most responsive as the train goes by. Some yell "Hola" ( we say "Hi"), others wave and some just watch this train with two coaches drive by. Ferries service the Mediterranean between mainland and the islands. We saw Grimaldi ships at many of the ports. Private yaucts and sailboats are seen here from Norway as the jet setters make their home here in the winter. Menorca is part of the UNESCO World Biosphere Preserve. No fertilizers, contaminents, or pollutants are allowed on the island. They have a large amount of fresh water and they look after the surrounding sea habitat. The ecological system is very delicate that both the land and the sea needs protection. The people are easy going, there seems to be no one in any hurry. I found traffic around the island very peaceful as people stopped and talked to each other as they drove opposite directions. Along the harbour road were many restaurants, stores and places to visit. I enjoyed seeing my traveling companions out and about as I rode the train express. An overnight sailing will take us to Barcelona, Spain where we will be able to spend two days.
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Visiting Italy
April 28, 2013
On April 24 I headed to the Lido for breakfast hoping to find another adventurer to ride the Grand Canal. Lo and Behold, Michael and Claire from Australia were sitting trying to decide what to do. We hooked up for an expedition around Venice. We took the shuttle bus that Prinsendam provided from the ship to the People Mover which runs between a very huge parking lot and the downtown. For 1 Euro each it got us to within about 2 walking blocks of the Grand Canal. Once there we needed to buy tickets for a round trip on the #1 vaporetto. We found a PT ticket seller but he only sold tickets for the #2 vaporetto that terminates at St. Mark`s Square. As the cue was building quickly we thought we should just get on and was told to pay on the vaporetto. Well we had a lovely scenic ride along the Grand Canal and to Lido Island and then we came back again. The day was sunny and I spent the whole time thinking about what might happen if checkers came on and I got arrested. We never did pay. Venice has about 15,000 residents but there are about 60,000 that service all the shops and tourist attractions. These folk live outside Venice and commute by vehicle or the train crossing the lagoon from the mainland on the 3 mile expressway. Everyone transfers to the People Mover. AM and PM commute along the Grand Canal is a sight to see. There are stops along the canal for the vaporettos, but there are private boats, taxi boats, delivery boats, boats tied up along both sides of the canal and also police boats. One vaporetto has to wait for another to leave the stop going the opposite direction and then the second can pull into the same place but going another direction. Boat congestion was a sight to see. We saw the Doges Palace, St. Mark`s Square, Rialto Bridge, and the Bridge of Sighs as well as many other older buildings. Allow for a three hour round trip just staying on the vaporetto.
On April 26 we were anchored off the coast of Sicily at Taormina at the Port of Naxos after we had sailed for one day. We took a ride around to see Taormina along with a stop at the Gival Jewelry Factory where we watched jewelry being made from the lava of Mt. Etna. Mt Etna had spewed ashes into the air the previous Saturday leaving black ash 5 centimeters thick on the highways and the fine ash was still on the street and layered on cars when we got to the factory. As we drove along we watched the mountain as it blew smoke into the sky. Mt. Etna is the highest mountain in Europe. It has destroyed the town of Cantania 9 times and has erupted more than 140 times. Currently it stands at 3,330 meters high but the height varies as liquid magma is deposited on the rim. Sometimes it gets smaller as the rim is torn down by the next blow. Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean with 26,000 square kms. It is said that ice cream came from Sicily about 1860. Taormina has about 12,000 residents. There is an unemployment rate of 15% among young people as many of them graduate with degrees but can`t seem to find work. Technical training is needed as construction workers, plumbers, electricians are in short supply. I enjoyed the area with its great views and the lovely people. Later in the evening we passed the island of Stromboli with its mountain spitting fire and lava. Passing it at night was beautiful and as we reached the north side we could see the constant orange glow.
Our next port of call was to be Sorrento for two days but there were going to be 3 other cruise ships anchored in the bay so our captain made some changes so we spent one day in Naples. I took off on a tour of Pompei but the rain and the slippery marble caused me some concern so I did not get up to the old city. There was a very nice hotel that a group of us sat in and visited while others went trinket shopping at the outdoor booths which surrounded the walls of the old city. Traveling passed Mount Vesuvius was almost bewildering after seeing both Mt. Etna and Stromboli as active. The ride was a nice one to see the surrounding countryside but I did miss seeing Pompei. Upon returning to the ship we had a very nice dinner and watched the traffic near the port. A tram station is right near the port and we saw trolley buses. There was a great deal of construction outside the terminal. A Hop On Hop Off bus stopped just across the street outside the terminal. Naples seems to be an easy city to get around in. Naples has a population of 1.6 million and is the 3rd largest city in Italy. Pompei and Herculaneum were both destroyed in 79 AD when Mt. Vesuvius erupted. Pompei had been an important crossroad for commerce. The last time Vesuvius erupted was in 1944. The area around Vesuvius has about 900,000 residents.
Today April 28 we arrived in Sorrento. Sorrento is a wonderful small town with huge walls that come almost right down to the harbor. Like many of these old walled cities the roads are narrow and they have hairpin turns with high walls on both sides. The view from the upper city looking down on the port and our ship was clear and beautiful. The day seems to go by so fast once we'd returned from our tour that I did not have enough time to get the whole perspective of the town. A trip down the Amalfi Coast was winding and quite spectacular. There were many houses built way up on almost verticle cliffs with swimming pools and hot tubs. Interspersed with modern highend real estate were old watchtowers that sat sedately on points. Summer here is April through October and this was a 4-day weekend so there were lots of tourists out with most of them on motorcycles.I have been introduced to a new liquor made with lemons. It is quite popular here and is known as limoncello. It is sweet and has a thickness like port. The port area in Sorrento is lovely and has a nice walkway along the port.There were a number of small stores but as it was Sunday many of them were closed. It is now around 7 pm and we have left Sorrento and are heading to Civitavecchia which is a port for access to Rome. I have planned to see Rome tomorrow though how much walking I do will be decided as the day goes by.
On April 24 I headed to the Lido for breakfast hoping to find another adventurer to ride the Grand Canal. Lo and Behold, Michael and Claire from Australia were sitting trying to decide what to do. We hooked up for an expedition around Venice. We took the shuttle bus that Prinsendam provided from the ship to the People Mover which runs between a very huge parking lot and the downtown. For 1 Euro each it got us to within about 2 walking blocks of the Grand Canal. Once there we needed to buy tickets for a round trip on the #1 vaporetto. We found a PT ticket seller but he only sold tickets for the #2 vaporetto that terminates at St. Mark`s Square. As the cue was building quickly we thought we should just get on and was told to pay on the vaporetto. Well we had a lovely scenic ride along the Grand Canal and to Lido Island and then we came back again. The day was sunny and I spent the whole time thinking about what might happen if checkers came on and I got arrested. We never did pay. Venice has about 15,000 residents but there are about 60,000 that service all the shops and tourist attractions. These folk live outside Venice and commute by vehicle or the train crossing the lagoon from the mainland on the 3 mile expressway. Everyone transfers to the People Mover. AM and PM commute along the Grand Canal is a sight to see. There are stops along the canal for the vaporettos, but there are private boats, taxi boats, delivery boats, boats tied up along both sides of the canal and also police boats. One vaporetto has to wait for another to leave the stop going the opposite direction and then the second can pull into the same place but going another direction. Boat congestion was a sight to see. We saw the Doges Palace, St. Mark`s Square, Rialto Bridge, and the Bridge of Sighs as well as many other older buildings. Allow for a three hour round trip just staying on the vaporetto.
On April 26 we were anchored off the coast of Sicily at Taormina at the Port of Naxos after we had sailed for one day. We took a ride around to see Taormina along with a stop at the Gival Jewelry Factory where we watched jewelry being made from the lava of Mt. Etna. Mt Etna had spewed ashes into the air the previous Saturday leaving black ash 5 centimeters thick on the highways and the fine ash was still on the street and layered on cars when we got to the factory. As we drove along we watched the mountain as it blew smoke into the sky. Mt. Etna is the highest mountain in Europe. It has destroyed the town of Cantania 9 times and has erupted more than 140 times. Currently it stands at 3,330 meters high but the height varies as liquid magma is deposited on the rim. Sometimes it gets smaller as the rim is torn down by the next blow. Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean with 26,000 square kms. It is said that ice cream came from Sicily about 1860. Taormina has about 12,000 residents. There is an unemployment rate of 15% among young people as many of them graduate with degrees but can`t seem to find work. Technical training is needed as construction workers, plumbers, electricians are in short supply. I enjoyed the area with its great views and the lovely people. Later in the evening we passed the island of Stromboli with its mountain spitting fire and lava. Passing it at night was beautiful and as we reached the north side we could see the constant orange glow.
Our next port of call was to be Sorrento for two days but there were going to be 3 other cruise ships anchored in the bay so our captain made some changes so we spent one day in Naples. I took off on a tour of Pompei but the rain and the slippery marble caused me some concern so I did not get up to the old city. There was a very nice hotel that a group of us sat in and visited while others went trinket shopping at the outdoor booths which surrounded the walls of the old city. Traveling passed Mount Vesuvius was almost bewildering after seeing both Mt. Etna and Stromboli as active. The ride was a nice one to see the surrounding countryside but I did miss seeing Pompei. Upon returning to the ship we had a very nice dinner and watched the traffic near the port. A tram station is right near the port and we saw trolley buses. There was a great deal of construction outside the terminal. A Hop On Hop Off bus stopped just across the street outside the terminal. Naples seems to be an easy city to get around in. Naples has a population of 1.6 million and is the 3rd largest city in Italy. Pompei and Herculaneum were both destroyed in 79 AD when Mt. Vesuvius erupted. Pompei had been an important crossroad for commerce. The last time Vesuvius erupted was in 1944. The area around Vesuvius has about 900,000 residents.
Today April 28 we arrived in Sorrento. Sorrento is a wonderful small town with huge walls that come almost right down to the harbor. Like many of these old walled cities the roads are narrow and they have hairpin turns with high walls on both sides. The view from the upper city looking down on the port and our ship was clear and beautiful. The day seems to go by so fast once we'd returned from our tour that I did not have enough time to get the whole perspective of the town. A trip down the Amalfi Coast was winding and quite spectacular. There were many houses built way up on almost verticle cliffs with swimming pools and hot tubs. Interspersed with modern highend real estate were old watchtowers that sat sedately on points. Summer here is April through October and this was a 4-day weekend so there were lots of tourists out with most of them on motorcycles.I have been introduced to a new liquor made with lemons. It is quite popular here and is known as limoncello. It is sweet and has a thickness like port. The port area in Sorrento is lovely and has a nice walkway along the port.There were a number of small stores but as it was Sunday many of them were closed. It is now around 7 pm and we have left Sorrento and are heading to Civitavecchia which is a port for access to Rome. I have planned to see Rome tomorrow though how much walking I do will be decided as the day goes by.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
The Adriatic Sea
April 20, 2013
Yesterday was a day at sea and with two lectures and the cocktails and Captain's dinner along with the 140ith birthday of Holland America Line. It turned out to be quite a busy day. The travel guide talks about our upcoming ports and where the ship will be docked and whether there will be a shuttle bus to take us to town and the layout of the area as well as the tours that HAL offers. The dinner was great and we sat with the doctor and his wife along with a retired teacher and a lovely lady whose native tongue was Spanish and knew little English. So upon returning to our already cramped cabin we find that HAL has given us a lovely almost 800 page book on the Mediterranean titled THE GREAT SEA which is in the ship`s library. Glancing through it the author traces the history from 22,000 BC right up to 2010. Great book even if it does weigh 5 pounds!
Today at 7AM we docked at the beautiful port of Dubrovnik, Croatia and we will leave at 4 AM tomorrow as we only need a few hours to reach Kotor, Montenegro. I toured north along the coast to the town of Ston which has the 2nd longest wall in the world after the Great Wall of China. The old town of Dubrovnik is circled by a wall which a number of passengers said they had walked on. The wall of Ston is over 6 kilometers and I did get some pictures of it. We continued on to two different family wineries one which does export to Canada and the US so I decided that I would purchase a bottle when I get home. The Adriatic Sea looked like a lake today, no waves, but the day was sunny. Dubrovnik is on the UNESCO world heritage list and since the 1990 war many buildings have been fixed or rebuilt. They have a new bridge over a channel built in about 2005 cutting 18 miles off a trip north as they used to have to travel to the end of the channel to get to the other side. During the war Serbian ships blocked the channel putting a seige on the city from October 1991 until the summer of 1992. The residents had no water, electricity and the roofs of houses were shelled for 24 hours straight. Food could not be shipped in and many people died of starvation. Croatia has 4.5 million people with about 15,000 living in Dubrovnik which is in the southern part of the country on the east side of the Adriatic Sea. The capital is Zagreb which is in the north. Croatia has 1000 islands which they manage. Dubrovnik existed as an independant city republic for 500 years with the Venetian empire on one side and the Ottoman Empire on the other. Napoleon conquered it during his reign. More history than I am able to relate. Lunch was at a family run winery. The family home was over 500 years old and the area we ate in had been the wine cellar until the new one was built. Back in Dubrovnik`s heyday during the 15th and 16th century it had the second largest merchant fleet after Venice. We also stopped at a small quiet fishing village that had been totally burned during the war with Serbia. At some point Serbian military was needed in Bosnia so they left and Dubrovnik started the clean up. Currently, the country is planning to join the EU in July and Slovania plans to join later. Croatia has a very winding coastline and there are plans to build a highway, but the route needs to go through about a 5 mile section of Bosnia. There are legal and political ramifications with the plans. Find a map and you will see that Bosnia almost comes right down to the Adriatic sea. International help came from many countries to rebuild and in 1998 the tourists started coming back. The Dalmation Coast was and now is a very beautiful area once again attracting people from northern Europe. Many big name hotels have been built and the rocky mountainsides are being terraced to grow grapes. Oyster and mussel farms and salt production are smaller exports than wine but the area is doing well with its tourism and shipping businesses.
Since Montenegro was only a 3 hour trip from Dubrovnik we left there at 4 AM and docked in Kotor about 8 AM. Montenegro means black mountain which is what the Venetian sailors saw as they approached the harbor. The mountains are still quite forrested making them look dark. Montenegro was part of Yugoslavia until May of 2006 when it voted to become a republic. As with all the Balkin countries history overlaps, boundaries change, wars and seiges occur so I will leave it to the reader to do research if interested. Venice did have control over Montenegro and it shows in their Venetian and Baroque architecture. Boka Kotorska is one of the most picturesque natural inlet on the Adriatic coast. The population of the country is 680,000 and Kotor has 40,000. The capital is Podgorica and has 220,000 people. As we travel throughout these long established regions many old walls are still standing which were used to protect the city from pirates, invaders, and conquerors. The old city walls are 3 miles long, 60 feet high and 45 feet thick. Montenegro's 53 mile Tara River Canyon is the world's second largest and deepest gap behind the Grand Canyon in the US. Our tour was a taste of Montenegro and took us high up into the mountains. We traveled a one lane road with switchbacks that had a few passengers wondering if they would make it back alive. I sat near a window and I knew there was only one duel tire on the road as the other was over the edge. The scenery was spectacular if you could get past the narrow winding road. There were 37 switchbacks and as we approached buses coming at us I wondered what their policy was . Who backed up? But we made it to a high valley for wine tasting and snacks. I bought a brandy that is used for medicinal purposes. It is made with white wine, a carob pod and a number of herbs. One puts everything in a glass jar and leaves it in the sun for 45 days then strain and bottle. Take one tablespoon in the morning. It goes down with a very warm almost hot feeling and is used by locals for almost every common ailment. After our snack we continued on again on the winding road with stops for photo opportunities along the way. It was an exciting day as we were all returned to the ship safely.
