Musings on the Pride - Nov 17 - Dec 5, 2012

[arzz]

Musings on the Pride -- November 17 - December 5, 2012

 

DH and I took our first Seabourn Cruise from Athens to Dubai on the Pride between November 17 and December 5. I often blog my cruise experiences on Cruise Critic but frankly we were too busy the first week or so with ports, and the Seabourn internet was a bit slower than I have experienced on other ships, so I decided to wait to post until we got home to post. I still journaled my experiences every day. I know that Mariners have posted their experiences on this same trip.

 

Never too proud to be redundant, I decided to post our trip on Cruise Critic now that we are home. We finished our trip with a few nights in Dubai and I have just begun to adjust to our local time here in the midwest.

 

Our previous cruise experiences have not been on Seabourn or any of her obvious competitors (Sea Dream, Silver Sea, Regent, Crystal) though we have logged many days at sea including Oceania, Azamara, and many, many days on Holland America. For us, these 18 days represent a short trip.

 

To us the Seabourn experience is quite impressive. The organization of our transfers, hotels, and the cruise were absolutely seamless. There are many things that we really like about the Pride. We particularly appreciate her forward decks and the ability to be out on deck, at night, ahead of the bridge where theoretically we could enjoy the night sky -- unfortunately we were dogged by a full moon and some overcast skies -- but the potential is there.

 

We also enjoyed the “suite” experience as well as the impeccable Seabourn service provided by all the crew on board. I thought that the barometer and sea clock mounted on the cabin wall were a particularly nice touch. We were definitely extremely comfortable on board and we enjoyed the best food that we have ever had at sea.

 

We also enjoyed the diminutive size of this vessel and her passenger complement. The fact that there were only 200 other passengers only enhanced the experience for us. In no time we did get to know many of the folks on board.

 

The only feature that I dearly missed on this ship was a covered wrap-around promenade deck where I could walk, sit and read, and stay out of the sun but still be outside with the ocean. This is not something that Seabourn can fix.

 

The itinerary was stunning and will be dealt with in future posts.

 

A quick comment about the food on board -- the lunches and dinners were superb (remember that food is subjective and not all folks see it the same way) -- but I do have to comment that I usually enjoy scrambled eggs occasionally in the morning. The second or third morning we went down to the dining room and I ordered scrambled eggs with ham. They came drenched in bacon grease (not the way I personally enjoy them at all) and what was represented as ham on my plate I am pretty sure was corned or pepper beef as it did not look or taste like ham. I reported this to my server and was told that was what Seabourn served as ham. I was not offered an alternative. We did not breakfast in the dining room again. To be honest, the buffet in the veranda as well as the orders that could be made from the grill were quite tasty so we did not miss the dining room breakfasts at all.

 

On another night I ordered an appetizer that was drenched in a strong, fresh garlic that was not mentioned on the menu. I have issues with garlic and thus usually avoid it. I would have gladly ordered an alternate starter but could not get the attention of any of the serving staff -- and once again, when my untouched plate was cleared no one even asked if I wanted anything else. At that point I would not have requested a substitute as that would have delayed our whole table. The next course was lamb chops which I ordered that night because it was not represented on the menu as being in a garlic au jus as it was on the other nights --- but once again there was a notable garlic presence. I actually left the dining room hungry that night -- a cruising first for me.

 

Again, food is subjective and most everything that I ordered and consumed on other evenings was exquisite and to my taste. And, on most nights, the service in the dining room was truly over attentive -- just not on this occasion. And, on most nights, I left the dining room with that “overfull” feeling from enjoying too much wonderful food.

 

One other quick comment. There were often a fly or two in the dining room, Veranda C afe and sometimes in the Constellation Lounge. We noticed this on our first night on board in Athens. By the time we went through the Suez Canal (on day 3 or 4 of the cruise) the fly issue was huge and it was blamed on the Suez. As such one would assume that this issue would have disappeared rapidly -- but that was not really the case. Numbers diminished but even the day before we left the ship in Dubai there was still that occasional fly. We did not get sick and I am not aware that it was an issue with anyone else but we could not but leave wondering why in 18 days that this issue could not have been totally resolved. We do not remember sharing our meals with flies on any other ship that we have taken.

 

What follows are the entries in my journal that I kept during the trip.

[arzz]

Musings on the Arabian Penninsula from the Pride

 

This is our first Seabourn cruise. If you are interested, you can tag along for our ride. This first installment covers our first three days on board.

 

Two terminally tired folks arrived in Athens Friday night, Nov 16. Even though our digs on the transatlantic flight were over the top comfy for an airliner neither of us particularly slept because the timing was off. Long hikes and waits in Frankfort did not help either. So we arrived in Athens, the home of ancient Greece, and used this incredible city as a hotel room.

 

Seabourn, so far, is a total class act. At the airport, there they were as we left the customs hall, waiting with a sign that had our name on it. The driver of our private car was there with a baggage cart and we were off to his yellow taxi and to our hotel. As we drove up to the hotel, the bellman approached our car and greeted us by name -- not sure how that was orchestrated, but it sure was impressive. We briefly met the Seabourn rep at the hotel -- she gave us our arrival info packet, and we checked in.

 

Despite our fatigue we showered and went down to the lobby cafe and shared a sandwich before collapsing into bed. It worked beautifully and we both slept well.

 

Transfers to the ship in the morning were just as seamless as the night before. The private taxi was there on time and whisked us off to the port where we gave our luggage a brief goodbye and proceeded to passport control. Our only delay was when we had to wait to be called to passport control and security -- the new Queen Elizabeth (an almost behemoth size ship) was also in port and apparently the port authority only wished to process folks from one ship at a time.

 

The Seabourn Pride was docked at the pier, so after processing, we were able to just walk right aboard (passengers on the Queen boarded a bus to take them to their ship) where we were escorted into a lounge for cruise ship check-in which took no time at all. Since the cabins were not yet ready there was a buffet set up and there were also roving waiters passing through offering champaign and beverages as well as trays of finger sandwiches which kept us nicely occupied until we could proceed to the cabin ... eh, suite. Must use the proper terminology for the cruise line.

 

For those unfamiliar the Seabourn Pride is a 208 passenger vessel -- all outside suites. Very comfortable -- with a large sitting area (a couch and two chairs), bed, desk, generous walk in closet, and a marble bath with double sink and tub shower. Though she was built in 1988 she is in beautiful condition. We have observed only minior flaws that one would expect with age (such as the rust around the bathroom mirrors).

 

We are really beginning to appreciate the fact that Seabourn offers an almost all inclusive experience -- almost nothing costs extra except for internet service, spa treatments and premium wines. Amazing how that reduces the stress as well as the nuisance of pulling out your key card all of the time.

The ship's small size means that even in the ship's highest spaces we are not all that far above the water -- great viewing and a nice ride. Our cabin is midships and we are very comfortable.

 

The passenger emergency drill was also very interesting to us. The lifeboats launch from the second to highest deck (just three decks above our diggs) -- the boats already hang at the proper height to be boarded . And since there are only 200 passengers aboard, though separated into stations by ropes, essentially everyone musters together in the same small space.

