BermudaBound2014

Doesn’t look like the video loaded properly…let’s try this. These videos were taken with my GoPro. No zoom. The sharks aren’t more than a few feet away. 20220101_202815.mov 20220101_201948.mov

Let’s finish with the rest of the black tip shark videos. As most of you know there are very few blacktip attacks on humans. It’s almost unheard of. With that, I wouldn’t recommend splashing around on the surface like an injured fish. I watched a local “call in” a shark on motu Otefro and used my new skill to call one in at the blue lagoon on Fakarava. By calling in I just mean making repeated circular splashing patterns at the surface of the water to get the shark to abruptly turn around and come check out dinner. It’s fun 🤙 This is snorkeling with black tips in Moorea which was my favorite because we were on a very small tour (only five of us). The bottom was Sandy and shallow so we could stand and this lent itself to a much more stable encounter. 20220101_202815.mov If you are looking to snorkel with black tip, reef sharks, I can highly recommend either Raitea or Moorea. But if you don’t know how to snorkel and just want to get in the water with black tip brief sharks, you can probably do that easier in Moorea where no swimming is involved and you can stand for the encounter. Just Look at this guys eyeball …..

oh yes, the water was VERY warm. Much warmer than Hawaii was (even yesterday and we are getting close to May). Unfortunately the warm water is expected to create a large bleaching event in FP like what happened in 2019 😭. Like forest fire, reefs can comeback from catastrophic bleaching but it takes sooooo much time. But, if there is a bright side, you will not need to wear skin and it’s not even a bit chilly getting out of the water and there is evidence to show just how much the reef has returned.

Are from the USA? If so, i highly recommend you rent a car. The pick up is literally across the street from the ship. Hawaii roads are super easy to drive on. No way to get lost. This will give you lots of freedom to hike many trails and see much of the park. The park is huge, you will want to drive around it and not just get dropped off at the main visitor area. You can even swing by rainbow falls on your way home. Car. Car. Car.

Princess went to 8% awhile ago. I expect Carnival will change soon. Worth noting since other cruise lines have been mentioned. Each card has different terms and conditions. RCL/Celebrity cards are much less versatile. Also worth noting, the HaL gift cards are technically not reloadable according to the T&C. The definition of reloadable has different interpretations but I’ve never liked this exclusion.

It’s not that the islands aren’t beautiful, but it’s the water surrounding the islands that draws me to return. French Polynesia reminds me of what Hawaii was like when I first moved to Oahu back in the 80s. There are lots and lots of days to just gaze out at the ocean (and by lots I mean LOts). I would not recommend this itinerary for anyone who doesn’t absolutely LOVE sea days, but since you love the water and sea days I’ll go out on a limb and suggest this is a perfect itinerary for you. 🤙 The color of this water in FP is UnEarthly. Picture yourself gliding across this stretch on the way to lunch on your very own Gilligan’s Island. What’s not to love? IMG_3716.mov

The next quarterly release to the SEC is June. Should hear by then.

I suspect a gift card purchased directly from HAL would be easier to track. A gift card doesn’t code as travel when purchased thru AARP. It codes as a third party purchase. The specific language in AmEx policy precludes me from relying on this cards travel insurance. I love the Amex product, but CSP language is much broader for travel insurance. I think you are wise not to pay for your trip with gift cards if your only insurance is that offered by Amex.

Here is some more from a snorkeling trip Raitea. The snorkeling trips circle the island of TaHaa. You can elect to see the vanilla and pearl plantation, or skip those and just spend more time in the water. You know what I picked :). FullSizeRender.MOV Our gorgeous Motu for lunch (I didn’t particularly like the food but I have the palette of a toddler). I was perfectly happy just spending time here. IMG_3267.MOV FullSizeRender.mov IMG_3245.MOV

Continuing on with more snorkeling videos. These are also from Raitea (I was on the same trip as @canadianbear and @SonuvaBeach). For what it’s worth, to me French Polynesian is all about the water!! I will do zero land trips here next year. The coral reefs are still alive (although obviously some evidence of coral bleaching). Plus, it’s super hot on land. He** hot like nothing I have ever experienced. IMG_3759.MOV For a first time visitor, some land trips make sense, but if you like the water like I like the water, this itinerary is PERFECT for you!!! FullSizeRender.mov IMG_3412.MOV IMG_3437.MOV That shark swam directly underneath me!

That is correct. Premium did not allow videos to be posted to cruise critic (although I could post them to my social media pages). I think it’s mostly a cruise critic problem. I’m going to set up my own YouTube channel like Jim because I think links load better. I loved the sharks too! I swam with them 5 times. The first was the deep sea cage dive on the North shore of Honolulu. Totally different than those tame little blacktips in Moorea and Reatea - FullSizeRender.MOV I’m thrilled I did this (even though I heaved my cookies along with half the boat as it was super rough). We were completely surrounded by a couple dozen 15-18 footers! Perfect for this adrenaline junkie FullSizeRender.MOV Ps this was my first attempt with my new GoPro and the waves were HuGe making it even more challenging. Sorry, I’m just not a videographer. But if you want to swim with sharks I can hook you up!! FullSizeRender.MOV

There are lots of Hawaii experts here, but if you have never been this is my recommendation. Hilo- volcano national park Kahalui in Jan- head to Ma’alea bay for a whale watch Honolulu- Polynesia cultural center Kauai- Waimea canyon Kona- this is a hard one. Before covid Kona was a cool little town to just stroll thru. Now many of the shops have gone out of business. I read Kona brewery is now doing tours, that place is ok. If you are a golfer the Kona country club would be my choice for how To spend that day.

Ha! Golf league starts tomorrow in Michigan. High 48. There’s a reason I miss the first 3 weeks of the season (although my neighbor just sent me a pic of my magnolia tree in bloom which is lovely). Meanwhile my current situation includes watching this whale from my Lanai. Apparently some of the whales are refusing to head back before May also :). GMTA Excited to share those beers! Give Pam my best 🙂 FullSizeRender.MOV

You are my people 🙂

Well, Rolling Stones band needs to be ‘good’ too. On my last cruise, I thought they were just ‘ok’. Not enough to keep me hanging on all night (and I love that genre). I could sing the words to nearly every single song, but some I even didn’t recognize until the chorus. They also had a terrible habit of playing a couple of dance numbers (get the floor jamming), and then jump into Hendrix. Now, I like cowbell just as much as the next girl, but not for dancing. In their defense, the band in Rolling Stones isn’t really a ‘band’. It’s a group of musicians that are put together by an outside company. Sometimes it works, sometimes it’s a work in progress. Like you, I’m not too into production shows, but if they are high quality they are entertaining for me. NCL used to pay big money for their entertainment and even though I am not one to go see Rock Of Ages on Broadway, I loved it at sea. NCL offers some top rate caliber production shows (but it costs $$$). We saw Choir of Men in January and that show was terrific!! It was the exact same cast as is played around the world, not substitutes. My point being, the only venue I would personally consider “high quality’ on my last HAL cruise was BBKings. That band was excellent. The classical artists were also good. Neither are my first choice in music, but I ended up spending most of my time in BBKIngs for the energy. Entertainment has to be high quality and quality costs. Of course, quality is also subjective so there’s that :).