April 22 - We anchored in the bay off the coast of Korcula which is one of 1,000 islands of Croatia. The island of Korcula belongs to the Dalmatian archipelago. It is the 6th largest Adriatic island with an indented coast. It has two mountains: Klupca at 1,864 feet and Kom at 1,670 feet. The economy is tourism, grape vines, olives, fruit, fishing, and fish processing. It lies just off the mainland of the Dalmatian Coast and ferries operate to the mainland 18 times per day. Korcula has an school and students from the penninsula on the mainland get ferried across to school daily. We were told stories about life on the island. There is a hospital but it has no obstetrics department. There is one midwife but quite often babies are born in cars while trying to get to Dubrovnik for delivery. As the young people age they leave the island as the opportunities for work are greater in the larger cities. This quiet quaint island is concerned about its future. It has a history dating back to the Mesolithic and Neolithic eras. Korcula is also the name of the only town on the island as the rest are villages. Korcula island has about 17,000 people whereas the town has 3,600 people. Our guide said that the residents know one another and though there is a police department most problems occur with drunken visitors. Korcula island is 47 kilometers in length and 4 to 5 kilometers wide. The island has an average of 41 days of rain per year making great weather for grape growing. The island has many vineyards and there are places as we drive along that are brand new fields. With some questions we learned that no new vineries can be started once Croatia becomes part of the EU. Croatia has a 20% unemployment which is better than Greece's at 27%. Our tour took us to the far end of the island to Vela Luka where we enjoyed coffee or a walk along the seaside promanade. A cultural difference I noticed was that coffee is not taken out. People sit for hours and read the paper and chat with one another in sidewalk cafes. The cafes have no paper cups and you are served your drink at a table outside. No one is in a hurry to leave and no one walks off with their coffee cup. Coffee is a very social time. Vela Luka has more residents than Korcula town at 5,000 plus but is still a village. One interesting thing I learned was that a variety of grape ( I hope I spell this right ) known as Plavac Mau has similiar DNA to Zinfandel. Researchers are trying to decide which came first or whether they might be the same grape originally but because of soil , sun, water etc the DNA slowly changed. I have certainly taken the opportunity to do a lot of wine tasting. There is an island in the archipelago that is known for its stone which has been used torebuild many of the areas damaged historical buildings and also the stone was used in the building of the White House.
April 23- The mist or fog made the entrance to Venice less than desirable but has the bad weather became more sunny the view was delightful. Venice has piles of history and much of Venetian arts, culture and history affected many of the countries we have visited. I viewed building after building from the cabin window as we came up the Giudecca Canal. I hurried to the top deck to take some arrival pictures of the small canals as we passed. I saw the Renaissance and Byzantine styles of buildings.The center and the most famous part of the city is Piazza San Marco, known by North Americans as St. Mark's Square. St. Mark's Cathedral and the Doges Place are two of the most important and imposing structures in Venice. Both of them have been rebuilt due to fires over the centuries. Both of these buildings have histories back to the 800s. The Bridge of Sighs connects the prison to the palace and was the route that prisoners were taken to and from the judgement hall. There are 117 islands that make up the city of Venice. Lido is a long island that has been very important to Venice. It is known as an island that tempers the tides, but as global warming occurs engineers scramble to find a way to protect the 550 plus square kms of the lagoon that Venice sits in. Two well known islands are Murano and Burano. Venice is well-known for its glass "candies" which were traded in the time of Marco Polo. The glassworks were moved to Murano by a decree in the 13th century because of fire hazard. Burano is known for the fine lace work which is done with precision. The city is laced with 150 canals and more than 400 bridges linking them. Some islands are linked by ferries and there is only one road, 3 miles long, to the mainland. Venice began as a place of refuge for those fleeing the Barbarian invasions in the 5th century but today it is a vibrant, interesting city filled with nightlife, magic and mystery. Was Marco Polo born here? Some say yes but others say he was born on Korcula. What we do know is that he traveled the waters that are being traveled today. The ship is in port all day tomorrow so I hope to get out and ride the water buses tomorrow if time allows, but today I had a wonderful tour around Venice sightseeing. The boat I was on did not go down the Grand Canal, but I hope to find the closest Vaporetto station and take a ride tomorrow.
Yesterday was a day at sea and with two lectures and the cocktails and Captain's dinner along with the 140ith birthday of Holland America Line. It turned out to be quite a busy day. The travel guide talks about our upcoming ports and where the ship will be docked and whether there will be a shuttle bus to take us to town and the layout of the area as well as the tours that HAL offers. The dinner was great and we sat with the doctor and his wife along with a retired teacher and a lovely lady whose native tongue was Spanish and knew little English. So upon returning to our already cramped cabin we find that HAL has given us a lovely almost 800 page book on the Mediterranean titled THE GREAT SEA which is in the ship`s library. Glancing through it the author traces the history from 22,000 BC right up to 2010. Great book even if it does weigh 5 pounds!
Today at 7AM we docked at the beautiful port of Dubrovnik, Croatia and we will leave at 4 AM tomorrow as we only need a few hours to reach Kotor, Montenegro. I toured north along the coast to the town of Ston which has the 2nd longest wall in the world after the Great Wall of China. The old town of Dubrovnik is circled by a wall which a number of passengers said they had walked on. The wall of Ston is over 6 kilometers and I did get some pictures of it. We continued on to two different family wineries one which does export to Canada and the US so I decided that I would purchase a bottle when I get home. The Adriatic Sea looked like a lake today, no waves, but the day was sunny. Dubrovnik is on the UNESCO world heritage list and since the 1990 war many buildings have been fixed or rebuilt. They have a new bridge over a channel built in about 2005 cutting 18 miles off a trip north as they used to have to travel to the end of the channel to get to the other side. During the war Serbian ships blocked the channel putting a seige on the city from October 1991 until the summer of 1992. The residents had no water, electricity and the roofs of houses were shelled for 24 hours straight. Food could not be shipped in and many people died of starvation. Croatia has 4.5 million people with about 15,000 living in Dubrovnik which is in the southern part of the country on the east side of the Adriatic Sea. The capital is Zagreb which is in the north. Croatia has 1000 islands which they manage. Dubrovnik existed as an independant city republic for 500 years with the Venetian empire on one side and the Ottoman Empire on the other. Napoleon conquered it during his reign. More history than I am able to relate. Lunch was at a family run winery. The family home was over 500 years old and the area we ate in had been the wine cellar until the new one was built. Back in Dubrovnik`s heyday during the 15th and 16th century it had the second largest merchant fleet after Venice. We also stopped at a small quiet fishing village that had been totally burned during the war with Serbia. At some point Serbian military was needed in Bosnia so they left and Dubrovnik started the clean up. Currently, the country is planning to join the EU in July and Slovania plans to join later. Croatia has a very winding coastline and there are plans to build a highway, but the route needs to go through about a 5 mile section of Bosnia. There are legal and political ramifications with the plans. Find a map and you will see that Bosnia almost comes right down to the Adriatic sea. International help came from many countries to rebuild and in 1998 the tourists started coming back. The Dalmation Coast was and now is a very beautiful area once again attracting people from northern Europe. Many big name hotels have been built and the rocky mountainsides are being terraced to grow grapes. Oyster and mussel farms and salt production are smaller exports than wine but the area is doing well with its tourism and shipping businesses.
Since Montenegro was only a 3 hour trip from Dubrovnik we left there at 4 AM and docked in Kotor about 8 AM. Montenegro means black mountain which is what the Venetian sailors saw as they approached the harbor. The mountains are still quite forrested making them look dark. Montenegro was part of Yugoslavia until May of 2006 when it voted to become a republic. As with all the Balkin countries history overlaps, boundaries change, wars and seiges occur so I will leave it to the reader to do research if interested. Venice did have control over Montenegro and it shows in their Venetian and Baroque architecture. Boka Kotorska is one of the most picturesque natural inlet on the Adriatic coast. The population of the country is 680,000 and Kotor has 40,000. The capital is Podgorica and has 220,000 people. As we travel throughout these long established regions many old walls are still standing which were used to protect the city from pirates, invaders, and conquerors. The old city walls are 3 miles long, 60 feet high and 45 feet thick. Montenegro's 53 mile Tara River Canyon is the world's second largest and deepest gap behind the Grand Canyon in the US. Our tour was a taste of Montenegro and took us high up into the mountains. We traveled a one lane road with switchbacks that had a few passengers wondering if they would make it back alive. I sat near a window and I knew there was only one duel tire on the road as the other was over the edge. The scenery was spectacular if you could get past the narrow winding road. There were 37 switchbacks and as we approached buses coming at us I wondered what their policy was . Who backed up? But we made it to a high valley for wine tasting and snacks. I bought a brandy that is used for medicinal purposes. It is made with white wine, a carob pod and a number of herbs. One puts everything in a glass jar and leaves it in the sun for 45 days then strain and bottle. Take one tablespoon in the morning. It goes down with a very warm almost hot feeling and is used by locals for almost every common ailment. After our snack we continued on again on the winding road with stops for photo opportunities along the way. It was an exciting day as we were all returned to the ship safely.
April 22 - We anchored in the bay off the coast of Korcula which is one of 1,000 islands of Croatia. The island of Korcula belongs to the Dalmatian archipelago. It is the 6th largest Adriatic island with an indented coast. It has two mountains: Klupca at 1,864 feet and Kom at 1,670 feet. The economy is tourism, grape vines, olives, fruit, fishing, and fish processing. It lies just off the mainland of the Dalmatian Coast and ferries operate to the mainland 18 times per day. Korcula has an school and students from the penninsula on the mainland get ferried across to school daily. We were told stories about life on the island. There is a hospital but it has no obstetrics department. There is one midwife but quite often babies are born in cars while trying to get to Dubrovnik for delivery. As the young people age they leave the island as the opportunities for work are greater in the larger cities. This quiet quaint island is concerned about its future. It has a history dating back to the Mesolithic and Neolithic eras. Korcula is also the name of the only town on the island as the rest are villages. Korcula island has about 17,000 people whereas the town has 3,600 people. Our guide said that the residents know one another and though there is a police department most problems occur with drunken visitors. Korcula island is 47 kilometers in length and 4 to 5 kilometers wide. The island has an average of 41 days of rain per year making great weather for grape growing. The island has many vineyards and there are places as we drive along that are brand new fields. With some questions we learned that no new vineries can be started once Croatia becomes part of the EU. Croatia has a 20% unemployment which is better than Greece's at 27%. Our tour took us to the far end of the island to Vela Luka where we enjoyed coffee or a walk along the seaside promanade. A cultural difference I noticed was that coffee is not taken out. People sit for hours and read the paper and chat with one another in sidewalk cafes. The cafes have no paper cups and you are served your drink at a table outside. No one is in a hurry to leave and no one walks off with their coffee cup. Coffee is a very social time. Vela Luka has more residents than Korcula town at 5,000 plus but is still a village. One interesting thing I learned was that a variety of grape ( I hope I spell this right ) known as Plavac Mau has similiar DNA to Zinfandel. Researchers are trying to decide which came first or whether they might be the same grape originally but because of soil , sun, water etc the DNA slowly changed. I have certainly taken the opportunity to do a lot of wine tasting. There is an island in the archipelago that is known for its stone which has been used torebuild many of the areas damaged historical buildings and also the stone was used in the building of the White House.
April 23- The mist or fog made the entrance to Venice less than desirable but has the bad weather became more sunny the view was delightful. Venice has piles of history and much of Venetian arts, culture and history affected many of the countries we have visited. I viewed building after building from the cabin window as we came up the Giudecca Canal. I hurried to the top deck to take some arrival pictures of the small canals as we passed. I saw the Renaissance and Byzantine styles of buildings.The center and the most famous part of the city is Piazza San Marco, known by North Americans as St. Mark's Square. St. Mark's Cathedral and the Doges Place are two of the most important and imposing structures in Venice. Both of them have been rebuilt due to fires over the centuries. Both of these buildings have histories back to the 800s. The Bridge of Sighs connects the prison to the palace and was the route that prisoners were taken to and from the judgement hall. There are 117 islands that make up the city of Venice. Lido is a long island that has been very important to Venice. It is known as an island that tempers the tides, but as global warming occurs engineers scramble to find a way to protect the 550 plus square kms of the lagoon that Venice sits in. Two well known islands are Murano and Burano. Venice is well-known for its glass "candies" which were traded in the time of Marco Polo. The glassworks were moved to Murano by a decree in the 13th century because of fire hazard. Burano is known for the fine lace work which is done with precision. The city is laced with 150 canals and more than 400 bridges linking them. Some islands are linked by ferries and there is only one road, 3 miles long, to the mainland. Venice began as a place of refuge for those fleeing the Barbarian invasions in the 5th century but today it is a vibrant, interesting city filled with nightlife, magic and mystery. Was Marco Polo born here? Some say yes but others say he was born on Korcula. What we do know is that he traveled the waters that are being traveled today. The ship is in port all day tomorrow so I hope to get out and ride the water buses tomorrow if time allows, but today I had a wonderful tour around Venice sightseeing. The boat I was on did not go down the Grand Canal, but I hope to find the closest Vaporetto station and take a ride tomorrow.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
On the Aegean Sea heading north to Croatia
April 18 - in the afternoon
We had four stops in Turkey: one was Antalya, Marmaris, Kusadasi, and Istanbul. I touched on Antalya and Marmaris in the previous posting so today I will chat about Kusadasi and Istanbul. Turkey is a very westernized country. They have McDonalds, Starbucks, and many highend clothing and accessory stores. I saw no tents with camels, but I saw many young folks practicing their English on us. I have been on the lookout for electric buses and trams carrying folks about these big urban areas as I go out on tours. Antalya had a tram that ran in a circle around the town.
April 14 was a tour of Kusadasi with wine and cheese and lunch in a mountainous village. Sirince is a quaint village town where wine is made the old way and rebottled for use by the villagers. We tried some red and white and when I went to read the label the guide said the bottles are recycled so what is written on the bottle label will not necessarily be the type of wine in the bottle at the time of pouring. I learned about Turkish coffee. Apparently Turkey does not grow coffee so Turkish coffee is known by how it is brewed not the growing of it. Grind coffee as you would grind for expresso. One tablespoon to 3/4 cup cold water. Put coffee into small pan then add cold water. Heat to just under boiling. Pour into cup grounds and all. Let sit for a minute or two. DRINK. Some like to add sugar. From this town I got two bottles of wine: mulberry and pommegranate and both will make great spritzers. We wandered around the town whose streets were very narrow, left over from centuries ago. We had a delightful tasting lunch in a home that was built over 1000 years ago. Turkish cuisine is not highly spiced but the spices used in cooking a green bean and mushroom compote were especially good. We had homebaked bread, meatballs with eggplant and potatoes, a rice-like dish that reminded me of couscous or quinoa, and home grown fruit. Noelle, one of the librarians, hung with me as we scoured the small family-run stalls along the streets. Handicrafts and homegrown bottled jams and jellies could be found. The tour also showed us the upper part of Ephesus which I would love to do the walk down the hill past the bathes and library of the old city. In order to get to Ephesus we needed to drive through the city of Selcuk, which lost 40,000 people in 1999 when an earthquake hit the area. Ephesus had once been a coastal town but today the sea is far away as earthquakes have changed the topography of the land. Kusadasi is Turkish for Bird Island and it lived up to its name. There were lots of birds though I know little about them.
April 15 we docked at Istanbul about 4 pm. An overnight stay would allow us to see this big city in the night as well as the day. I took a tour and saw the Blue Mosque, the Topkapi Palace, St. Sophia Church, the Hippodrome and traffic beyond belief. The Bosphorus tour had been cancelled but I saw a lot of the city. Istanbul is the only city that sits on the borders of both Asia Minor and Europe. The Bosphorus is a narrow strait that links the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and separates the European and Asian sections of the city. It was founded by the Byzantines in the 7th century BC but by the 4th century AD the name was changed to Constantinople by the Roman emperor. The city served as the capital of the Byzantine Empire until it was conquered by the Ottomans in the 15th century. The Ottoman Empire fell in 1923. Istanbul has about 16 million people, while Turkey has about 75 million. History is long and arduous to remember and when it goes back many milliniums it makes it even worse. Turkey has that kind of history with rulers, sultans, and others managing the people. The Bosphous is 22 miles in length, and has a small bay called the Golden Horn that separates the new European section of the city from the old European section. Many cultures have made themselves visible by the architecture: Venician, Neo-Classical, Roman and many others. Then there were the Dardanelles. This is a wide strait that runs between the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara and over the years has been fought for control. There are over 70,000 ships that use this passage yearly- Aegean Sea, the Dardanelles, Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus then to the Black Sea. As we sailed out of Istanbul I was sorry to have left Turkey. It was clean, neat and though there may be problems a tourist would never know. The people were helpful and kind. Although Istanbul is the largest city the capital is located in Ankara in the north of Turkey. GOOD BY TURKEY! I will miss you.