 

The rest of our first day consisted of unpacking, establishing internet service, dinner with two of the ship's entertainers and 6 other folks from Britain and Australia.

 

Unpacking -- no big deal you say. Probably no big deal for most folks but for us ... Well ... We have had some of our worst travel battles over the allocation of cruise ship cabin storage space. For us this was a new ship and a new cruise line. Apprehension over what to expect on board, what are the protocols, how to divvy up cabin storage ... it all loomed large. But turned out to be easy as there was more than enough storage space for the things that we brought.

 

Internet service was a little hard to establish but I think it has been done now. But, then, we thought we had it done right yesterday ... it all goes back to my room card misbehaving the first time we tried to establish our account. But all is good now.

 

The food on board has been spectacular. It is in a whole different ball park than the food we have enjoyed on other lines (which is also good - but a different product).

 

Today, Sunday, we did very little as I was still exhausted from our overseas flights. We slept late (almost missed breakfast entirely), toured the ship, and then napped some more. One can never have enough naps.

 

Dinner this evening was the formal Captain's Dinner which we shared with folks we met at the Captain's reception.

 

This ship seems to have as many staff members as passengers. They are all over the place, they help with everything and do not seem to know the meaning of the word "no" no matter how ridiculous the request -- one could imagine a passenger asking "Please, I would like to chop a hole in my wall to give me a larger cabin ... " and the crew member would respond by saying "let me get an ax and give you a hand with that" ...

 

From somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea, on our way to the Suez Canal...

[arzz]

The Suez Canal or the Flies Ship South for the Winter or the Egyptian Fjord of the Flies or Possibly Seeing Red but definitely not the Sea (November 20)

 

We were told that we were scheduled to move through the Suez Canal beginning at 6 this morning (sunrise was at seven) but 6 am arrived at 4 am today.

 

Our cabin is right above where the pilots embark and disembark the ship. When a pilot boat arrives or leaves in the dark, they shine large spotlights from the pilot boat to the ship and there is no mistaking what is happening from the vantage point of our cabin. This ship is so small that we are very close to the water and the pilot boats. The dance began at 4 this morning when a number of small boats arrived and a succession of folks boarded our vessel.

 

As the Pilot boat spotlight shone brightly and directly into our cabin I walked to the window and the occupants of the boat immediately waved to me. Good thing that I sleep in something other than my birthday suit. After that excitement was over there was not much to see in the dark, so I returned to bed.

 

When the sun came up we were making our way Southward down the large trench in the sandy desert that is known as the Suez Canal, with it's flat, yellow, sandy banks and shimmering blue water. For the next couple of hours we enjoyed a premium position on the bow deck, in the cool of the desert morning, drinking in the sights, sounds, smells and flies of the Suez canal. Yeah, the canal seems to have an issue with flies.

 

We passed through barren desert, past areas that were irrigated and green, by small towns and factories -- past Mosques and Anwar Sadat's residence. The one where they built Jimmy Carter a small chapel so he could worship at prayer time same as the Muslims. We also passed under the very tall new bridge and past one of the largest swinging bridges in the world -- which was, of course, open for us to pass through. We saw many of the distinctive tall white oval shaped pigeon coops where the locals raise pigeons for dinner and occasional tourist meals (... we are pretty sure we enjoyed a pigeon lunch last time we were in Egypt)

 

There was that shallow hill that was topped with a low stone fence surrounding a very small building with one gentleman standing outside and watching us pass. Possibly part of the canal security?

 

There was the monument dedicated to the defense of the Panama Canal during the First World War and monuments erected to the Arab/Israeli war -- we do not know if it was specifically to the 1967 war or to the series of conflicts over the years. We were buzzed by military helicopters and we passed places where small groups of Egyptian soldiers were standing in formation and at attention.

 

At the end of the morning we reached the first lake between sections of the canal. There we lowered the anchor to wait so that a group of northbound boats could pass through.

 

We were surprised that there were no other boats in front or back of us that we could see traveling with us Southbound on the canal, yet there were certainly plenty of other boats anchored with us out in the lake.

 

Our Ice Cream Social scheduled to be on deck at mid afternoon was cancelled due to our many winged stow-aways. Not a savory time for ice cream -- we were fine but the flies were really disappointed.

 

And, due to who knows what the two hour break to let the northbound traffic through the canal became a seven and a half hour break -- so as of this moment as I write this at seven in the evening we are not yet seeing Red (Sea). We are scheduled to be in port tomorrow morning at 10 am at Hurghada, Egypt. We still have over half of the canal to navigate.

 

From about mid-way through the Suez Canal (which we cannot see as it is dark.

[arzz]

Hurghada ... where?

 

Egypt, it is in Egypt. And that is where we were today, November 21. Yeh.

 

It turns out that my calculations of how long it would take to get from the Suez Canal to Hurghada were a bit off -- Since we had lingered in the canal much longer than expected I calculated how long it would take us to reach Hurghada based upon the mileage posted on the "Date and Time Channel" in our suite. I am a big fan of the "date and time channel" on cruise ships. And I tend to believe what they tell me -- and I am occasionally found to be wrong. Like yesterday when the posted mileage to our next port was WAY off. Suddenly at bed time we had either gone like 150 nautical miles in one hour or the miles to our next port were corrected. We did have to put on the steam to get there on time, (well, not quite, we were an hour late) but it was well within the capacity of our tiny cruise ship. Cruising speed is 15 knots but we averaged 16.

 

And, now that we got here .... well?

 

Hurghada is a small town that wants to be a large resort and hotel magnet ... but it really doesn't quite have the plan right yet. Apparently there is good snorkeling in the area but quite frankly from the smell of the water in the port -- I am not sure that it would have been very savory. We tendered in to port and found a couple of "sort of" resorts, several tourist shops with no tourists, the local open fish market which you can only imagine at 2 in the afternoon under the hot Egyptian sun, and lots of folks who wanted to take us places in their taxis (we are not sure where) or sell us things we did not want. Except for the colorful odors and the trash in the street, yes it really was a typical resort town. And it was very foreign.

 

And last -- flying stow-away report. They are still with us, but their numbers are diminishing. Yesterday, at lunch, the waiters had to wave their hands over the buffet to keep the flies off their numbers were so large. Today, there were just a few flying around -- not more than a nuisance.

 

From part way between Hurghada and Aqaba, Jordan.

[arzz]

Petriffic Petra or Happy Turkey Day -- November 22

 

This morning started with our room service tray and a wake up call at 6:30 am. By 8 am the ship had docked at Aqaba and we were ready to hit the road.

 

The tour buses were all lined up with but a few private guides standing with names on signs, patiently waiting. Our name was there and our driver was there so while everyone else packed into the big buses, we got into a Hyundai with our guide.

 

The drive to Petra takes about two hours. The contrast between Egypt and Jordan was immediately apparent. The streets here are clean, the roads are well maintained and modern, the landscape by the road is draped with high power lines and the buildings are neat and contemporary looking. Everything from the ground to the buildings is a pink-white-yellow beige. Most of the structures are built in stone, others concrete and painted the color of the natural stones.

