John and Diane's LAST Round the World Adventure

Wednesday, December 24 - At Sea between The Bahamas and St. Thomas

Day 2 (Too tired and jet-lagged yesterday to write)

Well, we’ve done it again! I’m sure this has been the most bizarre way to get to a world cruise that there ever was. We wanted to see Burma (Myanmar) because it’s just opening to tourism, so we thought, what the heck, we’ll do two of the four segments of the world cruise, sailing from Ft. Lauderdale to Dubai. Then, since we’d never been to Dubai, we’d stay three nights and then fly home. Sounds like a plan - right?

Didn’t work that way. First, we watched the prices on the Caribbean 14-day “pre-cruise” go down and down and finally decided we’d do that, staying on for the passage to Dubai. Then John, in his wisdom, decided that, since we’re not (REALLY!) doing any more full world cruises, we really ought to do the whole thing this time. There was a fly in the ointment, however. We had promised our daughter and our only granddaughter that we’d be at her 9th birthday party on April 11, so the discussion between John and Courtney did not go well. Two days later, however, John had a “jacuzzi moment.” Those occur when he’s sitting in the spa and I go out to chat and he says, “I have an idea.” I should have turned around and run, but I stayed and listened.

Here’s his brilliant idea: we stay on for the whole cruise but fly home from Alexandria (Cairo) on April 7, spend time with Jessica and go to the party, and then fly back to rejoin the ship in Rome. I swear, it makes me tired and jet-lagged just writing it. But . . . that’s what we’re going to do. I don’t know if we’re fools or good grandparents, but everything is now booked and we have air transportation (mostly on miles), a rental car, and a hotel. Now all we need is a birthday present.

One of the best parts of being on this cruise was the arrival. We had not told our friends Jeff, Ann and Cathy we were going to be here, so it was great to surprise them, Jeff at the pool and the sisters in the Crow’s Nest before dinner. They are our “besties” on the ship, and although we have a four-top table for the two of us (all the easier to invite guests), we share their table for formal nights - like tonight. The other wonderful thing about arriving is being greeted like family by officers and crew that we’ve known in the past. Willie, the Bar Supervisor saw us and said, “Welcome Home,” and that’s the way it feels. When I changed my mind about where I was going and turned around on the stairs, a man laughed at me and said, “I got lost a lot on my first cruise too.” I just laughed with him.

So . . . here we are on the Amsterdam yet again. It’s our 5th full world cruise, but the Caribbean portion is very different from the WC. First of all, it’s a LOT more crowded.

There is truly “no room at the inn,” with every cabin booked. Even though the ship is supposed to hold about 1300 people, it’s closer to 1400 during holidays when families occupy a stateroom. The WC, however, usually has closer to 1000 passengers, and it just feels so much emptier. There are some other differences that are pretty obvious: the casino and the bars are a lot busier on shorter cruises.

One big difference we’ve noticed is in the decorations. Last year, we took the trans-canal cruise from San Francisco before the WC, and the ship just sparkled with Christmas trees. I asked Eddy and Calista, the ship’s florists, how many trees there were and they said there were more than 50. This year I think there’s a maximum of 10. When I asked Eddy about the difference, he said that HAL had changed floral supply companies and they provided less decorative material for this cruise. Eddy and Calista do such a lovely job with the floral decorations, however, that they cannot be faulted. I guess it’s just another cutback from HAL, probably finding a floral supply company that gives them a better deal.

Yesterday was our first “port,” HAL’s private island called Half Moon Cay. If you ever wanted to run away to the perfect island, this would be a good choice. It was about 85 degrees, the water was perfectly clear and turquoise, and the sand was more like baby powder than sand. There are horses to ride (for a price), trails to walk, and one of the most creative bars I’ve seen. It’s called Captain Morgan’s, and it’s built in the shape of a huge pirate ship, complete with make-believe cannon-ball holes in the sides. We stuck to Diet Coke, but it was a great place to find a lounge chair and just relax between trips into the water to cool off. Lunch was a barbecue, with hot dogs, hamburgers, barbecued fish, chicken and ribs. We loved everything about the day and came home only a little sunburned.