April 18 is a day spent in Athens. We are docked at the Port of Piraeus and are due to leave very shortly. We arrived yesterday afternoon and I just sat on the 7th deck and took in some sun. It had been rainy and misty/cloudy in Istanbul. The sun is warm, day is clear which helps with taking great pictures. The Piraeus port is the largest in Greece and it is basically the port for Athens. Piraeus sits next to Athens and is served by a train that runs between the two. I saw artic diesel buses, trolley buses, and an electric tram which runs down tracks when we were exploring the city. Information from the last census shows there are 9,987 islands of Greece with 16,000+ kilometers of coastline. We took in many old buildings all having their names with a story attached but for me my day was the joy of sitting with a cup of Greek coffee and staring at the Acropolis. There is major work being done on it but it sits in such a predominate position on a hill that one can hardly miss it. Greece has about 11 million people with 5+ million residing in the Piraeus/Athens area. Shipping and tourism are the two main money makers for Greece. Many shipping magnets come from or are stationed here. There were many ferries coming and going from our harbour ferrying people among the islands.
April 19, tomorrow, is a sea day and I have been indulging in some acupuncture treatments on my knee. Sea days are days for lectures about our upcoming ports. Tomorrow night we have been asked to the captain's suite for wine and then down for a dinner with him. There is usually about 40 guests that go, so we will not be alone. We just got a new captain as the other got to go home so it will be nice to meet him, though I miss Captain Roberts already. There are also games that I sometimes play on sea days along with the movie, if it is any good. There are groups who have gatherings to knit and crochet and those that play bridge and mah jongg and for those that love to exercise there are lots of morning classes to greet you. Then there is Annette and her culinary chef who whips up tastey delights from main courses to fancy deserts. Then there are some mixology afternoons where you can go and learn how to mix drinks and indulge. For me when I get some quiet time I do a sudoku and enjoy the sun.
We had four stops in Turkey: one was Antalya, Marmaris, Kusadasi, and Istanbul. I touched on Antalya and Marmaris in the previous posting so today I will chat about Kusadasi and Istanbul. Turkey is a very westernized country. They have McDonalds, Starbucks, and many highend clothing and accessory stores. I saw no tents with camels, but I saw many young folks practicing their English on us. I have been on the lookout for electric buses and trams carrying folks about these big urban areas as I go out on tours. Antalya had a tram that ran in a circle around the town.
April 14 was a tour of Kusadasi with wine and cheese and lunch in a mountainous village. Sirince is a quaint village town where wine is made the old way and rebottled for use by the villagers. We tried some red and white and when I went to read the label the guide said the bottles are recycled so what is written on the bottle label will not necessarily be the type of wine in the bottle at the time of pouring. I learned about Turkish coffee. Apparently Turkey does not grow coffee so Turkish coffee is known by how it is brewed not the growing of it. Grind coffee as you would grind for expresso. One tablespoon to 3/4 cup cold water. Put coffee into small pan then add cold water. Heat to just under boiling. Pour into cup grounds and all. Let sit for a minute or two. DRINK. Some like to add sugar. From this town I got two bottles of wine: mulberry and pommegranate and both will make great spritzers. We wandered around the town whose streets were very narrow, left over from centuries ago. We had a delightful tasting lunch in a home that was built over 1000 years ago. Turkish cuisine is not highly spiced but the spices used in cooking a green bean and mushroom compote were especially good. We had homebaked bread, meatballs with eggplant and potatoes, a rice-like dish that reminded me of couscous or quinoa, and home grown fruit. Noelle, one of the librarians, hung with me as we scoured the small family-run stalls along the streets. Handicrafts and homegrown bottled jams and jellies could be found. The tour also showed us the upper part of Ephesus which I would love to do the walk down the hill past the bathes and library of the old city. In order to get to Ephesus we needed to drive through the city of Selcuk, which lost 40,000 people in 1999 when an earthquake hit the area. Ephesus had once been a coastal town but today the sea is far away as earthquakes have changed the topography of the land. Kusadasi is Turkish for Bird Island and it lived up to its name. There were lots of birds though I know little about them.
April 15 we docked at Istanbul about 4 pm. An overnight stay would allow us to see this big city in the night as well as the day. I took a tour and saw the Blue Mosque, the Topkapi Palace, St. Sophia Church, the Hippodrome and traffic beyond belief. The Bosphorus tour had been cancelled but I saw a lot of the city. Istanbul is the only city that sits on the borders of both Asia Minor and Europe. The Bosphorus is a narrow strait that links the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara and separates the European and Asian sections of the city. It was founded by the Byzantines in the 7th century BC but by the 4th century AD the name was changed to Constantinople by the Roman emperor. The city served as the capital of the Byzantine Empire until it was conquered by the Ottomans in the 15th century. The Ottoman Empire fell in 1923. Istanbul has about 16 million people, while Turkey has about 75 million. History is long and arduous to remember and when it goes back many milliniums it makes it even worse. Turkey has that kind of history with rulers, sultans, and others managing the people. The Bosphous is 22 miles in length, and has a small bay called the Golden Horn that separates the new European section of the city from the old European section. Many cultures have made themselves visible by the architecture: Venician, Neo-Classical, Roman and many others. Then there were the Dardanelles. This is a wide strait that runs between the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara and over the years has been fought for control. There are over 70,000 ships that use this passage yearly- Aegean Sea, the Dardanelles, Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus then to the Black Sea. As we sailed out of Istanbul I was sorry to have left Turkey. It was clean, neat and though there may be problems a tourist would never know. The people were helpful and kind. Although Istanbul is the largest city the capital is located in Ankara in the north of Turkey. GOOD BY TURKEY! I will miss you.
April 18 is a day spent in Athens. We are docked at the Port of Piraeus and are due to leave very shortly. We arrived yesterday afternoon and I just sat on the 7th deck and took in some sun. It had been rainy and misty/cloudy in Istanbul. The sun is warm, day is clear which helps with taking great pictures. The Piraeus port is the largest in Greece and it is basically the port for Athens. Piraeus sits next to Athens and is served by a train that runs between the two. I saw artic diesel buses, trolley buses, and an electric tram which runs down tracks when we were exploring the city. Information from the last census shows there are 9,987 islands of Greece with 16,000+ kilometers of coastline. We took in many old buildings all having their names with a story attached but for me my day was the joy of sitting with a cup of Greek coffee and staring at the Acropolis. There is major work being done on it but it sits in such a predominate position on a hill that one can hardly miss it. Greece has about 11 million people with 5+ million residing in the Piraeus/Athens area. Shipping and tourism are the two main money makers for Greece. Many shipping magnets come from or are stationed here. There were many ferries coming and going from our harbour ferrying people among the islands.
April 19, tomorrow, is a sea day and I have been indulging in some acupuncture treatments on my knee. Sea days are days for lectures about our upcoming ports. Tomorrow night we have been asked to the captain's suite for wine and then down for a dinner with him. There is usually about 40 guests that go, so we will not be alone. We just got a new captain as the other got to go home so it will be nice to meet him, though I miss Captain Roberts already. There are also games that I sometimes play on sea days along with the movie, if it is any good. There are groups who have gatherings to knit and crochet and those that play bridge and mah jongg and for those that love to exercise there are lots of morning classes to greet you. Then there is Annette and her culinary chef who whips up tastey delights from main courses to fancy deserts. Then there are some mixology afternoons where you can go and learn how to mix drinks and indulge. For me when I get some quiet time I do a sudoku and enjoy the sun.
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Continuing around the Med
April 10,2013
On April 5 we docked at Larnaka, Cyprus. Our ship had changed colour overnight, from a white and black to a reddish colour. It had been very windy in Malta so we could not sail on to Gozo but that wind had come across the North African Sahara Desert. Winds will carry sand in the upper atmosphere where it will then fall onto the ground covering everything.Cyprus has a population of about 1 million with 80% being Greek, 18% are Turks, and 2% are Armenian and Lebanese. Nicosia is the capital and has about 200,000 people and is in the middle of the island. I had decided that I wanted to go inland so I had a tour that took me to Nicosia which is a divided city. Greeks live on one side of a wall while Turks live on the other side. I suppose it might be similar to Berlin when they had a wall, but people can come and go but in a very unique manner. As a tourist I can not cross the wall from the Turkish side to the Greek side on the road. I would have to fly to Larnaka on the Greek side and then drive back to the Greek side of Nicosia. Archeologists have found relics dating back 9,000 years before Christ. It was about 2,000 BC when writing was found and scrolls show that Cyprus has been ruled by the Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Bysantines, to the 9th century AD, Crusaders, Venetians, Ottomans and finally Great Britain from about 1878 to 1925. Cypus receives about 2.5 million visitors a year making tourism its largest GDP followed by agriculture of potatoes and 32 varieties of grapes for tables and for wine. In 2008 Cyprus ran out of water and spent 60 million Euros to buy water and have it shipped from the United States. Larnaka has a population of 17,000 people. As we traveled the roads we saw many solar water heating panels on city roofs. Water is collected on the roof and the panels keep the water very warm. Electricity is quite expensive. I learned that oleander and rosemary are planted to draw misquitoes and other small flying bugs that get stuck to the plant so it is a natural way to get rid of them than by spraying with bug spray.
By April 7 we were aware that the next 4 days would be very busy. Tours, eat, and sleep and that is exactly as we figured. Alexandria, Egypt was the first port of the hectic 4 days. Built by the conquering Alexander the Great, Alexandria retained the prestige of Egypt's capital for 10 centuries. Alexander had taken a previous city from the Persians destroying it and then built another city on top of that one. His Greek rule lasted 301 years. Gods were very important and when a war was won temples would be built on top of the conquered city showing who had more power. Also cities were built where there was water so a new city would be built over the old city. Here in the Middle East there have been cities dug up up to 21 different cities that were built on top of one another. Alexandria remained the capital until 968 AD when eventually, after the capital had been moved from small village to small village, came to Cairo where it has been the capital since. Egypt has 84 million people 80 % are Muslims and 20% Christians. Five million people live in Alexandria. Our tour out of Alexandria took us west toward Cairo. The Nile River separates Giza from Cairo so though we had a lovely lunch on the Nile we never entered Cairo. In Giza are the 3 main pyramids and then also alongside are the smaller Queen's pyramids. Down the hill sat the Sphinx his nose and his beard had been removed ( the beard is in a museum in London and the nose had been vandalized). The weather was hazy due to the red sand which could be seen everywhere. We drove by a beautiful park on the west side of the Nile which was opened in the same year as the Suez Canal opened in 1869. Tourism makes up 17% of Egypt's GDP. They also export natural gas. Because these countries are so close to one another it is most interesting to note how history dovetails one country to another. There was a riot in the streets of Cairo while we visited Giza but none of us knew about it until the next day.
April 8 we docked at a the very modern Port of Said where a group of dancers greeted us as we exited the ship and today was to be a tour of Port Said. As I exited past all the trinket vendors in their booths I noticed many police around the port. This stop will have been our first that we all felt that we were VIP's. Five layers of police were there to protect us. Our ship was the first to arrive since January. Due to a football game riot no ship had gone to Port Said. The country had also had a government change and Egyptians are very emotional and have strong feelings about the circumstances under which they must live. Port Said is a relatively new town but it has grown very fast. It was started back in 1859 to house the workers building the Suez Canal. It is a melting pot for people from all over Egypt. Our tour ventured forth with pick-ups full of police following us. We went to the Military Museum which was closed. As we were walking about a military commander along with the town's governor decided to open it so we could walk through. I had a chance to thank the chief of police for the security as well as opening of the museum. I felt safe and we had undercover police riding in the buses. Port Said is a tax-free zone for those who live in the city. A car is bought and no tax is paid as long as it stays in Port Said. A license can be purchased to allow the owner to drive to some place in Egypt but only for one week then the owner has to return to Port Said. Port Said has been shut down over the years and the 6 day war in 1967 caused much damage so the city has been rebuilt since 1975. The red sand could still be seen in areas that had no wind. Now the sad part of this tour was the discussion of football/soccer and the riot. In February 2012 there had been a game between Port Said and Cairo. The Port Said team had won and the city had OK'd the Cairo fans and team to spend the night in the stadium instead of driving back to Cairo. Port Said fans stormed the stadium and 72 young people lost their lives. The result was that the courts were to pass judgement on those that were guilty in January 2013. The stadium was vandalized and has not been used since that horrible night. The expectations of the government was that there would be more riots when the judgement was handed down by the courts. That day came and in January 2013 and 22 people were hung. Egypt has also had some political issues as a new government took over and many people are dissatisfied with the new police chief, and president.
April 9 I awoke to the sound of the side thrusters as we docked in Ashdod. It was our stop for the day and I was up early to head to Jerusalem. Packing history of that city into one day is an impossibility but I did see the Mt. of Olives, the entrances to old Jerusalem, the Garden of Gethsemane, Zedikiah's cave, Herod's gate, Lion's gate and Damascus gate into the old city. We were shown the wailing wall which is the only part of the old city's wall still standing after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD. We had lunch in a nice kibutz and a stop for shopping along with picture taking opportunities. The drive from Ashdod to Jerusalem showed us the countryside of Israel and it took 90 minutes each way. Jerusalem is crowded with traffic and pedestrians but as we drove around I have a much better picture of the areas that were covered by Jesus and the apostles. Jerusalem has 802,000 people made up of Jewish, Islam, and Christians and Israel has 7.25 million. There is some road construction occuring along with an addition to a fast train service that will tie Jerusalem to Tel-Aviv in about 40 minutes. The longest tunnel in the area is 13 kilometers long. We saw a number of these new tunnels getting ready for the train and new ones for vehicles. The weather was far nicer than the previous few days. There were some white clouds blowing around but the vistas were much clearer.
The folllowing day was April 10 and we docked at Haifa north of Ashdod on the coast of Israel. Haifa has 260,000 people and rests on the coast with Mt. Carmel as its backdrop. Including the surrounding area the population is about 600,000. It is a very modern city. We were informed as to how important education is in this country. There are 280,000 students attending universities in Israel and many Nobel prizes have come from Israel. The Intel chip for computers came from this small country, recycled water for irrigation was started here so as our tour took us inland to Nazareth we saw the reclaimimg of the desert areas using recycled water. Israel has no mines yet many diamonds come from Israel. South Africa has mines but when the UK controlled both South Africa and Israel diamonds were shipped from Africa to Israel. It was during the period of 1917 to 1948 that Israel took over the diamond industry cutting or faceting them. Potash is exported from the Dead Sea. Views and places we saw were Nazareth which is now primarily occupied by Arab peoples. We visited the Jordan River which was more like a creek than a river. Whether that location is the exact spot where John did the baptising one only knows but it was a beautiful spot to reflect on the occurance. We went to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus performed his first miracle changing water to wine for the wedding reception, the Church of the Annunciation, Church of St. Joseph, Mary`s Well, Peter`s Primacy at Tabgha, Capernaum, Mount of Beattitudes where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. On our way back to the ship we drove to the top of Mount Carmel for a view over the Bahai Gardens. Our two days in Israel was not enough but it certainly gave me some insight that I had only read about and imagined. Though I did not get to Bethlahem it has 25,000 people. Haifa is the 3rd largest city in Israel and is known as the San Francisco of the Mediterranean.
On April 12 I had hoped to finish this episode of blogs and get it posted. The previous day had been a sea day and I slept until dinner. But when I awoke the sun was shining and the view of Antalya, Turkey was beautiful. I had no tour planned but since Holland America had a shuttle bus to take us to town I decided to explore. The centre of town was clean and neat. In fact, even the port area was neat. The bus let us off near the old town and a clear viewpoint so I took some pictures. Interested in trams the city had one running down the side of the street and I took pictures of them as they went past me. Just a short walk in a clean, fresh air city was all I needed. The route of the bus ran along the beach but it did not have white sand- Can`t have everything! Shopping has not been high on my list though if I do see an unusual item I may buy it.I hope to find some Turkish coffee.
Today is April 13 and we are in Marmaris, Turkey and I have returned from a tour of some of the area. We drove through Pine forests to Sakar Mountain Pass. We had a drink and I took pictures at a local roadside diner and drank Turkish tea. We drove to a small fishing village of Akyaka. There were lots of photo opportunities so we took pictures at Icemeler Bay for views over Marmaris Bay.
Tomorrow we will be in Kusadasi, Turkey where I will take a tour titled A Taste of Kusadasi. I expect that I will be trying some Turkish food for lunch. Kusadasi is the jump off point for Ephesus, the Temple of Apollo and magnificent Miletis. Our adventures are ongoing but can be quite tiring.