 

As we made our way down the turnpike we could observe the rocky desert -- barren in many areas, dotted with scruffy sagebrush like vegetation elsewhere. The land around the highway is partially government owned and partially Bedouin property. We passed by lonely, single Bedouin tents, and by small communities of Bedouin tents. Most notable to me along the road were the triangular yield signs with a red border, white background and the silhouette of a camel in black.

 

There were mountains in sight the whole way. At first sharp craggy mountains like you find in the deserts of New Mexico and Nevada. Then there were the melting honeycomb mountains, that is mountains where the rock is pock marked with holes, sort of like a honeycomb and the rocky edges around the holes appear to be melting -- they are so worn by years of erosion.

 

The last part of the trip was on the King's Highway -- a well maintained twisty highway full of hairpin turns that took us up to Petra as we rolled through mountains that now looked exactly like sand castles that have been erected from dripping sand.

 

Once at Petra we were met by our English speaking guide who walked us in, at least three miles, over a narrow rocky road that slants ever so gently down sandwiched between very tall rocky cliffs. In the morning it was still cool, and a cool breeze funneled through the skinny mountain gap. The surface under our feet varied from rocky concrete to soft sand with areas that still maintained the original large stone pavers that are now well worn with large gaps between. Not the easiest walking -- especially since one always had to look down to avoid the horse, camel and donkey droppings along the way.

 

For those who have been questioning the accessibility of this site for mobility impaired folks -- it all depends. There are horse carts that will take you in as far as the Treasury Building (the one that starred in the Indiana Jones movie). Though you do not have to walk or work the ride is not necessarily pleasant as the road is bumpy at best and when going over the sections of old pavers, be prepared to wear your neck brace to limit rattling of the cervical vertebrae.

 

You can also choose to ride a horse from the main gate to the entrance to the historical site (about 800 meters) but then you are on your own. Today our 200 passenger ship was the only one in port so all modes of alternate transportation were readily available. Beware, however, on days when the Costa ships are in port as we understand it, it gets quite crowded.

 

We are proud (or is it stupid?) to say that we covered the whole site on personal steam and appendages. (We suspect that we may come to regret this decision tomorrow). It should be noted that the distance you walk in must be repeated to walk out, except that when you leave it is now uphill, sunny and hot.

 

There are three sections to the site. The first is the burial or cemetery area, the second is the souk or market and the third section consisted of residences.

 

The Indiana Jones treasury building is in the first section. To go farther in you can do it as we did on foot -- or you can hire a camel or donkey and ride onward. We had multiple offers of transport during our three and a half hours at the site -- yet, somehow, we refused them all. You could also choose the horse drawn buggy to the Treasury, walk a couple blocks to the souk and then return to the entrance by buggy.

 

In the first section, the burial section, the tombs were square holes carved into the sandstone and decorated on the outside surface. Sometimes as simply as a few minor decorations, and others as elaborate as the Treasury from the Indiana Jones film. Yes, folks, that is merely a tomb -- but to be more precise it is a three story tomb -- the lowest level is below ground at present as it is covered with silt from repeated flooding -- this level is for the funeral observances, the second level is the tomb, and the third level, we have to confess -- we are so brain fried that we don't remember what it is for yet it looked to us as only decoration. Most of the tombs had only one or two levels.

 

Along the way the road is lined with two ceramic drain systems, one for irrigation and the other for water. There were also many small, carved indentations in the stone that were used to display idols -- virtually none of them remain. Petra was built around 2000 years ago by the pre-Islamic arabs.

 

The location of the site was carefully chosen to be well hidden, but it is on low ground compared to everything else around so that it is vulnerable to rather serious flash floods when it does rain in the desert. It has been restored many times, most recently by the Swiss as a UNESCO project.

 

Following the cemetery area is the market place or colonnade and that is followed by dwellings that have also been carved into the sandstone.

 

Quite impressive all.

 

Once all the way in, our guide left us to trek back on our own. We did make it but it is a good thing that the road wasn't any longer. Going uphill in the sun gets hot -- even with the very tiny sprinkling of drizzle that we had for a time on the way back.

 

Once we had rejoined our driver he took us to a restaurant for lunch. The experience was vaguely reminiscent of lunches with Ramses tours last time we used them a couple of years ago in Egypt, with one major difference. We arrived at the "Thousand and One NIghts" restaurant which is high up, catches cool breezes and has a dynamite view. It is set up for large banquets and there was no one else there for lunch except us. And, it seems someone did not make a lunch reservation for us -- so we waited in the empty banquet hall for about 40 minutes while they rapidly prepared our meal. It consisted of the usual salads, veges and hummus, chicken (this time real chicken not pigeon), bread and a yellow rice pilaf pleasantly seasoned with tumeric, cloves and other spices. We felt bad as they had worked so hard to provide us with a rapid meal and we did not touch the fresh veges (rather safe than sorry).

 

The ride back was mostly uneventful and we, frankly, were wiped.

 

When we arrived at the port our driver got into some sort of verbal exchange with the port security at the entrance and in no time at all a security officer with a large automatic weapon appeared, up close and personal. We whipped out our boarding cards to show to the guards and our driver continued to talk and soon they let us in.

 

From two tired folks about to enjoy a Seabourn dinner.

[arzz]

Sharm el Sheik

 

Today we are back in Egypt, in a section of the Sinai that was captured by Israel during the 1967 war then returned to Egypt some year's later. It is literally next door to the Israeli resort town of Eilat, and it, too, is a resort town.

 

We are in port with two other ships -- the FTI Berlin and the MSC Armania. Or, it would be more correct to say they are in port and we are at anchor.

 

Out on the water, where we are the sun is warm and bright, but there are pleasant breezes. In town, the sun in warm and bright. What is a breeze?

 

We arrived before sun up at 6 am so that those who wished to go inland to St. Catherine's Monastery could do so, and we will remain until 6 pm so that they have time to return. We chose not to do that trip, are not interested in snorkeling or a glass bottom boat -- so what is left to us today is to tender in and take the cruise line's shuttle into "town."

 

The shuttle took us to a shopping center with a casino that is adjacent to a stretch of the rather beautiful beach that is found here. The shops are tourist shops and all have the same stuff that all the other tourist shops in Egypt have. There are the camel refrigerator magnets, the Egyptian statues, perfume oils, spices, galleries of paintings made on "real papyrus" and Arab scarves, the type the men wrap around their head that also hang behind their necks, and scarves for women. Oh, and they also have scarves for women that have multiple metal bangles sewn in so that you can wrap them around various body parts and pretend to be belly dancers.

 

The shopping game is as rehearsed and practiced as it is in Turkey during rug purchases, but it does have an Egyptian flavor. It begins with the approach "where are you from? Welcome to Egypt and let me share my family's hospitality with you" while I try to sell you some of our touristy goods.

 

Though fun the first time, that grows old real quickly. After the small market we turned to walk towards the beach. Along the walkway, on the inland side are the beach hotels, on the water side is an endless stretch of beach bars rimmed with a white sand beach.