We’ve begun a wonderful adventure and hope you’ll share it with us. Stay tuned for 126 days of “John and Diane’s Last Round the World Adventure.”

What dedicated grandparents. We will be sailing with you in spirit. Thanks for the blog.

Your grand daughter is very lucky. That's a long way to fly. Thx for taking us along.

Wow, I want to be your grandchild. How amazingly kind, thoughtful, loving and yes crazy of a plan!

Can't wait to read along with your adventures. :)

This is like a Christmas present - I love your blogs. Now we have 3 WC blogs and all is well. I can look forward to a good read every morning.:) Merry Christmas - and yes, you are wonderful grandparents.

Love your blog. My first thought on your itinery change was your granddaughter was joining us all from Europe,but you are wonderful flying all that way and back to rejoin your second home. Love the part THE LAST WORLD CRUISE we all go through this! hard leaving Amsterdam family.

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Have a great time ...

I'm looking forward to reading about your daily adventures. They are always a treat.

Terri

Thank you SO MUCH! For taking the WC again and writing this blog!!!!!

When I saw Jeff's blog yesterday, I wondered if you would write again. I was keeping my fingers crossed and hoping. So, thanks for the great start!!

Wishing you a festive Christmas and a Happy New Year on a wonderful cruise!!

Looking forward to reading about your latest adventures. Have a wonderful time!

Can't wait to go along on your LAST WC. You are great grandparents to keep the promise you made to your granddaughter. Thanks for taking us along.:)

Have a wonderful trip! Again:)!

Thanks for taking DH and I on your last / our first world cruise.

Your writing style is such that we could see the things you describe.

Looking forward to this !!! ;)

Thanks, John and Diane, for taking us along once again on your adventure. Hopefully, your sweet granddaughter will appreciate your efforts to be with her for her birthday.

Best wishes for an enjoyable and memorable WC. :)

Thanks for taking us along on your last WC. Wishing you the best ever.

I've been following your WC reports for years and do so look forward to them. Between what you write and Jeff's pictures it's almost like we went along.

As for the granddaughters birthday you sure raised the bar for the rest of us. :D

Have a great trip.

Your granddaughter is one lucky little girl! I am looking forward to your adventures once more - safe travels!

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

I've been following your WC reports for years and do so look forward to them. Between what you write and Jeff's pictures it's almost like we went along.

 

As for the granddaughters birthday you sure raised the bar for the rest of us. :D

 

Have a great trip.

Ditto for me. Your writing style just draws me into your experience! Can't wait to see where you take me.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! December 25

Still at Sea - Day 3

While it’s wonderful to spend time at home with family over the Holidays, there is a special joy to spending that time with our HAL “family,” including friends, officers and crew members. Last evening was one of those times.

Beginning in the middle of our 2014 WC, we decided that what would be perfect for us in the dining room was a four-top table for the two of us upstairs, while joining our friends Jeff, Ann and Cathy at their table downstairs on formal nights. As Christmas Eve was formal, we joined our “downstairs table,” and had a wonderful time. In addition to Jeff and “the sisters,” Leslie and Handler from Texas are the other two table members. We talked and laughed and even had dessert - such an evening.

At 11:00 was the Amsterdam’s Christmas Eve “Festival of Song.” There are several choirs which presented wonderful Christmas songs. There was an international choir, a Filipino choir, an Indonesian choir, and a crew/officer choir. In addition, the Amsterdam singers and dancers performed, providing the standing-room-only crowd with a Christmas Eve full of celebration.

Afterwards, at about 11:55, a buffet was served on floors 4 and 5 in the atrium, and you should have seen the crowds and the shoving! Midnight Mass was held in the Queen’s Lounge and an interdenominational service in the Wajang Theatre. I can’t speak for the mass, but the service we attended was a great way to welcome in Christmas.

Of course after getting to bed at about 1:00, this was a bit of a slow morning, but we did wake shortly after 7:00 and, out of habit no doubt, headed to the gym. Afterwards, we took some pastries (which we almost never eat) and some fresh-squeezed orange juice down to our cabin to have a more personal Christmas celebration. Since we always drink mimosas on Christmas morning, we had brought along a bottle of Mumm’s to mix with the OJ, and sat out on our balcony opening gifts and enjoying a beautiful Christmas morning.