On April 5 we docked at Larnaka, Cyprus. Our ship had changed colour overnight, from a white and black to a reddish colour. It had been very windy in Malta so we could not sail on to Gozo but that wind had come across the North African Sahara Desert. Winds will carry sand in the upper atmosphere where it will then fall onto the ground covering everything.Cyprus has a population of about 1 million with 80% being Greek, 18% are Turks, and 2% are Armenian and Lebanese. Nicosia is the capital and has about 200,000 people and is in the middle of the island. I had decided that I wanted to go inland so I had a tour that took me to Nicosia which is a divided city. Greeks live on one side of a wall while Turks live on the other side. I suppose it might be similar to Berlin when they had a wall, but people can come and go but in a very unique manner. As a tourist I can not cross the wall from the Turkish side to the Greek side on the road. I would have to fly to Larnaka on the Greek side and then drive back to the Greek side of Nicosia. Archeologists have found relics dating back 9,000 years before Christ. It was about 2,000 BC when writing was found and scrolls show that Cyprus has been ruled by the Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Bysantines, to the 9th century AD, Crusaders, Venetians, Ottomans and finally Great Britain from about 1878 to 1925. Cypus receives about 2.5 million visitors a year making tourism its largest GDP followed by agriculture of potatoes and 32 varieties of grapes for tables and for wine. In 2008 Cyprus ran out of water and spent 60 million Euros to buy water and have it shipped from the United States. Larnaka has a population of 17,000 people. As we traveled the roads we saw many solar water heating panels on city roofs. Water is collected on the roof and the panels keep the water very warm. Electricity is quite expensive. I learned that oleander and rosemary are planted to draw misquitoes and other small flying bugs that get stuck to the plant so it is a natural way to get rid of them than by spraying with bug spray.
By April 7 we were aware that the next 4 days would be very busy. Tours, eat, and sleep and that is exactly as we figured. Alexandria, Egypt was the first port of the hectic 4 days. Built by the conquering Alexander the Great, Alexandria retained the prestige of Egypt's capital for 10 centuries. Alexander had taken a previous city from the Persians destroying it and then built another city on top of that one. His Greek rule lasted 301 years. Gods were very important and when a war was won temples would be built on top of the conquered city showing who had more power. Also cities were built where there was water so a new city would be built over the old city. Here in the Middle East there have been cities dug up up to 21 different cities that were built on top of one another. Alexandria remained the capital until 968 AD when eventually, after the capital had been moved from small village to small village, came to Cairo where it has been the capital since. Egypt has 84 million people 80 % are Muslims and 20% Christians. Five million people live in Alexandria. Our tour out of Alexandria took us west toward Cairo. The Nile River separates Giza from Cairo so though we had a lovely lunch on the Nile we never entered Cairo. In Giza are the 3 main pyramids and then also alongside are the smaller Queen's pyramids. Down the hill sat the Sphinx his nose and his beard had been removed ( the beard is in a museum in London and the nose had been vandalized). The weather was hazy due to the red sand which could be seen everywhere. We drove by a beautiful park on the west side of the Nile which was opened in the same year as the Suez Canal opened in 1869. Tourism makes up 17% of Egypt's GDP. They also export natural gas. Because these countries are so close to one another it is most interesting to note how history dovetails one country to another. There was a riot in the streets of Cairo while we visited Giza but none of us knew about it until the next day.
April 8 we docked at a the very modern Port of Said where a group of dancers greeted us as we exited the ship and today was to be a tour of Port Said. As I exited past all the trinket vendors in their booths I noticed many police around the port. This stop will have been our first that we all felt that we were VIP's. Five layers of police were there to protect us. Our ship was the first to arrive since January. Due to a football game riot no ship had gone to Port Said. The country had also had a government change and Egyptians are very emotional and have strong feelings about the circumstances under which they must live. Port Said is a relatively new town but it has grown very fast. It was started back in 1859 to house the workers building the Suez Canal. It is a melting pot for people from all over Egypt. Our tour ventured forth with pick-ups full of police following us. We went to the Military Museum which was closed. As we were walking about a military commander along with the town's governor decided to open it so we could walk through. I had a chance to thank the chief of police for the security as well as opening of the museum. I felt safe and we had undercover police riding in the buses. Port Said is a tax-free zone for those who live in the city. A car is bought and no tax is paid as long as it stays in Port Said. A license can be purchased to allow the owner to drive to some place in Egypt but only for one week then the owner has to return to Port Said. Port Said has been shut down over the years and the 6 day war in 1967 caused much damage so the city has been rebuilt since 1975. The red sand could still be seen in areas that had no wind. Now the sad part of this tour was the discussion of football/soccer and the riot. In February 2012 there had been a game between Port Said and Cairo. The Port Said team had won and the city had OK'd the Cairo fans and team to spend the night in the stadium instead of driving back to Cairo. Port Said fans stormed the stadium and 72 young people lost their lives. The result was that the courts were to pass judgement on those that were guilty in January 2013. The stadium was vandalized and has not been used since that horrible night. The expectations of the government was that there would be more riots when the judgement was handed down by the courts. That day came and in January 2013 and 22 people were hung. Egypt has also had some political issues as a new government took over and many people are dissatisfied with the new police chief, and president.
April 9 I awoke to the sound of the side thrusters as we docked in Ashdod. It was our stop for the day and I was up early to head to Jerusalem. Packing history of that city into one day is an impossibility but I did see the Mt. of Olives, the entrances to old Jerusalem, the Garden of Gethsemane, Zedikiah's cave, Herod's gate, Lion's gate and Damascus gate into the old city. We were shown the wailing wall which is the only part of the old city's wall still standing after the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD. We had lunch in a nice kibutz and a stop for shopping along with picture taking opportunities. The drive from Ashdod to Jerusalem showed us the countryside of Israel and it took 90 minutes each way. Jerusalem is crowded with traffic and pedestrians but as we drove around I have a much better picture of the areas that were covered by Jesus and the apostles. Jerusalem has 802,000 people made up of Jewish, Islam, and Christians and Israel has 7.25 million. There is some road construction occuring along with an addition to a fast train service that will tie Jerusalem to Tel-Aviv in about 40 minutes. The longest tunnel in the area is 13 kilometers long. We saw a number of these new tunnels getting ready for the train and new ones for vehicles. The weather was far nicer than the previous few days. There were some white clouds blowing around but the vistas were much clearer.
The folllowing day was April 10 and we docked at Haifa north of Ashdod on the coast of Israel. Haifa has 260,000 people and rests on the coast with Mt. Carmel as its backdrop. Including the surrounding area the population is about 600,000. It is a very modern city. We were informed as to how important education is in this country. There are 280,000 students attending universities in Israel and many Nobel prizes have come from Israel. The Intel chip for computers came from this small country, recycled water for irrigation was started here so as our tour took us inland to Nazareth we saw the reclaimimg of the desert areas using recycled water. Israel has no mines yet many diamonds come from Israel. South Africa has mines but when the UK controlled both South Africa and Israel diamonds were shipped from Africa to Israel. It was during the period of 1917 to 1948 that Israel took over the diamond industry cutting or faceting them. Potash is exported from the Dead Sea. Views and places we saw were Nazareth which is now primarily occupied by Arab peoples. We visited the Jordan River which was more like a creek than a river. Whether that location is the exact spot where John did the baptising one only knows but it was a beautiful spot to reflect on the occurance. We went to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus performed his first miracle changing water to wine for the wedding reception, the Church of the Annunciation, Church of St. Joseph, Mary`s Well, Peter`s Primacy at Tabgha, Capernaum, Mount of Beattitudes where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. On our way back to the ship we drove to the top of Mount Carmel for a view over the Bahai Gardens. Our two days in Israel was not enough but it certainly gave me some insight that I had only read about and imagined. Though I did not get to Bethlahem it has 25,000 people. Haifa is the 3rd largest city in Israel and is known as the San Francisco of the Mediterranean.
On April 12 I had hoped to finish this episode of blogs and get it posted. The previous day had been a sea day and I slept until dinner. But when I awoke the sun was shining and the view of Antalya, Turkey was beautiful. I had no tour planned but since Holland America had a shuttle bus to take us to town I decided to explore. The centre of town was clean and neat. In fact, even the port area was neat. The bus let us off near the old town and a clear viewpoint so I took some pictures. Interested in trams the city had one running down the side of the street and I took pictures of them as they went past me. Just a short walk in a clean, fresh air city was all I needed. The route of the bus ran along the beach but it did not have white sand- Can`t have everything! Shopping has not been high on my list though if I do see an unusual item I may buy it.I hope to find some Turkish coffee.
Today is April 13 and we are in Marmaris, Turkey and I have returned from a tour of some of the area. We drove through Pine forests to Sakar Mountain Pass. We had a drink and I took pictures at a local roadside diner and drank Turkish tea. We drove to a small fishing village of Akyaka. There were lots of photo opportunities so we took pictures at Icemeler Bay for views over Marmaris Bay.
Tomorrow we will be in Kusadasi, Turkey where I will take a tour titled A Taste of Kusadasi. I expect that I will be trying some Turkish food for lunch. Kusadasi is the jump off point for Ephesus, the Temple of Apollo and magnificent Miletis. Our adventures are ongoing but can be quite tiring.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
The History around the MED
EASTER SUNDAY March 31, 2013
We arrived at Valletta, Malta this morning and the view from the ship is probably the most awesome that I have ever seen. The walls come right down to the port and the old buildings can be seen from the windows. The harbour is well constructed and today the sun is shining and the water is a beautuful blue. I have taken some pictures but a crew drill kept me off of the deck that I wanted to film from so I will wait until later. I will be heading out on a tour of the island this afternoon and with today being a holiday there may be many local out enjoying the weather.
I want to wish everyone a very HAPPY EASTER and may your bunny be good to you and bring you a surprise! I tried to post on Easter so I am trying again.
April 3, 2013 at Iraklion (or Heraklion) Crete
We arrived this morning and docked at New Harbour (Port of Heraklion) on Crete the largest Island of Greece. Meeting some of the merchants in the terminal stores was a nice morning spent as many of them are from other countries. This is their first day of rain in 55 days so everyone was happy and joyful. Some of our passengers walked into town to explore the churches and some areas with old buildings. I chose to come back to the ship.
One of the most exciting experiences for me is the idea of going back in time, wondering how people lived many years ago. Our two day stay on Malta in Valletta gave me what I had wished. The island is about 27 miles long by 15 miles wide and sits south of Sicily but has 400,000 residents which has the largest population density of all European countries. The history I have been exposed to goes back to 1492 basically when exploration of Columbus set sail from Spain. Malta has relics from 760-780 CE. There are 365 churches on the island, one for each day. The first day there I took an island tour and saw the Island of St. Paul where the apostle was shipwrecked. We saw the Blue Grotto which has been used in movies. Just about everywhere there were old buildings but the juxtaposition of new with old makes a wonderful sight to see. Malta is known for its wine, but the main GDP is tourism. They admit to having a problem with garbage and recycling as one sees litter all over which is sad as the island is gorgeous. We were suppose to travel to Gozo which is another smaller island close to Malta, but because of the winds there our ablility to tender to shore would be dangerous. So we stayed in Valletta overnight and another day. That gave Mez and I the time to explore. We hopped the HOP ON and HOP OFF bus around the island and exited at a location so we could do a harbour tour which was great! We saw forts built by the Knights of St. John and learned about the conquests of Malta by a number of different peoples over thousands of years. The years of 2100 to 1900 BCE were mentioned as groups inhabited the island. This trip has prompted me to do some more reading as the information given us comes way too fast to process. It is easy to get around the island. Hop On and Hop Off buses do three different circuits plus there are city buses. It cost us 20 Euros each for a days pass including the 1 and one half hour harbour tour.
When it was finally time for us to leave the harbour we had a cannon send off from the fort. Thank goodness there were no missiles in the cannons. We were all up on deck getting pictures of the smoke. I will never know what Gozo might have given us but having the extra day on Malta was great!
Mez has just returned from a tour on Crete and said it was a very self sufficient economy and a beautiful country. Tomorrow is another sea day and then on to Larnaca, Cyprus.
We arrived at Valletta, Malta this morning and the view from the ship is probably the most awesome that I have ever seen. The walls come right down to the port and the old buildings can be seen from the windows. The harbour is well constructed and today the sun is shining and the water is a beautuful blue. I have taken some pictures but a crew drill kept me off of the deck that I wanted to film from so I will wait until later. I will be heading out on a tour of the island this afternoon and with today being a holiday there may be many local out enjoying the weather.
I want to wish everyone a very HAPPY EASTER and may your bunny be good to you and bring you a surprise! I tried to post on Easter so I am trying again.
April 3, 2013 at Iraklion (or Heraklion) Crete
We arrived this morning and docked at New Harbour (Port of Heraklion) on Crete the largest Island of Greece. Meeting some of the merchants in the terminal stores was a nice morning spent as many of them are from other countries. This is their first day of rain in 55 days so everyone was happy and joyful. Some of our passengers walked into town to explore the churches and some areas with old buildings. I chose to come back to the ship.
One of the most exciting experiences for me is the idea of going back in time, wondering how people lived many years ago. Our two day stay on Malta in Valletta gave me what I had wished. The island is about 27 miles long by 15 miles wide and sits south of Sicily but has 400,000 residents which has the largest population density of all European countries. The history I have been exposed to goes back to 1492 basically when exploration of Columbus set sail from Spain. Malta has relics from 760-780 CE. There are 365 churches on the island, one for each day. The first day there I took an island tour and saw the Island of St. Paul where the apostle was shipwrecked. We saw the Blue Grotto which has been used in movies. Just about everywhere there were old buildings but the juxtaposition of new with old makes a wonderful sight to see. Malta is known for its wine, but the main GDP is tourism. They admit to having a problem with garbage and recycling as one sees litter all over which is sad as the island is gorgeous. We were suppose to travel to Gozo which is another smaller island close to Malta, but because of the winds there our ablility to tender to shore would be dangerous. So we stayed in Valletta overnight and another day. That gave Mez and I the time to explore. We hopped the HOP ON and HOP OFF bus around the island and exited at a location so we could do a harbour tour which was great! We saw forts built by the Knights of St. John and learned about the conquests of Malta by a number of different peoples over thousands of years. The years of 2100 to 1900 BCE were mentioned as groups inhabited the island. This trip has prompted me to do some more reading as the information given us comes way too fast to process. It is easy to get around the island. Hop On and Hop Off buses do three different circuits plus there are city buses. It cost us 20 Euros each for a days pass including the 1 and one half hour harbour tour.
When it was finally time for us to leave the harbour we had a cannon send off from the fort. Thank goodness there were no missiles in the cannons. We were all up on deck getting pictures of the smoke. I will never know what Gozo might have given us but having the extra day on Malta was great!
Mez has just returned from a tour on Crete and said it was a very self sufficient economy and a beautiful country. Tomorrow is another sea day and then on to Larnaca, Cyprus.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Casablanca and the Med
Tuesday March 26, 2013 in Casablanca, Morocco
We arrived in Agadir on time despite the late departure from Funchal. Agadir is slightly south and east of Madeira and is on the coast of Africa in the country of Morocco. Morocco has 33 million residents with Agadir having about 680,000. Agadir has a lot of history but all buildings from the past were destroyed by an earthquake in February 1960. The only fortress still standing sits on a hill overlooking the city. The city had been rebuilt by the end of the 60's so it is a very modern city. Education within the public system is free through university, but there are private schools. The country is mainly Islamic but there are Christian, Jewish and other religions that practice their beliefs. I took a trip to Taroudant about a 90 minute drive inland from Agadir. There I saw the walled ancient city and the bus drove through it along narrow streets. An ancient city is called a Medina so I went to the Medina of Taroudant. As population grew the city built up around the old walled city or Medina. If I lived outside the walled city in Taroudant and was going to shop in the old part of the city I would say I was going to the Medina. The trip through the countryside offered views that had I not seen them in person I would think they were photoshopped. The Argan tree has nuts that have oil that is used in cosmetics, but the tree attracts goats that climb the tree for its leaves. I did get a picture of goats 18 feet up and wondered how a 50 pound goat would not break the tree branch. Another interesting observation was that during our drive there were no traffic lights as we know them. Round abouts are used extensively with yield signs, allowing the traffic to move. Now there are back ups during rush hours but I was amazed at how quickly we got around the city. In the late 90`s Morocco invested in some infrastructure and there are no shanty towns. Low income housing was built to accomodate these people and there are miles of apartments side by side near the outskirts of Agadir. Morocco relies on agriculture, fishing and tourism for their GDP. Interestingly Moroccans consume 35 kgs of sugar per person yearly whereas 22 kgs of sugar are consumed per person yearly worldwide.