 

As for sitting in the sun -- the weather today was much more comfortable with the ocean breezes on the ship itself -- as for the beach bars, well, they are only good for a coke (excuse me Pepsi) or Egyptian beer and some free internet. It took us less than an hour to see what there was to see and become well braised by the Egyptian sun and heat.

 

Funny thing, our shuttle bus back to the ship contained the same group who rode out with us. After we boarded the tender and crossed the water we were not able to pull up to the ship immediately as it was changing it's position in the water and the tender temporarily pulled away from the ship -- immediately a simultaneous chorus from the tender passengers arose exclaiming "don't take us back!".

 

It really wouldn't be a bad port at all if we were on a Caribbean cruise, or wished to lay on the beach or snorkel. I have heard that the snorkeling and diving here is better than at the great barrier reef in Australia.

 

This trip, however, we are focused on Luxor and the Valley of the Kings where we are headed tomorrow. We will be spending the night at Luxor and will return to the ship on Sunday.

[arzz]

Safaga to Luxor and Back OR You Can Never Have Enough Singles in Egypt - Part 1

 

We have just returned from our overnight excursion from the port of Safaga, Egypt to Luxor, Egypt. A wonderful time was had by all. I understand that folks at home have had some concerns due to the recent events in Egypt and the news reports re: Cairo. Please be advised that Safaga is nowhere near Cairo, we were treated well throughout and we were in no way aware of any difficulties at all.

 

We were picked up at the pier by our trusty guide and our driver, as scheduled, and on time. Two years ago our vehicle in Alexandria sported the name "Santa Claus". This trip our trusty car was christened "sinderella".

 

Our ship was docked right next to a passenger and freight ferry that had also just arrived. The area around the dock was an unpaved, sandy surface that was now filled with a huge, disorganized melee of local people dressed in classic local attire as well as horse and donkey carts, diesel trucks and large flat bed push carts piled high with bundles of who knows what wrapped in rugs, fabric and plastic sheet and tied with ropes. Inevitably there were also many people riding with and hanging off the carts.

 

We felt as if we had docked in the middle of a scene from an old movie about a steamship arriving in a classical middle eastern port.

 

And that was the start of our day at 7:15 am. Somehow our expert driver navigated the crowds without hitting anyone or anything, and drove us out of the port area and into town.

 

Safaga is not a large city. In a short time we were past the city limits and well on our way into the three hour drive to Luxor.

 

The roads were very interesting. Most of the way they were two lane blacktop highways that snaked through totally barren and empty desert. Slowly the desert morphed from tall rocky mountains, to smaller rocky rises to an almost flat surface. For half of the way there was nothing else -- not even electric lines or a Bedouin tent. Finally the electric and phone lines were there to keep us company -- as well as the other traffic on the road.

 

Now, it should be stated that our driver was excellent and took very good care of us -- we rode round trip with no incidents at all. But, as observers from the United States we have been able to compile the following information about how to drive in Egypt.

 

On our last trip in 2011 we learned that in the cities, such as Cairo, the traffic lines in the road are merely suggestions. The cars and people go wherever they wish on the road and somehow everyone survives, including pedestrians, and all eventually get where they wish to go.

 

2) On two lane roads things are a little different. First, each individual driver chooses where on the road they wish to drive. In some places they have actually painted in a center line on the road -- but don't be fooled, the line is only superfluous and has no real meaning.

 

3) Once having chosen your driving spot it is important to constantly be aware of oncoming traffic as they will also have chosen an arbitrary driving lane -- one cannot be too alert. The trick is to never slow down yet somehow merge right or left to avoid collision.

 

4) Never drive following another vehicle. It is mandatory to pass, even on hairpin turns, Alert, the driver must stay alert -- and, if possible, on the paved highway.

 

5) In the small cities and towns don't expect to find traffic lights. Navigation and traffic control are accomplished via several avenues. First, the traffic circles (we never could figure out if there is a rule about who has the right of way) -- Second the "chicken" turn (that is you just turn -- forget about slowing down -- if there is other traffic, just drive in front of them) and third the humongous super-sized speed bumps that appear in the road with no warning or marking at all -- you just have to know where they are to avoid loosing your axle.

 

6) If you need to communicate with other cars to say things like "I am going to pass you whether you like it or not" or "get out of my arbitrarily chosen lane" you have to know how to speak "car horn" -- I do not know that language yet the other car usually replies.

 

Our best advice is to leave the driving to the Egyptians.

 

We did arrive in Luxor and were quite safe. We could tell we were getting close to the Nile as we approached town when we started to see irrigated green fields on the desert landscape. The town of Luxor itself it was not only green but there were palm trees and flowering bushes.

 

Our first stop was the Valley of the Kings. The site chosen for burial tombs and like Petra it is well hidden between and behind tall mountains. It is believed that there are some 63 tombs there but only a fraction have been uncovered. The price of admission includes three tombs (you choose which three) except that if you wish to see the tombs of Ramses VI and Tutankhamen you have to buy additional tickets. Our guide discouraged us seeing from Tutankhamen's tomb as it is very small, and not special - Interesting note: last Friday they celebrated 90 years since the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb.

 

We did, however, choose to see the other "premium" tomb, that of Ramses VI because the original color paintings are still in very good condition. Among the paintings in that tomb there is a recurrent theme -- the illustration of a Goddess who was punished and is now required to swallow the sun every evening at sunset and give birth to the sun each day at daybreak.

 

Our guide was not allowed to enter the tombs with us as each tomb has one or two local guides who insist on taking you through and explaining things in very poor English -- and when done they ask for money. One of my guides was cheeky enough to tell me that the dollar I gave him was not enough for his few minutes of commentary. Remember that we have already paid an admission price to see the tombs. And, when DH and I moved through the tombs at different speeds, we each got hit separately for the tips.

 

And while I am on the subject, the dollars were pretty much a necessity to use the washroom. We tried to get Egyptian coins but amazingly ... no one had change! There are also the endless items for sale by the vendors "only one dollar" or "only two dollars". I knew in advance to bring a lot of singles with us -- but to tell the truth by the end of the second day my rest stops were in jeopardy.

 

As we concluded the first day's tours (West Bank of the Nile) we also stopped to see the two huge statues -- the so called Colossi of Memnon and we visited the large Temple of Queen Hatshepsut.

 

Whew! The cool desert morning had become the bright, hot, desert afternoon and I had been up and running for ten hours! We checked into our hotel on the Nile and laid down for a well deserved nap.

 

We then went down to have dinner in the hotel. We ate outside by the hotel's pool on the banks of the Nile River. After dinner DH went to see the Sound and Light show at the Temple of Karnak -- me? I went upstairs and went to sleep.

 

More tomorrow.

 

From the Red Sea, on our way to the Gulf of Aden and Oman,

[arzz]

Part 2 - Luxor - Nov 24-25, 2012

 

Our 6:30 am wake up call came -- we dressed and went down to breakfast. The same restaurant that we had enjoyed, on the banks of the Nile, the night before. Or, as I discovered, some of us enjoyed -- somehow DH had missed the fact that we ate dinner on the banks of the Nile River. Even though he thought he was still alert and went on to the sound and light show after dinner he was ... well ... DH. DH protests that it was dark and he could not see the river. He did, however, enjoy his breakfast on the banks of the NIle River.