At 10:00 we headed back to the Queen’s Lounge for the children’s celebration. There were Christmas carols, holiday trivia questions, and finally (it must have seemed like forever to the kids) - Santa arrived, together with his three elves. Each child on board got to sit on his lap, have a photo taken, and receive a gift. Some of them were just so cute with their wide eyes and hugs for Santa. Of course there are always those who wonder who in the world is this fat guy with the funny suit, and then they have to be coaxed by their parents to sit anywhere near him. Egg nog and Christmas cookies were distributed , and everyone had a great time.

Now of course it becomes almost a regular day at sea (don’t you always wonder what to do with the rest of Christmas day?), except for the sudden downpour a bit ago - which disappeared just as fast. We’ll spend time with friends, read on the balcony, and just enjoy this wonderful ship. Thank you for following along and for your kind comments, and have a Merry Christmas or a wonderful holiday or just a great day!

What a way to start a world cruise. I hope that you will be able

to get ot Pagan in Mymar. It is a wonderful site, reminds one of Angkor

Wat only the temples are more complete. Hopefully, their interstructor has improved. Looking forward to following you agian around the world.

Have a wonderful cruise!

We will be following you in spirit. This year we are resting from cruising (cancelled the 2015 Crystal World Cruise) and from spending the post-2014 HAL World Cruise in grandparent mode, including welcoming our 8th grandchild, Emily who was born on November 25. It was great being with you on the 2014 World Cruise, and we hope to cruise with you again.

Margaret and Keith

Wonderful to have another wc of yours to read. We have said that we wouldn't do another after having done four but keep going back for more - - on another cruise line. Looking at the 2016 Amsterdam wc now because all of you rate it so highly.

December 26 - Day 4

St. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands

I do love tropical islands. Having only been to St. Thomas once before when we were warned by a local that we were in a very dangerous area, I wasn’t too fond of this particular tropical island, but today I liked it much better than before.

Since the last time we were here was 20 years ago, we noticed that the place had grown up quite a bit and my memories of the area did not match what we saw today. Even the Hard Rock Cafe was gone, a situation explained to us by one of the locals. He said that since it was up a flight of stairs, people were too lazy to climb them to get their burgers, so the patronage didn’t support the expenses and it closed.

We started out a bit late, after the gym and breakfast, with a “taxi” ride to the center of town. I do love the taxis here; it’s like the back of a pickup truck with a flat floor, a cover, open sides, and enough seats for about 25 people, 5 across. The heat and humidity here make the open-air ride a treat, and for only $4.00 each we were transported to the downtown area. A walk around took us past jewelry store after diamond store after Rolex store until we found ourselves at a pretty little park at the end of the town. A park is so much nicer (and cheaper) than all those shops - no matter how much one can save! Across from the park was an open market, and although we wandered through and looked, we still didn’t buy anything. The problem is we don’t NEED anything, so why we buy anything on these cruises is still a mystery to me.

We spotted a cute little place called Jen’s Deli Cafe, and after a bit more wandering, we stopped in there for a mid-morning snack: conch fritters and iced tea. The fact that we also had access to free internet was a real plus, and those fritters were really delicious.

After our snack, we hopped in another “taxi” and headed to Emerald Beach, which had been recommended by Val, our waitress at the cafe. I know everyone usually goes to Magan’s Beach, but with four cruise ships in, all bigger than ours, it was going to be way too crowded for us. Emerald Beach is below a resort of the same name, with lots of people - but not too many - and a beach bar attached to the hotel. Most of the beachgoers seemed to be young, thin and tan - I wanted to drown the lot of them!

Finally it was time to get back to the ship for a half-sandwich and a nap - what a great plan. While John napped, I sat out on the balcony and read and wrote - in a beautiful port in perfect weather. It was a great day and we’re looking forward to a cocktail party with the captain and senior officers this evening. I’m never sure how we get invited to these things; it’s either 5-star or because we’re continuing on to the full world cruise. Who cares? Our friends will be there, the drinks are free and it should be fun, regardless.

Thanks for making my day...I get to follow you once again on your Big Adventure!:) Looking forward to the cruise! What great grandparents you are!