Thursday March 28th afternoon
As we proceed around the Mediterranean I suspect that I might fall behind in the blogging. I have a number of 12 hour shore excursions coming up and with the cough that seems to just hang on I need to watch how I spend my time. Hopefully during sea days I will be able to catch up. Today though was a sleep in day for me as others headed out to explore the city and countryside of Almeria, Spain. Tomorrow and the following day will be spent at sea. So now I need to go back a few days and fill you in. The day after we left Agadir we arrived in Casablanca and I enjoyed folks talk about the gorgeous Hassan II Grand Mosque. This mosque is reputedly the world's largest with a minaret that stands 689 feet. It took 10,000 workers six years to build it and it has a retractable roof. Others did an overland trip to Marrakech and saw snake charmers and the old city. There is never enough time to thoroughly explore these ports and cities but the day may cause a desire to explore further by returning. We heard about the carpets and the salesmenship. We were corrected in our expectations of the movie "Casablanca". It was not filmed in Casablanca though this city was a staging area for the allies in WW II. Today, however, there is a Rick's Cafe in Casablanca which was opened in 2004 by Kathy Kriger from Oregon. Casablanca is the largest city and the chief seaport of the country of Morocco with a population of 4 million. The emblem of love shown by Northern Moroccans is liver not the heart.
Yesterday we were in Gibraltar. It is about 2 square miles on a penninsula surrounded on most sides by the Mediterranean Sea and on the north to Spain. Gibraltar is a British Colony and has always been contentious because of its strategic location. There are seige tunnels within the limestone Rock of Gibaltar. I took a relaxed ride around the area, through the town, out to Europa Point and saw the lighthouse and a 7 million dollar mosque built on the point. As we drove to see the border crossing which is used by many Spanish to get to Gibraltar for work we had to cross an international landing air strip. It is a dangerous air strip not because of the vehicular traffic but because of the cross winds that occur. There seems to be issues that arise from time to time that cause the Spanish to close the gates and not let anyone into Gibraltar. The Strait of Gibraltar is used by about 70,000 ships per year and is a major fueling station for them both heading east to the Suez and across the Atlantic. So on the east side of the penninsula we met with the Barbary Apes which are found on top of the Rock which is 1,396 feet. They came down to greet us. They are a kind of greeny/brown in color and have no tails. We had been told that they can be aggressive and very inquisative, but the ones we saw stayed away so it was hard to get good close up pictures of them. We stopped for elegant tea at a hotel with a beautiful view of the sea. So far the weather has been very mild, clear and sunny. We are suppose to be heading out from this port of Almeria right now but apparently the wind is blowing quite strongly. The tugs that we need to help get us out into the sea are not powerful enough to fight the wind and push us so we will wait and see if the wind dies down after the sun sets.
Today I did not go ashore though I did take some pictures from the ship of the old fort of Almeria, Spain. Most shops were closed today as it is the Easter holidays. HAL had their usual shore excursions while many just walked around town. One lady told me that McDonald's opened at noon so she had a taste of home. The area looks dry and the mountains have little or no greenery. This area has been used for many film productions: Laurence of Arabia and Patton being just two. Many westerns have also been filmed here. Almeria has a rugged landscape with little fertile soil but with irrigation it has produced oranges and white grapes. Recreational activities abound from water sports to hiking, horseback riding, golf, and paragliding.
We arrived in Agadir on time despite the late departure from Funchal. Agadir is slightly south and east of Madeira and is on the coast of Africa in the country of Morocco. Morocco has 33 million residents with Agadir having about 680,000. Agadir has a lot of history but all buildings from the past were destroyed by an earthquake in February 1960. The only fortress still standing sits on a hill overlooking the city. The city had been rebuilt by the end of the 60's so it is a very modern city. Education within the public system is free through university, but there are private schools. The country is mainly Islamic but there are Christian, Jewish and other religions that practice their beliefs. I took a trip to Taroudant about a 90 minute drive inland from Agadir. There I saw the walled ancient city and the bus drove through it along narrow streets. An ancient city is called a Medina so I went to the Medina of Taroudant. As population grew the city built up around the old walled city or Medina. If I lived outside the walled city in Taroudant and was going to shop in the old part of the city I would say I was going to the Medina. The trip through the countryside offered views that had I not seen them in person I would think they were photoshopped. The Argan tree has nuts that have oil that is used in cosmetics, but the tree attracts goats that climb the tree for its leaves. I did get a picture of goats 18 feet up and wondered how a 50 pound goat would not break the tree branch. Another interesting observation was that during our drive there were no traffic lights as we know them. Round abouts are used extensively with yield signs, allowing the traffic to move. Now there are back ups during rush hours but I was amazed at how quickly we got around the city. In the late 90`s Morocco invested in some infrastructure and there are no shanty towns. Low income housing was built to accomodate these people and there are miles of apartments side by side near the outskirts of Agadir. Morocco relies on agriculture, fishing and tourism for their GDP. Interestingly Moroccans consume 35 kgs of sugar per person yearly whereas 22 kgs of sugar are consumed per person yearly worldwide.
Thursday March 28th afternoon
As we proceed around the Mediterranean I suspect that I might fall behind in the blogging. I have a number of 12 hour shore excursions coming up and with the cough that seems to just hang on I need to watch how I spend my time. Hopefully during sea days I will be able to catch up. Today though was a sleep in day for me as others headed out to explore the city and countryside of Almeria, Spain. Tomorrow and the following day will be spent at sea. So now I need to go back a few days and fill you in. The day after we left Agadir we arrived in Casablanca and I enjoyed folks talk about the gorgeous Hassan II Grand Mosque. This mosque is reputedly the world's largest with a minaret that stands 689 feet. It took 10,000 workers six years to build it and it has a retractable roof. Others did an overland trip to Marrakech and saw snake charmers and the old city. There is never enough time to thoroughly explore these ports and cities but the day may cause a desire to explore further by returning. We heard about the carpets and the salesmenship. We were corrected in our expectations of the movie "Casablanca". It was not filmed in Casablanca though this city was a staging area for the allies in WW II. Today, however, there is a Rick's Cafe in Casablanca which was opened in 2004 by Kathy Kriger from Oregon. Casablanca is the largest city and the chief seaport of the country of Morocco with a population of 4 million. The emblem of love shown by Northern Moroccans is liver not the heart.
Yesterday we were in Gibraltar. It is about 2 square miles on a penninsula surrounded on most sides by the Mediterranean Sea and on the north to Spain. Gibraltar is a British Colony and has always been contentious because of its strategic location. There are seige tunnels within the limestone Rock of Gibaltar. I took a relaxed ride around the area, through the town, out to Europa Point and saw the lighthouse and a 7 million dollar mosque built on the point. As we drove to see the border crossing which is used by many Spanish to get to Gibraltar for work we had to cross an international landing air strip. It is a dangerous air strip not because of the vehicular traffic but because of the cross winds that occur. There seems to be issues that arise from time to time that cause the Spanish to close the gates and not let anyone into Gibraltar. The Strait of Gibraltar is used by about 70,000 ships per year and is a major fueling station for them both heading east to the Suez and across the Atlantic. So on the east side of the penninsula we met with the Barbary Apes which are found on top of the Rock which is 1,396 feet. They came down to greet us. They are a kind of greeny/brown in color and have no tails. We had been told that they can be aggressive and very inquisative, but the ones we saw stayed away so it was hard to get good close up pictures of them. We stopped for elegant tea at a hotel with a beautiful view of the sea. So far the weather has been very mild, clear and sunny. We are suppose to be heading out from this port of Almeria right now but apparently the wind is blowing quite strongly. The tugs that we need to help get us out into the sea are not powerful enough to fight the wind and push us so we will wait and see if the wind dies down after the sun sets.
Today I did not go ashore though I did take some pictures from the ship of the old fort of Almeria, Spain. Most shops were closed today as it is the Easter holidays. HAL had their usual shore excursions while many just walked around town. One lady told me that McDonald's opened at noon so she had a taste of home. The area looks dry and the mountains have little or no greenery. This area has been used for many film productions: Laurence of Arabia and Patton being just two. Many westerns have also been filmed here. Almeria has a rugged landscape with little fertile soil but with irrigation it has produced oranges and white grapes. Recreational activities abound from water sports to hiking, horseback riding, golf, and paragliding.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Heading to Agadir from Madeira
March 23, 2013
We arrived on the island of Madeira at the capital city, Funchal, yesterday.We had traveled 3,365 miles from Fort Lauderdale to Funchal, Madeira. It sits about 400 miles off the coast of North Africa. Madeira is the largest island in the archipelago and has 270,000 residents with half of them residing in Funchal. It was discovered in the early 1400s by a Portuguese explorer. There were no people living on the island but there were seals, birds and lizards. The island is 35 miles/56 km long and 13 miles/21 km wide and has a weather pattern which is varied. Funchal is located on the Bay of Funchal on the south side of the island and has ideal weather. Funchal got its name from the vast amounts and the aroma of the fennel plant which is used in cooking. It seldom snows and when it does it stays on the mountains. The island has the second highest sea cliff ( 1900 feet) in the world, the highest is in Taiwan. Madeira is to the Atlantic what Hawaii is to the Pacific. People fly there from mainland Portugal for vacations. Our tour of the island was outstanding as we covered and saw the high cliff and drove to a place that Winston Churchill stayed at when he did his painting.Then we drove to the north side of the island and saw many terraced gardens where all kinds of plants are grown. Since the hilly geography makes it hard to grow items the terraces are the best. Some land plots are so small that potatoes are grown under grape vines so the land is used efficently. We had lunch at the Restaurante Cachalote which is located in Port Moniz on the northwest corner of the island with a great view of the ocean and the waves breaking against the rocks. Our view reminded me of the Oregon/Northern California ocean views. On our drive back to Funchal we climbed over the mountains and went up into the clouds and had a bit of rain but as we went down the southern side of the mountain range the sun broke through and we once again had a beautiful sunny day. The island is governed under Portugal but it does make some of its own laws and has its own government. Words used to describe that relationship are "sovereignty" and "autonomy" both of which have not been fully explained in discussions. I did learn that there are taxes paid to Portugal. There are 136 tunnels on this island ( the longest is 2 miles) and a major road infrastructure was completed in 2006. I suspect but didn't ask if most of that infrastructure money came from mainland Portugal. Madeira has some exports but again I didn't ask about their GDP. Flowers are in abundance all year around though not all varieties, then that wonderful dinner addition of Madeira wines, and bananas that have been grown in terraces at about 15 tons per year, fishing, but their economic mainstay is tourism with the celebrity endorsement of Winston Churchill. Tourism is 80% of the GDP with 950,000 arrive by plane while 350,00 come on cruise ships. Traffic moves on the right side of the road and all drivers were exemplary in their road conduct.
During our crossing of the Atlantic I awoke to see my first up close deep ocean super drilling platform which at first looked like an aircraft carrier. It was about 1 to 1 1/2 miles away. Our crossing was almost 8 full days arriving in Funchal 5 hours late which caused the cancellation of all shore excursions for that day. Due to a North Atlantic storm our crossing was south of the great circle ( shortest route ). That Atlantic storm created 35 foot swells at times giving the vessel a corkscrew motion through the waves.
March 24- a sea day
We were suppose to leave Funchal at 5 pm last night but because of an engine maintenance issue we finally were underway at 2 am this morning. There was an problem with the head gasket on one of the diesel engines. Today is sunny and we are headed for Agadir, Morocco. Hopefully we can make up our lost time.
We arrived on the island of Madeira at the capital city, Funchal, yesterday.We had traveled 3,365 miles from Fort Lauderdale to Funchal, Madeira. It sits about 400 miles off the coast of North Africa. Madeira is the largest island in the archipelago and has 270,000 residents with half of them residing in Funchal. It was discovered in the early 1400s by a Portuguese explorer. There were no people living on the island but there were seals, birds and lizards. The island is 35 miles/56 km long and 13 miles/21 km wide and has a weather pattern which is varied. Funchal is located on the Bay of Funchal on the south side of the island and has ideal weather. Funchal got its name from the vast amounts and the aroma of the fennel plant which is used in cooking. It seldom snows and when it does it stays on the mountains. The island has the second highest sea cliff ( 1900 feet) in the world, the highest is in Taiwan. Madeira is to the Atlantic what Hawaii is to the Pacific. People fly there from mainland Portugal for vacations. Our tour of the island was outstanding as we covered and saw the high cliff and drove to a place that Winston Churchill stayed at when he did his painting.Then we drove to the north side of the island and saw many terraced gardens where all kinds of plants are grown. Since the hilly geography makes it hard to grow items the terraces are the best. Some land plots are so small that potatoes are grown under grape vines so the land is used efficently. We had lunch at the Restaurante Cachalote which is located in Port Moniz on the northwest corner of the island with a great view of the ocean and the waves breaking against the rocks. Our view reminded me of the Oregon/Northern California ocean views. On our drive back to Funchal we climbed over the mountains and went up into the clouds and had a bit of rain but as we went down the southern side of the mountain range the sun broke through and we once again had a beautiful sunny day. The island is governed under Portugal but it does make some of its own laws and has its own government. Words used to describe that relationship are "sovereignty" and "autonomy" both of which have not been fully explained in discussions. I did learn that there are taxes paid to Portugal. There are 136 tunnels on this island ( the longest is 2 miles) and a major road infrastructure was completed in 2006. I suspect but didn't ask if most of that infrastructure money came from mainland Portugal. Madeira has some exports but again I didn't ask about their GDP. Flowers are in abundance all year around though not all varieties, then that wonderful dinner addition of Madeira wines, and bananas that have been grown in terraces at about 15 tons per year, fishing, but their economic mainstay is tourism with the celebrity endorsement of Winston Churchill. Tourism is 80% of the GDP with 950,000 arrive by plane while 350,00 come on cruise ships. Traffic moves on the right side of the road and all drivers were exemplary in their road conduct.
During our crossing of the Atlantic I awoke to see my first up close deep ocean super drilling platform which at first looked like an aircraft carrier. It was about 1 to 1 1/2 miles away. Our crossing was almost 8 full days arriving in Funchal 5 hours late which caused the cancellation of all shore excursions for that day. Due to a North Atlantic storm our crossing was south of the great circle ( shortest route ). That Atlantic storm created 35 foot swells at times giving the vessel a corkscrew motion through the waves.
March 24- a sea day
We were suppose to leave Funchal at 5 pm last night but because of an engine maintenance issue we finally were underway at 2 am this morning. There was an problem with the head gasket on one of the diesel engines. Today is sunny and we are headed for Agadir, Morocco. Hopefully we can make up our lost time.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Crossing the Atlantic
Saturday March 16, 2013
We left Fort Lauderdale under partly cloudy skies and headed through the Bahamas as the Atlantic swells caused some concern. We have a passenger who turned 111 years old on our day of embarkation. Then about 12 hours out we had an emergency and a coast guard helicopter circled above the ship evacuating a sick passenger.... maybe it was the 111 year old. We have a couple of teenagers and a couple of younger children and since the teens sat in a lecture on globalization this morning I suspect they are home schooled. They were taking notes. Cruises can change as passengers change. I do not mean that the ship changes coarse but the personality of the ship is quite different now than our South American cruise. Many people know one another as they have cruised before together. There are many Mariner passengers that have sailed many years and the more they sail the more stars they receive. Currently I have 3 stars but there are people who have 5 stars and have sailed 2100 plus days. The more stars the more benefits one gets. I find that people are more reserved on this cruise, but I will give it a week or so to see if there is more interaction among the passengers. I try to break ice in the elevators but I think a lot of people think me a bit strange. Even saying "good morning" caused a raised eyebrow on occasion. On the other hand they may not speak English or maybe they are deaf. I will use sign language if it happens again.
I found that signing into a Cruise Critic sight can help you meet people before leaving home. Today was a Cruise Critic lunch and there were probably 80 people present for the lunch so I met many people from all over the world. You find the cruise you want to take and read other people's comments and also post questions or information about the cruise. By taking advantage of many on-line sights cruising can be fun, informative, and a great place to meet and make new friends.
Today I went over all my shore excursions with the manager and changed two as they might have been more difficult to do. Most of my original choices I have kept. If I find that I am starting to tire quickly I can turn them in for a credit. I never know how I might feel if the weather gets hot.
World voyages and Grand voyages given through Holland America have special benefits different from their shorter cruises. We get to use the laundry free but if you have 4 stars you can send your laundry out for free and it comes back the next day. Tonight is formal night and though I did not dress I came back to my cabin and had a present on the bed. We had each received a journal for our trip. We seem to keep getting bottles of sparkling wine and plates of strawberries and hors-oeuvres. We get guest lecturers, and we collect grand dollars to buy neat HAL items from hats to computer flash drives, and clocks to international electric plug adapters. Now how do You get the grand dollars? Well, you go play games, show up early for the GOOD MORNING PRINSENDAM show with the cruise director and the hostess. And I walk around and ask the Explorations Team for them during the day.