 

This morning we were to explore the East bank of the Nile. We began with the Temple of Karnak which used to be connected to the Temple of Luxor by a very long avenue lined on both sides with sphinxes. A few of the sphinx remain at the Karnak Temple, more at the Temple of Luxor. We have to admit that we are very impressed by the architecture and grand design carried out by the Egyptian ancestors 4000 years ago.

 

The temple consists of many courtyards filled with hieroglyph covered walls, pillars, obelisks, statues and all manner of monuments to honor the King. The thing is, each mortal King has only a finite lifetime, so the King kept changing -- and each King in turn needed to create something to his memory -- so the sphinxes were moved, a new inner or outer courtyard was created ... yada, yada, yada -- and today walking through the temple is kind of like walking through the layers of an onion, peeling them off one at a time.

 

The final inner layer of the onion is a very inner and holy courtyard that was reserved for only the holiest of holy people -- to worship in the inner temple and to host their celebrations in this very inner courtyard.

 

In summary, quite large and quite impressive.

 

The Luxor Temple was next -- and it has a fairly well preserved row of sphinxes at the entry followed by more of the same. At the time these temples were built there was no Aswan dam and these temples were located amongst the many tributaries of the Nile so it can be imagined that they were surrounded by green fields and plants.

 

We desired to be back to the ship by 3 or 3:30 pm since the all aboard was at 4:30 and we wanted to make sure that we had some extra time just in case .... so it was time for an early lunch and then to leave Luxor. For lunch we were brought to a small, very upscale western style restaurant where we were served a multi-course meal while we listened to recordings of Christmas music and lite jazz -- we sent back, however, two of the courses (the salad and the fruit plate desert -- better safe than sorry).

 

Before leaving town we drove through the local markets where the streets were lined with small shops selling just about everything for the cook. We noticed, however, that the only folks in the markets -- both sales people and shoppers -- were all male. So we asked our guide. Apparently it is the custom that the men do the food shopping. I asked if the men decided what to purchase or if they were given a list. Turns out the men are given a list each morning and it is the men who are trained on how to choose the best produce and food products. Gee, I might enjoy that!

 

Our ride back to Safaga and the ship was much as it was on the way out -- long and barren but nonetheless always interesting driving. At the port the chaos of the arriving freight ferry of the previous morning was all gone ... our ship was now docked to the rear of Oceania's Nautica which in comparison to us, seemed like a behemoth.

 

From the Red Sea

[seabournaddict]

thank you for your review so far, hope there is more to come! It brings back many memories for us, as we have also done the same trip on The Pride, (actually done the trip twice) If we do it a third time, we wont get off the ship in Egypt at all, been there, done that, been hassled enough and seen enough trash!

[gf]

What wonderfully descriptive writing! Looking forward to more; thank you!

[Keith1010]

I have been really enjoying reading your posts and look forward to the additional installments.

 

Keith

[arzz]

On the Red Sea - Nov 26

 

Today it is sunny and clear and we are on the Red Sea sailing between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. In not too long we will leave the coast of Egypt (which is too far away to see) and cruise between the coasts of Sudan and Saudi Arabia. For those of you out there who are concerned about our course -- just let me say, for now, that we are not alone and we are well protected.

 

After the heavy touring that we have been doing it was a pleasure this morning to arise to no obligations at all. We had breakfast at the small Veranda Cafe, and after a full morning of working on the 2000 piece jigsaw puzzle up in the lounge we tried lunch in the dining room. I am not sure that they will invite us back.

 

Let me just, first, take a few moments to list some of the things that we are really beginning to enjoy about this diminutive ship. Some are unique to this ship, and some are things that we used to enjoy on cruise ships as a matter of course that no longer happen on many lines.

 

First, with only two hundred passengers everyplace on this ship is quiet.

 

It is still possible, on this ship, to walk out to the deck in front of the bridge which is kept dark at night so that we can see the stars. There is also a deck at the bow of the ship with a hot tub and loungers where you can walk all the way up to the prow and look out (ala Titanic or just a really nice way to enjoy the sea).

 

The service is incredible. At dinner time each of us are offered the arm of a waiter (or waitress) and led to a table. At the end of the meal each evening, as coffee and dessert is served, each table is presented with a plate of small, fancy, sweets.

 

In the upstairs Veranda Cafe they always carry your plate to your table -- they serve all of the beverages -- and if you make a special order - they serve it like any restaurant table service.

 

The servers who actually bring you the food are different from the folks who take your order -- yet it is always right. I had always wondered how that worked and today at lunch we were seated next to a service station and got to see how the whole orchestra and ballet are conducted. There is a waiter who has all of the order slips spread out in front of him and when the trays of food arrive he instructs the waiters where and to whom to deliver them. e.g. To Madame at table 6, to Papa at table 12, etc.

 

There are always large numbers of servers moving around, with purpose. Today was particularly interesting because the hotel manager was eating lunch at the table next to ours with his wife and young son. This only stepped up the excitement of the ballet. The pressure to be perfect was huge.

 

A woman at a table next to ours requested an iced green tea. She was immediately brought an iced citrus green tea. Not what she wanted. Totally not rattled she was told not to worry, this is Seabourn, nothing is too much trouble -- and a waiter was dispatched to prepare the tea "quickly, quickly" -- meanwhile the dining room appeared to be out of green tea -- not that they weren't trying to find some in other departments.

 

Then, DH reached for a bread stick and sent my water flying. Much to my chagrin, and embarrassment, instantly, the first one on the scene to clean it up was the Hotel Manager -- and let me tell you, what a fuss they all made cleaning it up and making sure everything was right. I am not sure I will ever eat lunch there again. I am not sure they will allow me to eat lunch there again. :)

 

Once the Hotel Manager left the dining room, the wait staff gave each other "high fives," everyone relaxed, and a good time was had by all.

 

And, I should say, it was a very good lunch.

 

Right now I would really like to hear the lecture about the Library of Alexandria -- but I am afraid I might nod off -- not too awful a faux pas from the balcony of a 700 passenger theatre -- but not really acceptable in a small theatre where the lecturer already knows you as you have eaten and spoken with him several times. I'll just have to watch the rerun later on TV.

[arzz]

Still at Sea

 

Last night was our second formal evening of the cruise. It was the chef's "tasting dinner", a seven course meal where there was only one choice -- the entree. Even though the portions are relatively small, how do people eat that much? Each course was wonderful but I was done before the entree and I still had dessert and the Grand Marnier coffee bean to go! I have to say this is some of the best food we have had anywhere. I would be hard pressed to choose my favorites as everything I have had is excellent.

 

We again chose to share a table with two other couples. The folks on board this ship are very interesting in all sorts of ways. One of the women doesn't eat lunch - she just orders caviar sent to her suite and makes that her meal. Now that is something you cannot do on every cruise line!