In about 3 days we should be landing at the Portuguese island of Madiera where I have a tour around the island in a bus. Like South America I have never seen the Mediterranean so I am excited. As we cross the Atlantic in our relatively small but lovely ship I think about the many people who crossed over in past years to settle in North and South America. The ship is rocking and rolling and the acupuncturist put some seeds in my ear to help with sea sickness. I believe that it is helping.
Tomorrow I plan to take a course on Windows Cloud and how to use it. May everyone have a very happy St. Patrick's Day.
We left Fort Lauderdale under partly cloudy skies and headed through the Bahamas as the Atlantic swells caused some concern. We have a passenger who turned 111 years old on our day of embarkation. Then about 12 hours out we had an emergency and a coast guard helicopter circled above the ship evacuating a sick passenger.... maybe it was the 111 year old. We have a couple of teenagers and a couple of younger children and since the teens sat in a lecture on globalization this morning I suspect they are home schooled. They were taking notes. Cruises can change as passengers change. I do not mean that the ship changes coarse but the personality of the ship is quite different now than our South American cruise. Many people know one another as they have cruised before together. There are many Mariner passengers that have sailed many years and the more they sail the more stars they receive. Currently I have 3 stars but there are people who have 5 stars and have sailed 2100 plus days. The more stars the more benefits one gets. I find that people are more reserved on this cruise, but I will give it a week or so to see if there is more interaction among the passengers. I try to break ice in the elevators but I think a lot of people think me a bit strange. Even saying "good morning" caused a raised eyebrow on occasion. On the other hand they may not speak English or maybe they are deaf. I will use sign language if it happens again.
I found that signing into a Cruise Critic sight can help you meet people before leaving home. Today was a Cruise Critic lunch and there were probably 80 people present for the lunch so I met many people from all over the world. You find the cruise you want to take and read other people's comments and also post questions or information about the cruise. By taking advantage of many on-line sights cruising can be fun, informative, and a great place to meet and make new friends.
Today I went over all my shore excursions with the manager and changed two as they might have been more difficult to do. Most of my original choices I have kept. If I find that I am starting to tire quickly I can turn them in for a credit. I never know how I might feel if the weather gets hot.
World voyages and Grand voyages given through Holland America have special benefits different from their shorter cruises. We get to use the laundry free but if you have 4 stars you can send your laundry out for free and it comes back the next day. Tonight is formal night and though I did not dress I came back to my cabin and had a present on the bed. We had each received a journal for our trip. We seem to keep getting bottles of sparkling wine and plates of strawberries and hors-oeuvres. We get guest lecturers, and we collect grand dollars to buy neat HAL items from hats to computer flash drives, and clocks to international electric plug adapters. Now how do You get the grand dollars? Well, you go play games, show up early for the GOOD MORNING PRINSENDAM show with the cruise director and the hostess. And I walk around and ask the Explorations Team for them during the day.
In about 3 days we should be landing at the Portuguese island of Madiera where I have a tour around the island in a bus. Like South America I have never seen the Mediterranean so I am excited. As we cross the Atlantic in our relatively small but lovely ship I think about the many people who crossed over in past years to settle in North and South America. The ship is rocking and rolling and the acupuncturist put some seeds in my ear to help with sea sickness. I believe that it is helping.
Tomorrow I plan to take a course on Windows Cloud and how to use it. May everyone have a very happy St. Patrick's Day.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
March 14 Sitting in Fort Lauderdale- Arrived Safely
Wednesday March 13, 2013
Tomorrow we land in Fort Lauderdale where we need to go through customs and reboard the ship. We will be keeping the same cabin for the next leg of our journey which will be a 64 day trip across the Atlantic and into the Mediterranean. We have spent this evening revisiting and taking pictures of the crew and our many traveling companions. Some interesting experiences have occured over the last week and great changes between the Amazon and the Caribbean are amazing and the best one is a nice gentle sea breeze compared with the humidity of the Amazon.
After leaving Devil's Island the Prinsendam carried us to Bridgetown, Barbados where we docked and was the biggest ship in the port. We had the Star Clipper and the Wind Spirit both genuine sail powered ships with us in the port. The Wind Spirit had once had our captain as its captain. I was impressed with Bridgetown as it was very clean and neat around the port area. I wandered into the terminal building and did some shopping. Interested in the ecology of these islands and also an interest in fabrics and clothing I found a store that sells bamboo made items. "Big Deal" you might think, but finding T-shirts, scarves, shorts, and purses made out of bamboo was new for me. So I had to get a t-shirt. Bamboo is twice as soft as cotton, wicks away the perspiration, doesn't shrink, and is as soft as silk or cashmere. Returning to the ship I took pictures of the 5 masted sailing yacht. The ocean water is a deep turquoise blue so it is easy to take pictures of the underwater fish.
A day in Barbados and then we headed to the French islands of Iles-Les-Saintes and Terre-de-Haut and were tendered into Guadeloupe. There were not a lot of stores open as it was Sunday but it was a fun place to walk around. Guadeloupe has exceptional, clean, white beaches. I stayed on ship and just watched the sail boats in the bay.
The following day we headed to Roadtown, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands where our ship was a baby compared to the Vision of the Seas which was docked right next to us. We had a great sailaway party on the outdoor deck with our Counterpoint band and as much wine, beer and cocktails as one wanted all paid by the captain. Our senior ship out partied the Vision of the Seas as we all danced the YMCA dance and hundreds hung over their balconies wishing they could join us.
I really enjoyed cruising South America as it opened my eyes to cultures and food, weather and animal species that I had never seen. I loved the adventure of never knowing what to expect. We had a number of emergencies ( with us old folks what would you expect), we had A/C problems, no hot water for a few days, seems like everyone got sick at some time during the trip, in our hallway a sprinkler went off and flooded the floor, and the rain in the Amazon was so heavy it flowed inside a door on deck 11 but the crew was great at attending to various clean up situations quickly. Food was great and lots of it. I can now say that I am tired of lobster. The chefs kept us fed with many cultural buffets. Cruising is great for the consumption of fruit as you can eat as much as you like. Food could be had 24 hours. Our exploration team kept us busy with games, lectures, contests and entertainment. There was so much to do on sea days that things I wanted to do or learn conflicted with other things.
One of many special experiences is meeting so many great people. Our dinner companions will be greatly missed and on a small ship the feeling of family is certainly present. I have learned or relearned patience by watching others and I hope that I contributed to their enjoyment of this trip as much as they did to mine. I will miss them all and hope they all arrive home to their families safely. It was a pleasure to have met everyone.
The next chapter will be reported after we leave Fort Lauderdale so stay tuned.
Tomorrow we land in Fort Lauderdale where we need to go through customs and reboard the ship. We will be keeping the same cabin for the next leg of our journey which will be a 64 day trip across the Atlantic and into the Mediterranean. We have spent this evening revisiting and taking pictures of the crew and our many traveling companions. Some interesting experiences have occured over the last week and great changes between the Amazon and the Caribbean are amazing and the best one is a nice gentle sea breeze compared with the humidity of the Amazon.
After leaving Devil's Island the Prinsendam carried us to Bridgetown, Barbados where we docked and was the biggest ship in the port. We had the Star Clipper and the Wind Spirit both genuine sail powered ships with us in the port. The Wind Spirit had once had our captain as its captain. I was impressed with Bridgetown as it was very clean and neat around the port area. I wandered into the terminal building and did some shopping. Interested in the ecology of these islands and also an interest in fabrics and clothing I found a store that sells bamboo made items. "Big Deal" you might think, but finding T-shirts, scarves, shorts, and purses made out of bamboo was new for me. So I had to get a t-shirt. Bamboo is twice as soft as cotton, wicks away the perspiration, doesn't shrink, and is as soft as silk or cashmere. Returning to the ship I took pictures of the 5 masted sailing yacht. The ocean water is a deep turquoise blue so it is easy to take pictures of the underwater fish.
A day in Barbados and then we headed to the French islands of Iles-Les-Saintes and Terre-de-Haut and were tendered into Guadeloupe. There were not a lot of stores open as it was Sunday but it was a fun place to walk around. Guadeloupe has exceptional, clean, white beaches. I stayed on ship and just watched the sail boats in the bay.
The following day we headed to Roadtown, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands where our ship was a baby compared to the Vision of the Seas which was docked right next to us. We had a great sailaway party on the outdoor deck with our Counterpoint band and as much wine, beer and cocktails as one wanted all paid by the captain. Our senior ship out partied the Vision of the Seas as we all danced the YMCA dance and hundreds hung over their balconies wishing they could join us.
I really enjoyed cruising South America as it opened my eyes to cultures and food, weather and animal species that I had never seen. I loved the adventure of never knowing what to expect. We had a number of emergencies ( with us old folks what would you expect), we had A/C problems, no hot water for a few days, seems like everyone got sick at some time during the trip, in our hallway a sprinkler went off and flooded the floor, and the rain in the Amazon was so heavy it flowed inside a door on deck 11 but the crew was great at attending to various clean up situations quickly. Food was great and lots of it. I can now say that I am tired of lobster. The chefs kept us fed with many cultural buffets. Cruising is great for the consumption of fruit as you can eat as much as you like. Food could be had 24 hours. Our exploration team kept us busy with games, lectures, contests and entertainment. There was so much to do on sea days that things I wanted to do or learn conflicted with other things.
One of many special experiences is meeting so many great people. Our dinner companions will be greatly missed and on a small ship the feeling of family is certainly present. I have learned or relearned patience by watching others and I hope that I contributed to their enjoyment of this trip as much as they did to mine. I will miss them all and hope they all arrive home to their families safely. It was a pleasure to have met everyone.
The next chapter will be reported after we leave Fort Lauderdale so stay tuned.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Out of the Amazon -heading to Barbados
March 9, 2013
Much has been happening during the last week or so. I had been asked to be part of the HAL Chorale so we were practicing for the last week and one-half and finally gave our concert March 6. We had three men and about 6 sopranos and 8 altos for about a twenty minute performance with both sing along, funny songs, some solos, and lots of laughs. I had a solo part.
Our visit to Paratins was delightful as I took pictures of the children and their chaparones. I would put the ages of the children at 9 to 11 or 10 to 12. It would be an experience that they would remember and opens their eyes to the world outside. I had always viewed the Amazon as an area that was years behind North America or Europe. The cities are larger than than many towns I have been in. Parantins has about 100,000 people but has tall buildings and looks similar to other cities as I look from the ship. South America has so much to sustain it`s economies: mining, fishing, farming, industrials, oil, and tourism. As one guide mentioned when asked about the poor people- Many have an attitude that if I need only 2 fish to feed my family why should I catch 3 fish. With that attitude and the political setup most of the inhabitants just live from day to day.
It took us far less time to exit the Amazon than we did to go in. The river flows quickly and pushes us along so we were out in 2 days whereas going in was nearly 4 days. Once out of the jungle we were back to the rocking of the ocean. I did not get to see pink dolphins. After one day at sea we moored off the coast of Ile Royale which is one of the three islands used as a French penal colony from 1852 to 1953 when it was completely closed down. A movie based on this island was Papillon or Papillion which I have seen spelled both ways. The history is amazing. Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman starred in the movie and is certainly worth seeing but remember that to make it more exciting embellishments occur. There are no crocodiles on the island. The author of the book was actually a prisoner in a penal colony on the mainland of South America, French Guyana. The three islands were known as Iles Du Salut and each island had a name and housed different types of convicts. Political convicts were housed on Devil`s Island where the currents around the island are so strong that escape is deathly. Ile Royale is the biggest island and it housed the commandant, wardens and the cell blocks. The prisoners built everything on the island including a swimming hole for the guards and families. A footpath map has outlined all the buildings along the way so an hours walk can take you to all the locations. Agoutis are frequently spotted as one walks along the path. The former guard`s mess hall has been converted to a restaurant and hotel but it is not 5 star. The permanent residents number about 25 or so and visitors arrive by boats. The third island is Ile Ste-Joseph and it housed those in solitary confinement. As we travel it is interesting to note that many areas were originally used to take unwanted or convicted people from Europe. Australia was a penal colony, and so were the 13 colonies in the US which were inhabited by undesirable citizens from countries in Europe. It is also interesting to note that only about 20% of those who were abolished to these islands and French Guyana ever made it off alive. Disease was rampant so even guards, wives and their children died on the island. The children`s cemetery is even noted on the map.
We are at sea today and we have only 3 more ports to visit before we dock in Fort Lauderdale. I have not done a lot of tours over the last week but instead I have treated myself to some time in the Greenhouse Spa getting leg massages. On March 6th we had a masked ball which was a lot of fun. I hope to explore Windows classes as we travel east to the Mediterranean learning how to make movies and learning about a concept of the Cloud. There have been dance classes, Portuguese speaking classes, want to learn bridge?, then there are the daily games of trivia, name that tune, word challenge, and the outside activities of ping pong tournaments, water aerobics, and also all the food buffets. In fact I missed the dessert buffet this afternoon and I wanted to get some pictures. We have been surprised by lots of gifts given by HAL and as this segment draws to a close there will be many staff heading home and many passengers going back to their residences. We have only 9 going on with us and the ship is only half full for the next segment so if you wish come voyage with us......
Much has been happening during the last week or so. I had been asked to be part of the HAL Chorale so we were practicing for the last week and one-half and finally gave our concert March 6. We had three men and about 6 sopranos and 8 altos for about a twenty minute performance with both sing along, funny songs, some solos, and lots of laughs. I had a solo part.
Our visit to Paratins was delightful as I took pictures of the children and their chaparones. I would put the ages of the children at 9 to 11 or 10 to 12. It would be an experience that they would remember and opens their eyes to the world outside. I had always viewed the Amazon as an area that was years behind North America or Europe. The cities are larger than than many towns I have been in. Parantins has about 100,000 people but has tall buildings and looks similar to other cities as I look from the ship. South America has so much to sustain it`s economies: mining, fishing, farming, industrials, oil, and tourism. As one guide mentioned when asked about the poor people- Many have an attitude that if I need only 2 fish to feed my family why should I catch 3 fish. With that attitude and the political setup most of the inhabitants just live from day to day.
It took us far less time to exit the Amazon than we did to go in. The river flows quickly and pushes us along so we were out in 2 days whereas going in was nearly 4 days. Once out of the jungle we were back to the rocking of the ocean. I did not get to see pink dolphins. After one day at sea we moored off the coast of Ile Royale which is one of the three islands used as a French penal colony from 1852 to 1953 when it was completely closed down. A movie based on this island was Papillon or Papillion which I have seen spelled both ways. The history is amazing. Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman starred in the movie and is certainly worth seeing but remember that to make it more exciting embellishments occur. There are no crocodiles on the island. The author of the book was actually a prisoner in a penal colony on the mainland of South America, French Guyana. The three islands were known as Iles Du Salut and each island had a name and housed different types of convicts. Political convicts were housed on Devil`s Island where the currents around the island are so strong that escape is deathly. Ile Royale is the biggest island and it housed the commandant, wardens and the cell blocks. The prisoners built everything on the island including a swimming hole for the guards and families. A footpath map has outlined all the buildings along the way so an hours walk can take you to all the locations. Agoutis are frequently spotted as one walks along the path. The former guard`s mess hall has been converted to a restaurant and hotel but it is not 5 star. The permanent residents number about 25 or so and visitors arrive by boats. The third island is Ile Ste-Joseph and it housed those in solitary confinement. As we travel it is interesting to note that many areas were originally used to take unwanted or convicted people from Europe. Australia was a penal colony, and so were the 13 colonies in the US which were inhabited by undesirable citizens from countries in Europe. It is also interesting to note that only about 20% of those who were abolished to these islands and French Guyana ever made it off alive. Disease was rampant so even guards, wives and their children died on the island. The children`s cemetery is even noted on the map.
We are at sea today and we have only 3 more ports to visit before we dock in Fort Lauderdale. I have not done a lot of tours over the last week but instead I have treated myself to some time in the Greenhouse Spa getting leg massages. On March 6th we had a masked ball which was a lot of fun. I hope to explore Windows classes as we travel east to the Mediterranean learning how to make movies and learning about a concept of the Cloud. There have been dance classes, Portuguese speaking classes, want to learn bridge?, then there are the daily games of trivia, name that tune, word challenge, and the outside activities of ping pong tournaments, water aerobics, and also all the food buffets. In fact I missed the dessert buffet this afternoon and I wanted to get some pictures. We have been surprised by lots of gifts given by HAL and as this segment draws to a close there will be many staff heading home and many passengers going back to their residences. We have only 9 going on with us and the ship is only half full for the next segment so if you wish come voyage with us......