 

Tonight we dined with the cruise director and I sat next to a charming elderly lady from Britain whom I would guess is somewhere north of her late seventies. She discussed her trip to Petra -- her reason for taking this cruise. She walked in and out on her own even though she was having a little trouble with her knee. We were impressed!

 

There are also at least three physicists on board. When does that ever happen? And with only 200 passengers. DH is a physicist -- again we were impressed.

 

One of the highlights of the day was the Seabourn Classic Event -- a tug o' war competition between the ship's departments. So, at 2:30 under the hottest sun of a hot day the ship's guests gathered up on the top deck to watch teams of Seabourn employees have a tug o' war. Each team was costumed (except the team from the bridge who just wore their "whites" with the white shorts). In the end the contest was won (fairly? we are not sure) by the cabin stewardesses -- and a good time was had by all.

 

Oh, yes, and around 4:00 this afternoon the captain announced that he had to turn the ship due to something that they observed floating in the water. We slowed, turned, and spent about an hour locating the object -- turned out it was a dummy floating near a life preserver. Both items were recovered, lord knows how much fuel was spent, and off we went again.

 

The weather today was clear and hot. There was virtually no wind on board as our course and speed seems to be directly matched with the wind. Technically we should be able to see oodles of stars at night in this part of the world - with one catch -- we have a blankety blank full moon out this week. Just can't catch a break.

 

This evening when standing at the bow directly in front of the bridge it was wind still. Too much moon glow to enjoy the stars -- so we walked to the side of the bow and stopped to listen to the very gentle sound of the water on the ship. The Red Sea is also dead calm. We looked down and to our surprise we did not see red -- instead we saw ripples of glowing green emanating from the ship -- some sort of bioluminescent phenomenon. Wow!

 

From somewhere between Eritrea and Saudi Arabia

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review!

[arzz]

And Yet Another Day at Sea - November 28

 

So here we are again -- or should I say still -- enjoying the bounties of the sun off the Arabian peninsula on our way to our next port, Saturday, at Salalah, Oman.

 

Unlike yesterday that was humid and wind still, today the winds are just over 20 knots and when added to the ship's speed we are over thirty knots or moderate gale. There is a bit of movement on board and thanks to the wind it is very pleasant out on deck.

 

After breakfast I followed what is becoming my morning routine by going up to the Constellation Lounge to put in a little work on the jigsaw puzzle -- 2000 pieces and it is a real bear. After an hour I actually felt good that I had been able to place three or four pieces. Under ordinary circumstances this might have felt frustrating but combined with the sun, seas, and relaxed atmosphere on board it was simply enjoyable.

 

Ed and I then attended today's lecture by one of our on board lecturers, Hassan Eltaher, titled "The Influence of Judaism and Christianity on Islam". My fears were not recognized ... I not only did not fall asleep, I was fascinated. I have always felt that the similarities between the Arabs and the Jews are more pronounced than the differences -- so why the fighting? Probably more like siblings that are too close to get along.

 

No question Judaism and Christianity preceded Islam so the incorporation of various portions of scripture and custom should not be surprising -- it is the linguistic parts that stand out most to me.

 

After the lecture we joined a trivia team -- something that we had bypassed for the earlier portions of this trip. They run the trivia here in their own way.

 

The trivia that we are used to is usually 15 or 20 questions long, teams limited to 6 players and papers are exchanged to do the scoring. Seabourn trivia consists of three sets of four questions each plus a big multi-answer bonus question. Each portion of the game is worth more points than the previous portion. Teams are allowed ten members. Answers are announced verbally by the teams to the the cruise staff, who keep careful score FOR the passengers, and there is also an accumulative score kept over several days. And, while all this is going on, in the Seabourn way, they are pouring champaign, beer or whatever and there is an endless supply of popcorn and potato chips. The series winners are announced in the daily program.

 

We had a good time and will probably come back tomorrow for more though we did not win.

 

I will end today's report by describing a cartoon that our lecturer used to end his talk this morning. I hope this will not offend anyone. The picture is of Steve Jobs entering heaven at the Pearly Gates -- he is being introduced to Moses "Moses, this is Steve and he is here to upgrade your tablets."

 

From somewhere between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden

[arzz]

Fourth Sea Day of Five -- November 29

 

Today the weather was wonderful, the seas calm and our journey through the Gulf of Aden --balmy.

 

Not much new today except for all the same olds for a day at sea. At breakfast up at the Verandah Cafe we see an interesting collection of folks. Fantastic people watching.

 

We continued our participation in trivia today and helped our team come to a second place position for the day and overall. Yea to us for as long as it lasts.

 

We once again participated in the fourth meal of the day, afternoon tea, which has become habit forming. I ,however, have had to warn DH that I will not be baking scones for him daily.

 

Tonight is the big Arabian Nights party where passengers are to go dressed in Arab garb and can have their photo taken on a satin covered settee surrounded by Harem girls. We are not going. We are such "stick in the muds" -- but I am more relaxed here than I have been in a while.

 

From somewhere in the Gulf of Aden between Yemen and Somalia but a lot closer to Yemen than Somalia

[arzz]

Fifth at Sea - November 30

 

Today was our last day at sea before reaching Oman. Sometime earlier today we passed the tip of Somalia and we are now entering the Arabian Sea.

 

It was a quiet day today.

 

Trivia again, but we did rather poorly. You either know the questions or you don't. We were joined at trivia today by the "dummy" that the ship picked up from the sea the other day when we turned back to recover the object in the water. The crew dressed him in an Arabian headpiece. I do not know if his shoes and clothing are original to him or if they were also added on board. Unfortunately he, also, was unable to answer the trivia questions.

 

The weather continues to be wonderful and we continue to enjoy our time on board. It will be odd leaving the ship tomorrow and walking on dry land -- our tour will take us to two UNESCO world heritage sites and I am sure that the opportunity to purchase frankincense will also arise as that is the major export from Oman to foreign nations. This is a country that I know virtually nothing about so tomorrow I will learn.

 

From Arabian waters (cannot be specific as to where right now as the date and time channel is out of order) but somewhere not too far from Salalah, Oman.

[Martita B.]

arzz

LOVED you tippin' the water glass over in the dining rooM! a perfect ending to a perfect luncheon !!!:p The "Wait Teams" really do enjoy a guest that makes a'lit boo boo ~makes them happy and laughing! Don't feel bad a minute.......once at the Captains table (middle of dining room-8 guests) I placed my RED wine glass stem right in front of my dinnerplate, to the right ~~OHHHH my Lord ! RED wine flew over the beautiful white linen tablecloth, etc, etc......red drips even on the Master's (white), right shirt cuff! I was speechless ~~~~:eek: I simply shrugged, smiled and said, "I am sooooo sorry....I wish I had ordered milk!"

End of story.....actually it wasn't my fault ~~I had put my wine glass down on the "under the tablecloth" hiddened extension table silly, phooey! Captain was sooooo calm and sweet. He tapped his waterglass and said to all of us, "Miss Martha B, do not fret, we all know you are NOT a spiller!" THAT is Seabourn!

Writing about Seabourn makes me homesick sooo'I think I'll just go call Alex and book the April TA Crossing :D

arzz ~~have more FUN! And a 1,000 thank you's for posting your sea log.

Martita B

Scalawag

[parisbully]

Thank you for the review. Very informative.

[arzz]

Salalah, Oman or Sa -- lalala December 1,2012

 

This morning's arrival in Oman was at 10 am instead of the brochure time of 8 am due to scheduling issues with the convoy that traveled with us through the waters off the Somali Coast. Security has been lifted a bit - deck lights are on again at night and our extra on board security team are now walking amongst us without their flak jackets on all the time.

 

I, however, have been out of step with the universe. The date and time channel stopped working yesterday afternoon. Attempts to re-boot the system seem to have failed, and my once favorite TV channel now stares at us with a quiet, white screen with a dialog box at the center (which, of course is either not in English or just out of focus enough for us not to be able to read it). Of course, it runs on windows. Thankfully the Master of the ship does not depend upon the date and time channel to get us from place to place.

 

It was clear, sunny, and just a tad cool when we arrived in port with several container ships this morning. Not too long after our arrival the Costa Classica rolled in and docked at the next dock over. It was very funny seeing the juxtaposition between the huge Costa ship and our diminutive Seabourn vessel.

 

We took a ship's tour today. Salalah is the second largest city in Oman and is traditionally the home of the Sultan though Muscat (the largest city) is actually Oman's capital. Oman's current Sultan, though he maintains an in town residence, has chosen to live mostly in Muscat.

 

Nonetheless our first stop this morning was at the Sultan's Palace. Oh, you might think, did we get a tour? No ... we got five minutes for photos outside the gates and the Palace wall. All that could be seen besides the Sultan's Crest at the doorway were a couple of minarets that tower above the walls. Looks like a fine place to live, however, if you like walls.

 

Someone asked our guide who would succeed the Sultan after he dies. Would one of his children succeed the Sultan? Our guide answered: "We do not know if the Sultan has any children". Apparently what happens within the Palace walls, stays within the Palace walls.

 

Stop number two was at the souk, or market, so that we could shop for Frankincense, Oman's number one export. We learned that if we were to purchase the best quality Frankincense is the white stuff -- the darker it gets the lower the quality. Frankincense looks like stones but is actually dried tree sap and ranges in color from white to grey and reddish purple.

 

As we entered the market there were locals with large piles of the stuff -- sorting it by color. The whitest form is also supposed to have medicinal properties and one very brave lady from our ship bit right into a chunk and chewed away --- before she walked around the corner and discretely removed it from her mouth. Our lungs, however, were infused with the smell and it sort of followed us throughout the rest of the day.

 

From the souk we went to the Frankincense Land (honest, that is the name) Museum which is a small museum that is very well done and it traces the history of Oman, details its maritime history, and contains several antique volumes of the Koran set out to display the calligraphy.

 

Our next stop was at Taqa Castle -- an ancient building with a labyrinth of rooms connected by narrow stone staircases and doorways designed for munchkins -- that has been set up as a museum and chronicles the old ways of life in this ancient center of the frankincense trade which dates back to about 400 BC to 400 AD.

 

Our last stop was at a UNESCO World Heritage site, Samhuram, This archeological site has a small, protected natural harbor, is set on a Creek and dates back 3000 years. We had a few moments to walk around some of the excavations which are only beginning to be unearthed, and look down upon the charming harbor where the Omanis have anchored a replica boat and tend a flock of camels at the shore. Very pretty -- wish we had more time.

 

In general we found this port to be very clean, and pretty. Our guide was a handsome young student who spoke English very well, we think, but due to the poor quality of the PA system on our bus we understood only about one of every six or seven words. It is clear that Oman, under the close control of the present Sultan, does well, though it is very conservative and it is unclear how much freedom the local people have. Every local we spoke with had only high praise for the Sultan.

 

From the Arabian Sea, along the coast of Oman

[arzz]

Cruising to Khasab - December 2, 2012

 

Today was another overly bright day on the Arabian Sea. The weather is holding and it was good today that the winds of last night that provided significant rocking for sleep had now died down.

 

At lunchtime today we ate at the Sky Grill which is outside on the very top deck where they grill hamburgers and hot dogs. It is usually quite crowded. But, down in the Galley Seabourn was having their Galley Market Lunch which is where they put on huge buffets that are set out in the Galley for passengers to admire and then fill their plates. To us it sounded like just too much food and in exchange we got to enjoy the quiet, half empty sky grill. Nice!

 

Other than that, not much to report. We chose to skip the champaign and caviar event held at 5:00 pm last evening and we also skipped tea today as they were having a fashion show of items from the on board boutique during tea time. Lots of good time available for reading and other pursuits in concert with the seas. I guess we are most unSeabourn-like in our tastes in that we constantly seek quiet alone time.

 

 

From the waters in the Arabian Sea

[arzz]

From the Gulf of Oman - December 3, 2012

 

Another long, lazy day. Our skies were overcast and somewhat cloudy with occasional showers -- yes showers!

 

The highlight of our day was trivia. We finished yesterday at the bottom of the heap. We made some progress today though we typically over thought many questions. The game ended with one bonus question. Each team got to choose their own category and in classical Jeopardy style was allowed to wager none, some or all of their points on the answer. Turns out we were one of only two teams who answered their question correctly (an answer suggested by DH at the eleventh hour) and we wagered all of our points, and we .... came in second. A fun time was had by all.

 

I started reading a new book which has captured my attention well and other than attending a lecture on Dubai -- today I read.

 

Today, I have to admit, I witnessed a cruise ship first.

 

The hotel manager showed up at trivia today. He stood a polite distance behind the players, next to one of the bar waitresses. At one point I saw him whisper to the waitress, and I saw her point very specifically in the general direction of our trivia team.

 

As the game ended, one member of our team, a woman who has become a good friend on this trip, was stopped by the Hotel Manager and he was in serious discussion with her when we left the lounge. Later I found out the story. It seems that her next door neighbors, two nights before the end of the cruise, complained to the Hotel Manager that our friend slams her door when she leaves her cabin (without careful control of the cabin doors -- they do slam closed - this is an issue that each passenger has been warned about) and it was disturbing them enough that they asked the Hotel Manager to intervene. This was the first she had heard of it. She apologized, asked why these people had not come to her sooner and let her know of the issue and promised to be careful from now on.

 

Then, later, in one of the lounges the couple who had complained yelled at her at length, in front of everyone, about her slamming the door!

 

Good Grief! The door police!

 

We have had a wonderful trip and there are truly many wonderful things about this ship, this last story is not one of them.

 

From folks who will never slam their door again

[arzz]

Khasab, Oman -- December 4, 2012

 

Oman is an interesting country. Unlike many of the nations on the Arabian Penninsula it has many waterways that go deep into the country and has irrigated its fields forever. Between the desert mountains and gravel earth there is green. The current Sultan who took over in 1970 has made sure that much of the oil money that the country has received is shared with the people of Oman and benefits are received as long as you work -- there is zero unemployment and there are only very limited reasons that would qualify one for disability. As a result the country is clean and modern. There are, however, very conservative rules and laws here.