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Leaving Manaus
March 3, 2013
Today has been an exciting one as I did a river cruise on the Rio Negro to Lake January. Lots of new species of birds and fish in the Amazon Basin. We saw wild rice growing and wondered why the people did not harvest it and sell it. The guide said that they left it for the birds. We saw many houses built on barges and so if you do not like your neighbor you just move the house up or down the river. Boats of all sizes use the river. It is a transportation highway and the school boat gets the children to and from local schools. We stopped at a floating restaurant where we boarded smaller canoe type boats with a roof and an outboard motor and had fun going into smaller channels. Sandbars are many so our pilots really know the rivers and where to go. We are in the rainy season and the river can vary by as much as 30 feet. In fact in a period of 20 minutes a boardwalk linking two barges together had become so steep it was hard to step across. I had to step up about 2 1/2 feet. On the return trip we experienced an Amazonian rain burst. Even with a roof on the boat the rain just blew in from the sides. Of course, I had to find some handmade jewelery from the Amazon.
The Amazon River has a lot of sandbars in it and the water looks nothing like rivers that I have seen. There is so much silt that filtering water is not done as it would plug up the system. Therefore our water supply on board is limited. No laundry facilities until we return to the Atlantic Ocean. I got so wet from the downpour that shower taking is not necessary today. Many large cruise ships have a desalination plant on board so water put through an onboard purification process can be potable. Normally seawater is used for the toilet so there are a couple of water systems in the ship. Water from the bathroom tap is drinkable.
Last night we had a local dance group come on the ship and perform an Amazonian Folklorica Show with dance and songs. They started with the indigenous dances that have been preserved and we watched as the effects of the Spanish and the Europians slowly changed the history of the dances and the pair who did the Samba was absolutely spectacular.
We are heading back toward the Atlantic now having seen the "Meeting of the Waters" where two rivers flow side by side down the Amazon not mixing for a few miles. Tomorrow we land in Parantins and with some patience and my camera I hope to see the pink Amazonian dolphin. I have been told that they play off the side of the ship. How they became pink is unknown to me but that will be researched when I get back home. I can only make guesses now.
We had a great evening a few nights ago when we attended a murder mystery dinner which was well done and the food was tastey. I did not guess the murderer even when I was sitting right in the middle of all the action. That night we were delivered a nice Retirement Cake to our table so I have no idea who could have let them know. That night was March 1 and I think my favorite travel agent must have let Holland America know. Mez`s official last day of employment was February 28.
Tomorrow will be another busy day as we host a group of Parantins school children on the ship. With watching for pink dolphins, having ice cream with children who only speak dialects of Portuguese and I will be in the spa I do not know when I will post again. We have made arrangements with our tablemates to try a new food experience on board. A part of the Lido deck Restaurant is being used for Chinese buffet so our dining table will be up there tomorrow evening. Our next formal night we will be having cocktails with the captain in his quarters and also dinner with him in the Pinacle Grill. That should be fun as he has a great sense of humor.
This has been a very eye-opening adventure..... I encourage folks to broaden their horizons, get out and see the world of culture, food and make new friends. Here is hoping that everyone is in good health. All the best, from the Amazon.
Today has been an exciting one as I did a river cruise on the Rio Negro to Lake January. Lots of new species of birds and fish in the Amazon Basin. We saw wild rice growing and wondered why the people did not harvest it and sell it. The guide said that they left it for the birds. We saw many houses built on barges and so if you do not like your neighbor you just move the house up or down the river. Boats of all sizes use the river. It is a transportation highway and the school boat gets the children to and from local schools. We stopped at a floating restaurant where we boarded smaller canoe type boats with a roof and an outboard motor and had fun going into smaller channels. Sandbars are many so our pilots really know the rivers and where to go. We are in the rainy season and the river can vary by as much as 30 feet. In fact in a period of 20 minutes a boardwalk linking two barges together had become so steep it was hard to step across. I had to step up about 2 1/2 feet. On the return trip we experienced an Amazonian rain burst. Even with a roof on the boat the rain just blew in from the sides. Of course, I had to find some handmade jewelery from the Amazon.
The Amazon River has a lot of sandbars in it and the water looks nothing like rivers that I have seen. There is so much silt that filtering water is not done as it would plug up the system. Therefore our water supply on board is limited. No laundry facilities until we return to the Atlantic Ocean. I got so wet from the downpour that shower taking is not necessary today. Many large cruise ships have a desalination plant on board so water put through an onboard purification process can be potable. Normally seawater is used for the toilet so there are a couple of water systems in the ship. Water from the bathroom tap is drinkable.
Last night we had a local dance group come on the ship and perform an Amazonian Folklorica Show with dance and songs. They started with the indigenous dances that have been preserved and we watched as the effects of the Spanish and the Europians slowly changed the history of the dances and the pair who did the Samba was absolutely spectacular.
We are heading back toward the Atlantic now having seen the "Meeting of the Waters" where two rivers flow side by side down the Amazon not mixing for a few miles. Tomorrow we land in Parantins and with some patience and my camera I hope to see the pink Amazonian dolphin. I have been told that they play off the side of the ship. How they became pink is unknown to me but that will be researched when I get back home. I can only make guesses now.
We had a great evening a few nights ago when we attended a murder mystery dinner which was well done and the food was tastey. I did not guess the murderer even when I was sitting right in the middle of all the action. That night we were delivered a nice Retirement Cake to our table so I have no idea who could have let them know. That night was March 1 and I think my favorite travel agent must have let Holland America know. Mez`s official last day of employment was February 28.
Tomorrow will be another busy day as we host a group of Parantins school children on the ship. With watching for pink dolphins, having ice cream with children who only speak dialects of Portuguese and I will be in the spa I do not know when I will post again. We have made arrangements with our tablemates to try a new food experience on board. A part of the Lido deck Restaurant is being used for Chinese buffet so our dining table will be up there tomorrow evening. Our next formal night we will be having cocktails with the captain in his quarters and also dinner with him in the Pinacle Grill. That should be fun as he has a great sense of humor.
This has been a very eye-opening adventure..... I encourage folks to broaden their horizons, get out and see the world of culture, food and make new friends. Here is hoping that everyone is in good health. All the best, from the Amazon.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
As far up the Amazon as we will get
March 2, 2013
We landed in Manaus this morning and we have two days here so we will leave tomorrow about 6 pm. Having an overnight allows for some evening sightseeing such as seeing caiman's at night or enjoying the night life of the city. Manaus is situated on the banks of the Rio Negro which merges with the Rio Solimoes and the two are then known as the Amazon River. The river is 4000 miles long and has different names depending on the country it passes through. It has 1100 tributaries with 17 of them being at least 1000 miles long. The headwaters of the Solimoes River is at Nevado Mismi near Cusco, Peru and there are findings that years ago the rain water accumulated in the region flowed toward the Pacific. The Amazon is fed by nine countries: Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname, French Guyana, Guyana, Peru, Boliva, Brazil, and Equador. As the river reaches the Atlantic the sediment can be pushed up to 125 miles into the ocean. In fact ships will anchor near the delta so the fast moving water with sand can clean barnacles from the underside of the ship. The Amazon River delivers 11 times more water to the ocean than the Mississippi River. It is the 2nd longest river in the world, the Nile being the longest. The Amazon carries more water than the Nile and the 9 other longest rivers in the world. Manaus is the capital of the state of Amazonia and has 1.9 million residents and services 2.3 million in the surrounding area.
Manaus made its name and reputation on the back of the rubber industry in the late 1800s into early 1900s and buildings were prefab and shipped from Europe. The opera house was totally designed and imported. It took more than 15 years to complete the opulent work. The only bridge across the Amazon is just outside Manaus and we have a beautiful view of it from the ship. I am at awe to see the Amazonian Basin as my version had always been based on the Hollywood movies with grass shacks on stilts. This is a city and there are no mosquitoes in this region. Tomorrow I will be doing a tour to see where the two rivers come together. WiFi is available in the terminal free, and this city is as modern as many North American cities. There are buses and cars running around town and in the populated area but if one needs to go down or upriver there are all kinds of boats servicing small communities and villages along the way. There are many sea planes that take off from docks along the river. The river is so wide it looks like a huge lake rather than a river. You hardly see the water moving.
To add a bit of information Boca del Valeria has 75 residents and stopping there was a sight as all these kids came out to greet us with various tamed wild animals and reptiles to have their picture taken and collect tourist dollars. Cobras, sloths, monkeys and other strange creatures were interesting but I stayed on the ship and looked down and took pictures without paying the tourist dollar. Mez took some of our chocolate and passed it out to the children and afterward I wondered if they had dental care.
Santarem has about 276,000 residents and Belem has 1.4 million residents. Brazil has many Japanese, German, and Portuguese residents and indigenous peoples. I have not found it difficult to find people who speak English. This is quite an adventure and an experience I will long remember.
Some trivial factoids: There are riverboats that go up and down the river and some have air conditioned cabins to stay in on your two or three day journey. On top of the roof is a TV dish so people can watch TV as they bus up and down the river. They were installed in the late 80s because women would not travel on days when the soap operas were showing. Now they can watch their soap operas as they commute on the water buses. Now to the opera house -- In the 1880s most rubber tycoons came from Europe and settled in the jungle. As Manaus developed a thriving business in rubber plants the businessmen needed to keep their wives happy by giving them what they had and the type of life they had in Europe because no wife needed to live in the jungles of the Amazon. So they built this lavish opera house that looks like it is out of place in the jungle. I suppose that is where the women felt psychologically closer to home.
We landed in Manaus this morning and we have two days here so we will leave tomorrow about 6 pm. Having an overnight allows for some evening sightseeing such as seeing caiman's at night or enjoying the night life of the city. Manaus is situated on the banks of the Rio Negro which merges with the Rio Solimoes and the two are then known as the Amazon River. The river is 4000 miles long and has different names depending on the country it passes through. It has 1100 tributaries with 17 of them being at least 1000 miles long. The headwaters of the Solimoes River is at Nevado Mismi near Cusco, Peru and there are findings that years ago the rain water accumulated in the region flowed toward the Pacific. The Amazon is fed by nine countries: Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname, French Guyana, Guyana, Peru, Boliva, Brazil, and Equador. As the river reaches the Atlantic the sediment can be pushed up to 125 miles into the ocean. In fact ships will anchor near the delta so the fast moving water with sand can clean barnacles from the underside of the ship. The Amazon River delivers 11 times more water to the ocean than the Mississippi River. It is the 2nd longest river in the world, the Nile being the longest. The Amazon carries more water than the Nile and the 9 other longest rivers in the world. Manaus is the capital of the state of Amazonia and has 1.9 million residents and services 2.3 million in the surrounding area.
Manaus made its name and reputation on the back of the rubber industry in the late 1800s into early 1900s and buildings were prefab and shipped from Europe. The opera house was totally designed and imported. It took more than 15 years to complete the opulent work. The only bridge across the Amazon is just outside Manaus and we have a beautiful view of it from the ship. I am at awe to see the Amazonian Basin as my version had always been based on the Hollywood movies with grass shacks on stilts. This is a city and there are no mosquitoes in this region. Tomorrow I will be doing a tour to see where the two rivers come together. WiFi is available in the terminal free, and this city is as modern as many North American cities. There are buses and cars running around town and in the populated area but if one needs to go down or upriver there are all kinds of boats servicing small communities and villages along the way. There are many sea planes that take off from docks along the river. The river is so wide it looks like a huge lake rather than a river. You hardly see the water moving.
To add a bit of information Boca del Valeria has 75 residents and stopping there was a sight as all these kids came out to greet us with various tamed wild animals and reptiles to have their picture taken and collect tourist dollars. Cobras, sloths, monkeys and other strange creatures were interesting but I stayed on the ship and looked down and took pictures without paying the tourist dollar. Mez took some of our chocolate and passed it out to the children and afterward I wondered if they had dental care.
Santarem has about 276,000 residents and Belem has 1.4 million residents. Brazil has many Japanese, German, and Portuguese residents and indigenous peoples. I have not found it difficult to find people who speak English. This is quite an adventure and an experience I will long remember.
Some trivial factoids: There are riverboats that go up and down the river and some have air conditioned cabins to stay in on your two or three day journey. On top of the roof is a TV dish so people can watch TV as they bus up and down the river. They were installed in the late 80s because women would not travel on days when the soap operas were showing. Now they can watch their soap operas as they commute on the water buses. Now to the opera house -- In the 1880s most rubber tycoons came from Europe and settled in the jungle. As Manaus developed a thriving business in rubber plants the businessmen needed to keep their wives happy by giving them what they had and the type of life they had in Europe because no wife needed to live in the jungles of the Amazon. So they built this lavish opera house that looks like it is out of place in the jungle. I suppose that is where the women felt psychologically closer to home.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Anchored at Santarem
February 28 -last day of February
We are dropping anchor on the Amazon River at Santarem which is about half way between Belem and Manaus. Santarem is at the joining of the muddy Amazon and the clear mountain waters of the Rio Tapajos, both rivers show very different colors and flow toward the Atlantic side by side creating a beautiful demarcation between the two waters. It is called the Meeting of the Waters. Many tributaries along the Amazon will create this effect because the main river, the Amazon, carries sedimentary dark dirt from the Peruvian Andes coloring the water a mocha coffee color. The tributaries entering have clear water. The river supplies a fifth of the planets fresh water supply. When examining a detailed map of the Amazonian Basin you can see how the tributaries, over 1100, enter the main river. Rain water from Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia become the headwaters for the river which has many names but is known as the Amazon at Manaus. Ilha de Marajo is the largest river bound island in the world being the size of Switzerland. It is located at the mouth of the Amazon which is about 250 miles wide.
Because of the depth of the river and the ship's draft maneuvering our ship can be challenging as the river rises and falls frequently and sandbars along the river can change. Instead of heading west from Belem we needed to head out to the Atlantic go past Ilha de Marajo and enter one of the Amazon's northern forks. We had a wonderful subtropic storm with lightening and torrential downpour but it only lasted for about an hour and it cleared the air. The river is a highway in the delta. Because of flooding roads are not built and everyone owns a boat at least outside major cities. I will need to go onto the deck and take some pictures of Santarem from the ship. The temperatures are around 30 C degrees and with the humidity it is very hard to enjoy a walk so I have been staying close to home and just stepping out to view the surroundings.
Last night there were more flying bugs out on the decks attracted by the ship's lights than we have experienced since boarding. Mosquito's and I just do not get along.
Traveling on a long journey is interesting as on this ship which carries when full 843 passengers. I have met a lot of very interesting travelers from many countries. I chatted with a French retired movie producer who retired when digital format took over. I have listened to conversations about political issues and financial planning and just points of interest. A group of us have formed the HAL chorale under the direction of Daryl who plays piano. We will be giving a show in a week and it should be fun. I am also having fun playing for Grand Dollars so at the end of the trip I can cash them in and get a gift.
Here is hoping everyone is well and looking forward to Spring in the north. This is too warm for me.
We are dropping anchor on the Amazon River at Santarem which is about half way between Belem and Manaus. Santarem is at the joining of the muddy Amazon and the clear mountain waters of the Rio Tapajos, both rivers show very different colors and flow toward the Atlantic side by side creating a beautiful demarcation between the two waters. It is called the Meeting of the Waters. Many tributaries along the Amazon will create this effect because the main river, the Amazon, carries sedimentary dark dirt from the Peruvian Andes coloring the water a mocha coffee color. The tributaries entering have clear water. The river supplies a fifth of the planets fresh water supply. When examining a detailed map of the Amazonian Basin you can see how the tributaries, over 1100, enter the main river. Rain water from Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia become the headwaters for the river which has many names but is known as the Amazon at Manaus. Ilha de Marajo is the largest river bound island in the world being the size of Switzerland. It is located at the mouth of the Amazon which is about 250 miles wide.
Because of the depth of the river and the ship's draft maneuvering our ship can be challenging as the river rises and falls frequently and sandbars along the river can change. Instead of heading west from Belem we needed to head out to the Atlantic go past Ilha de Marajo and enter one of the Amazon's northern forks. We had a wonderful subtropic storm with lightening and torrential downpour but it only lasted for about an hour and it cleared the air. The river is a highway in the delta. Because of flooding roads are not built and everyone owns a boat at least outside major cities. I will need to go onto the deck and take some pictures of Santarem from the ship. The temperatures are around 30 C degrees and with the humidity it is very hard to enjoy a walk so I have been staying close to home and just stepping out to view the surroundings.
Last night there were more flying bugs out on the decks attracted by the ship's lights than we have experienced since boarding. Mosquito's and I just do not get along.
Traveling on a long journey is interesting as on this ship which carries when full 843 passengers. I have met a lot of very interesting travelers from many countries. I chatted with a French retired movie producer who retired when digital format took over. I have listened to conversations about political issues and financial planning and just points of interest. A group of us have formed the HAL chorale under the direction of Daryl who plays piano. We will be giving a show in a week and it should be fun. I am also having fun playing for Grand Dollars so at the end of the trip I can cash them in and get a gift.
Here is hoping everyone is well and looking forward to Spring in the north. This is too warm for me.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Getting Ready to Enter the Amazon
Monday, February 18
Today is our second day in Rio de Janeiro and the weather continues to get warmer. Today the temperature reads 82 degrees F or 28 degrees C. I suppose the weatherman is getting us prepared for the Amazon.
As we left Uruguay I was amazed at the beauty of Punta del Este, its quiet laid back tourist town with many visitors baking on the beach. But our next stop would be in Brazil. Originally it was planned to dock at Santos but docking was cancelled and we were to go to the penninsula of Ilhabela. We were tendered into the Port of Vila Ilhabela. A beautiful well maintained town with no blowing paper or garbage on the street was a delight to see. We wandered to find a WiFi and ended up in a traditional restaurant that served a Portugese Brazilian dish and a pail of iced cold local beer while we used the internet. I needed to clean up all my E-mails since I hadn't done that since I left. Young boys jumped into the bay from the tender wharf, while I spent time walking around the area taking pictures. What a beautiful town and people spoke some English and were friendly with us.
So today I thought I would bring you up to date with the Rio visit. We arrived yesterday morning and up early to watch the sail in as the sun rose. Rio has views that are hard to beat. They have mountains and two well known beaches- Copacabana and Ipanema. Rio has a lot of green area within the city giving the impression that there are not a lot of people but they were on the road or at the beach. Sunday was so packed that movement around this city was almost halted. Carnaval had ended but it was the last day of summer vacation for the school children. People covered the beaches with umbrellas and there were many stands selling drinks, beer, food, and handicrafts. The line up for Sugar Loaf was so long I wondered if going up was worth it. The stairs, the heat and the humidity was taking its toll on me but I made it up to the first level and found a place to sit and enjoy the view. I never even tried Mount Corcovado with the statue of Christ the Reedemer on top. That statue is visible all over Rio.
I was quite glad to be taking a bus around this town as the experience has prepared me for Cairo. People drive through red lights if there is no one crossing the street including our bus driver. Also vehicles were seen by me driving along sidewalks making the sidewalk another traffic lane. Also traffic does not stay in its own lane if there are lines denoting lanes. Watching the traffic was almost a comedy as cars drove the wrong way. I wished I had a long movie camera card for the whole day. It was amazing. So exploring an area can also mean exploring its culture and law.
Brazil is the largest country in South America and 5th largest in the world with over 100 million inhabitants and I think it is closer to 192 million a number that I find hard to comprehend. Brazilia is the capital, but Rio is known for the beaches and bikini clad girls. As the Tango is known as an Argentinian dance, the Samba is a Brazilian dance. Santos is the largest city in Brazil.
Back tracking a bit I have some interesting observations that were made known by fellow passengers. Buenos Aires businessmen live in Montevideo taking a plane or high speed ferry back and forth. Uruguay is one of the least corrupt countries in South America so wealthy families find it safer to live in Montevideo than to live in BA. Uruguay exports software and apps and the government encourages everyone to be computer literate. Montevideo has a colosal Mormon Temple. Uruguay has 3.5 million people and 85% are urban residents. The country ships blueberries to Canada and beef to China. There is no bovine disease as there are no cattle feed lots. They also export Swiss cheese.
Well also here is an interesting trivia game fact. Where is the most southern pipe organ located in the world? Answer: The Anglican church in Port Stanley. Where is the largest pipe organ in South America located? Answer: At a cathedral outside Rio and I can't remember the town. We have an avid organ enthusist aboard.
Our bird enthusiasts say that having a guide can save you time spotting birds and a guide who knows his /her wildlife can spot birds quickly saving you a lot of time. They have added 7 new birds to their life list and I am enjoying watching the masked boobys as they play in the air currents off the ship and dive for flying fish.
We have enjoyed a wonderful Valentine's Day dinner, a Black and White Ball, and as we traveled to different countries our culinary crew created ethnic buffets for lunches or dinners. Tonight is a South American buffet dinner and a sail away party. Yes, roses arrived on Valentine's Day and they were a surprise. We have had local performance groups invited to perform their cultural dances for us so we get a good well rounded education about the areas we are visiting. The first Grand Voyage is quickly drawing to a close as we leave Rio tonight and and make our way north.
February 24, 2013 -Oscar Night
Tonight is Oscar Night with a huge buffet as we sit in the Showroom at Sea and watch the whole thing. Out here on the ocean we miss nothing as we even get the news updates daily from Australia, Britian, Canada, and the New York Times. We have a library, huge collection of DVDs and all kinds of games. Holland America has some charity in Parintins to help the children and I am looking forward to spending the day with a native child and they get to come on the ship and spend a day with us. So a number of the ladies aboard have been knitting and quilting and making items for a silent auction and the money will go to the school in Parintins where these children are educated. I can`t wait to see the eyes of a child light up at the taste of an ice cream cone.
February 19 we landed at Armacao dos Buzios which is on a penninsula and has about 35,000 people with 22 beaches. During the carnaval 100,000 extra people arrive. They had a nice breeze when we were there and I took a highlights tour around the area. The town has maybe two main streets but there seemed to be everything one might need. The clear blue sky and the turquoise water made some very scenic pictures.
February 21 we landed at Salvador de Bahia. Salvador is one of the oldest cities in Brazil and the country`s 3rd most populated city with 4 million people. This city has African cultural aspects that can be seen throughout. According to the Guinness Book of Records Salvador has the largest street party in the world. For 7 days 2 million people join the street celebrations at carnival time. I went on a panoramic tour of Salvador and found this city interesting. The 17th century Jesuit Basilica Cathedral is decorated with gold. There is an upper and lower city with an elevator that climbs the hill so you do not have to. Salvador was the first capital of Brazil and when Nepolean was conquering Europe the King of Portugal moved to Salvador and ruled Portugal from Brazil. The streets are narrow but there is a great mixture of old and new architecture. With Brazil hosting the World Cup in 2014 a new stadium seating 80,000 is being constructed.
By the time we arrived in Maceio on February 22 I had such a soar throat that I could hardly talk. Then came the cough so instead of seeing the town I stayed in the cabin. Some information about Maceio is that it is the largest city of the coastal state of Alagoas. From the ship the skyline of buildings ran for miles. Its development started with sugar plantations and later to tobacco, coconut, leather and spices. It has 13 miles of beaches. Mez did a tour of the Mundau Lagoon and saw jellyfish, egrets, ghost crabs in its brackish waters that empty into the rich Atlantic Ocean. The city is approximately 1 million people and is famous for the handmade lace shawls. It too has a major carnival. Maceio also has major chemical exporting.
Today was another day spent close to bed though I did make it to a few games and ate in the Lido. HAL has anumber of games that you can win grand dollars so you can buy items from the ship. I enjoy playing Countdown Word Challenge and Name That Tune. Countdown Word Challenge is played similar to Scrabble. Nine tiles are drawn and then you try and make as many words as possible in two minutes from those nine tiles. At the end the team correcting your list can challenge your word. If the challenge is right the team who wrote the word loses that word but if the word is an actual word the challenging team gets 2 points taken away. Name That Tune is pretty much what goes on. The pianist plays part of a song , 5 notes to a bridge and you get to guess the title.
February 25
Today is a sea day and while I wrote yesterday trying to catch up we were in Fortaleza. Fortaleza has 3.5 million people and is the 5th largest city in Brazil and the capital of the state of Ceara. Fortezela is known for its lobster. The area is quite dry, but like Maceio the city has a long skyline of tall, glass buildings. It has the 3rd largest cathedral in Brazil. The theatre was decorated with ornate ironwork imported from Scotland. The city has 25 miles of beaches. The port area had two ocean jetties; one for petroleum and chemical products the other for passengers. Hydro is augmented by wind turbines and many more were on the docks ready to be assembled and put into service. The more I see of Brazil the more amazed I am. I had left home thinking I would see grass huts and dugout canoe boats but everyone has cars, TVs, cell phones and computers along with WiFi coffee outlets. The smallest city is bigger than Vancouver, BC. It is also interesting to know that 85% of the population of Brazil live in the coastal areas.
Tomorrow we land in Belem
Today is our second day in Rio de Janeiro and the weather continues to get warmer. Today the temperature reads 82 degrees F or 28 degrees C. I suppose the weatherman is getting us prepared for the Amazon.
As we left Uruguay I was amazed at the beauty of Punta del Este, its quiet laid back tourist town with many visitors baking on the beach. But our next stop would be in Brazil. Originally it was planned to dock at Santos but docking was cancelled and we were to go to the penninsula of Ilhabela. We were tendered into the Port of Vila Ilhabela. A beautiful well maintained town with no blowing paper or garbage on the street was a delight to see. We wandered to find a WiFi and ended up in a traditional restaurant that served a Portugese Brazilian dish and a pail of iced cold local beer while we used the internet. I needed to clean up all my E-mails since I hadn't done that since I left. Young boys jumped into the bay from the tender wharf, while I spent time walking around the area taking pictures. What a beautiful town and people spoke some English and were friendly with us.
So today I thought I would bring you up to date with the Rio visit. We arrived yesterday morning and up early to watch the sail in as the sun rose. Rio has views that are hard to beat. They have mountains and two well known beaches- Copacabana and Ipanema. Rio has a lot of green area within the city giving the impression that there are not a lot of people but they were on the road or at the beach. Sunday was so packed that movement around this city was almost halted. Carnaval had ended but it was the last day of summer vacation for the school children. People covered the beaches with umbrellas and there were many stands selling drinks, beer, food, and handicrafts. The line up for Sugar Loaf was so long I wondered if going up was worth it. The stairs, the heat and the humidity was taking its toll on me but I made it up to the first level and found a place to sit and enjoy the view. I never even tried Mount Corcovado with the statue of Christ the Reedemer on top. That statue is visible all over Rio.
I was quite glad to be taking a bus around this town as the experience has prepared me for Cairo. People drive through red lights if there is no one crossing the street including our bus driver. Also vehicles were seen by me driving along sidewalks making the sidewalk another traffic lane. Also traffic does not stay in its own lane if there are lines denoting lanes. Watching the traffic was almost a comedy as cars drove the wrong way. I wished I had a long movie camera card for the whole day. It was amazing. So exploring an area can also mean exploring its culture and law.
Brazil is the largest country in South America and 5th largest in the world with over 100 million inhabitants and I think it is closer to 192 million a number that I find hard to comprehend. Brazilia is the capital, but Rio is known for the beaches and bikini clad girls. As the Tango is known as an Argentinian dance, the Samba is a Brazilian dance. Santos is the largest city in Brazil.
Back tracking a bit I have some interesting observations that were made known by fellow passengers. Buenos Aires businessmen live in Montevideo taking a plane or high speed ferry back and forth. Uruguay is one of the least corrupt countries in South America so wealthy families find it safer to live in Montevideo than to live in BA. Uruguay exports software and apps and the government encourages everyone to be computer literate. Montevideo has a colosal Mormon Temple. Uruguay has 3.5 million people and 85% are urban residents. The country ships blueberries to Canada and beef to China. There is no bovine disease as there are no cattle feed lots. They also export Swiss cheese.
Well also here is an interesting trivia game fact. Where is the most southern pipe organ located in the world? Answer: The Anglican church in Port Stanley. Where is the largest pipe organ in South America located? Answer: At a cathedral outside Rio and I can't remember the town. We have an avid organ enthusist aboard.
Our bird enthusiasts say that having a guide can save you time spotting birds and a guide who knows his /her wildlife can spot birds quickly saving you a lot of time. They have added 7 new birds to their life list and I am enjoying watching the masked boobys as they play in the air currents off the ship and dive for flying fish.
We have enjoyed a wonderful Valentine's Day dinner, a Black and White Ball, and as we traveled to different countries our culinary crew created ethnic buffets for lunches or dinners. Tonight is a South American buffet dinner and a sail away party. Yes, roses arrived on Valentine's Day and they were a surprise. We have had local performance groups invited to perform their cultural dances for us so we get a good well rounded education about the areas we are visiting. The first Grand Voyage is quickly drawing to a close as we leave Rio tonight and and make our way north.
February 24, 2013 -Oscar Night
Tonight is Oscar Night with a huge buffet as we sit in the Showroom at Sea and watch the whole thing. Out here on the ocean we miss nothing as we even get the news updates daily from Australia, Britian, Canada, and the New York Times. We have a library, huge collection of DVDs and all kinds of games. Holland America has some charity in Parintins to help the children and I am looking forward to spending the day with a native child and they get to come on the ship and spend a day with us. So a number of the ladies aboard have been knitting and quilting and making items for a silent auction and the money will go to the school in Parintins where these children are educated. I can`t wait to see the eyes of a child light up at the taste of an ice cream cone.
February 19 we landed at Armacao dos Buzios which is on a penninsula and has about 35,000 people with 22 beaches. During the carnaval 100,000 extra people arrive. They had a nice breeze when we were there and I took a highlights tour around the area. The town has maybe two main streets but there seemed to be everything one might need. The clear blue sky and the turquoise water made some very scenic pictures.
February 21 we landed at Salvador de Bahia. Salvador is one of the oldest cities in Brazil and the country`s 3rd most populated city with 4 million people. This city has African cultural aspects that can be seen throughout. According to the Guinness Book of Records Salvador has the largest street party in the world. For 7 days 2 million people join the street celebrations at carnival time. I went on a panoramic tour of Salvador and found this city interesting. The 17th century Jesuit Basilica Cathedral is decorated with gold. There is an upper and lower city with an elevator that climbs the hill so you do not have to. Salvador was the first capital of Brazil and when Nepolean was conquering Europe the King of Portugal moved to Salvador and ruled Portugal from Brazil. The streets are narrow but there is a great mixture of old and new architecture. With Brazil hosting the World Cup in 2014 a new stadium seating 80,000 is being constructed.
By the time we arrived in Maceio on February 22 I had such a soar throat that I could hardly talk. Then came the cough so instead of seeing the town I stayed in the cabin. Some information about Maceio is that it is the largest city of the coastal state of Alagoas. From the ship the skyline of buildings ran for miles. Its development started with sugar plantations and later to tobacco, coconut, leather and spices. It has 13 miles of beaches. Mez did a tour of the Mundau Lagoon and saw jellyfish, egrets, ghost crabs in its brackish waters that empty into the rich Atlantic Ocean. The city is approximately 1 million people and is famous for the handmade lace shawls. It too has a major carnival. Maceio also has major chemical exporting.
Today was another day spent close to bed though I did make it to a few games and ate in the Lido. HAL has anumber of games that you can win grand dollars so you can buy items from the ship. I enjoy playing Countdown Word Challenge and Name That Tune. Countdown Word Challenge is played similar to Scrabble. Nine tiles are drawn and then you try and make as many words as possible in two minutes from those nine tiles. At the end the team correcting your list can challenge your word. If the challenge is right the team who wrote the word loses that word but if the word is an actual word the challenging team gets 2 points taken away. Name That Tune is pretty much what goes on. The pianist plays part of a song , 5 notes to a bridge and you get to guess the title.
February 25
Today is a sea day and while I wrote yesterday trying to catch up we were in Fortaleza. Fortaleza has 3.5 million people and is the 5th largest city in Brazil and the capital of the state of Ceara. Fortezela is known for its lobster. The area is quite dry, but like Maceio the city has a long skyline of tall, glass buildings. It has the 3rd largest cathedral in Brazil. The theatre was decorated with ornate ironwork imported from Scotland. The city has 25 miles of beaches. The port area had two ocean jetties; one for petroleum and chemical products the other for passengers. Hydro is augmented by wind turbines and many more were on the docks ready to be assembled and put into service. The more I see of Brazil the more amazed I am. I had left home thinking I would see grass huts and dugout canoe boats but everyone has cars, TVs, cell phones and computers along with WiFi coffee outlets. The smallest city is bigger than Vancouver, BC. It is also interesting to know that 85% of the population of Brazil live in the coastal areas.
Tomorrow we land in Belem
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