 

This morning we arrived in the harbor at Khasab which is on the tip of the Arabian penninsula. If taking a cursory glance on the map one would expect Khasab to be in the United Arab Emirates as this tip of the penninsula is not contiguous with the rest of the country of Oman. The harbor is a large crescent shape carved into the mountains.

 

We did not take a tour here today -- rather we took the shuttle into town, walked through the market place where you see no women at all, photographed the mosque which is set beautifully in front of the mountains, and stopped for a cup of local tea or coffee. We got to watch the local chef making breads while we enjoyed our break. Fascinating. We returned to the ship for lunch.

 

From the veranda cafe at the stern of the ship -- that was the real show. We had a clear view of the harbor. The water's edge is set on a large, empty, flat, gravel plain. Unlike most industrial harbors that are filled with containers and large derricks to move them -- and/or large piles of ore or stone waiting to be shipped abroad -- this harbor is blank -- except for a series of small motor boats that back up to a pier loaded with plastic covered bundles which we have been told contain things like U.S. cigarettes waiting to be smuggled across the 40 miles gap between the Omani peninsula and Iran. In exchange the boats return to Oman full of goats and sheep.

 

That is what the lunch time entertainment was all about. The boats were coming into port full of live stock who would be herded off to a waiting area and eventually picked up in a flat bed truck and taken away -- we understand many of them end up in Dubai. So as we ate lunch we watched these columns of sheep and goats running off the dock and herded into groups -- and there were several groups, and then we watched them lifted into the trucks and taken away.

 

By 4:00 all of the livestock were gone and a herd of little open speed boats, looking like gnats skipping across the water, heavily loaded with goods, took off through the harbor entrance on their way to ... and the harbor was then empty. No containers, no derricks, no piles of ore or other trappings of an industrial harbor. The business must be very good.

 

Late this afternoon I had to deal with packing as tomorrow morning we arrive in Dubai.

 

And ... the continuing story of the slamming doors. This morning when I ran into my friend she said that the issue had not stopped yesterday. Starting at 11:30 last night her neighbors slammed their door every fifteen minutes and then called her on the phone and hung up at 3:15 am. When they passed her in the hall today they were giggling. We are stunned at this child-like behavior from adults.

 

From the tip of Oman, and not far from Dubai

[ajpeter]

Dear Arzz,

What wonderful tales of your fabulous journey. For me by far the best stories I have red on this board. Thank you a thousand times for taking us along with you.

AJPeter

[arzz]

Dubai -- Midnight at the Oasis -- Oh WOW! -- December 5-7, 2012

 

I include this post cruise segment in order to share with you the remarkable desert excursion that we enjoyed here. The company that does this long afternoon evening adventure that we enjoyed also does shorter daytime trips that could be booked if Dubai is just a one day cruise port.

 

Well, we are here in Dubai -- the Las Vegas with the Arabian flavor. Unlike Vegas in the US -- there is drinking here only in hotel restaurants and you can get arrested for public displays of affection or even being publically intoxicated.

 

Sad to leave the ship, but this too is an adventure. My first discovery was that we have free and fast wi-fi so I can send and receive emails like at home. Since we had gotten into Omani waters the wifi on board went from bad to awful and I could not download email properly at all -- Yesterday (Tuesday) I downloaded a stream of emails from Sunday! I can now send and receive email in real time!

 

I also found out the issue with g-mail. It seems accessing gmail from the ship for both DH and I made gmail think that someone else was trying to log on to our accounts and they warned us of the incursion! They protected us from ourselves.

 

As soon as we settled our stuff into the room we went out adventuring. First it was lunch -- DH ordered the all day Arabian breakfast which was full of wonderful tasting exotic delicacies. I ordered an omelet We shared.

 

Then it was on to the gold souk. A marketplace full of stores that sell gold jewelry. A lot of Indian Jewelry (as in designs from India) and a lot of lacy necklaces and bracelets that are so filigreed and delicate they look like they could be fabric. Since we know squat about gold it was just to look. From there we wandered into the tourist souk where they sell Arab gee-gaws, pashminas, and much like Shanghai "designer" watches and hand bags. Walking further we ended up in the older section of town where the locals shop for the things that they need like clothing, shoes, electronics. But unlike the shopping at our last port at Khasab, Oman we were not able to purchase chain saws or plumbing equipment at the souk today.

 

This evening we took advantage of one of the many restaurants near the hotel and had ourselves an authentic Emerati meal. Many wonderful flavors that tasted like the spice markets in Egypt, Jerusalem, Oman and Istanbul smell. Each food different and each food incredibly fragrant. They were served up with the local flatbread which is crisp on the outside and soft in the middle. The meal ended with dates and Arabic coffee and tea. One of the lecturer's from the ship had told us to try Arabic coffee which is actually a deep fragrant green and not strong like Turkish coffee. We had tried ordering coffee in Oman but got the Turkish variety instead of the local so we were glad that we finally got it right tonight.

 

OK, Dubai is a great amusement park and an endless mall but we wanted to see more -- so we signed up for a Desert Safari - a seven hour excursion - and all I can say is that our experience topped anything that we anticipated.

 

The common desert safari in Dubai begins on a Dune Buggy and thrill ride in the desert. We were not interested in that. Our hotel concierge suggested an experience being offered by a new company that emphasizes local culture and tradition and we had a dynamite experience.

 

DF, a friend we met on the ship, joined us at our hotel for this excursion. We were picked up in a Mercedes mini-van and driven to a spot about an hour out of town, about half way between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

 

Along the way we were treated to the sight of a Camel Race as we passed the race track. The racing camels have a box instead of a jockey mounted on their backs. That is what they call a "robo jockey" which is controlled by someone in a car who follows the camel around the track (I believe on the other side of a fence) and signals the robot when he feels it is necessary to use the "robo whip" to get the animal to speed up.

 

We also passed some agricultural fields where long white robes with white turbans suspended above rippled in the wind -- scarecrows! And of course, they were dressed in local costume.

 

We were taken to a Conservation Reserve owned by the Sheik. It is in an otherwise empty area in the desert. At this point we transferred from our minivan to a Land Rover (circa 1940's or 1950's) where the three of us sat facing each other on narrow (but padded) bench seats in the back. We strapped in and held on as our driver took us into the Reserve. It was totally quiet. All we could see was soft, red sand.

 

Before we started our guide tied Arabic scarves on our heads to protect us from the sun. There was no road, only a couple of tracks in the sand for the driver to follow.

 

We were fortunate today as it had rained heavily recently and the sand was still a bit damp so that it did not blow in our faces -- today it was in the 70's with a nice breeze.

 

As we drove through the reserve we stopped to observe and photograph groups of orecks (I know I spelled that like the vacuum cleaner but I am so off on the spelling that I cannot find it in the dictionary) and gazelles.

 

After a while we reached a spot in the desert where we stopped and there were two large silk Oriental Carpets set out in the sand with a low makeshift couch set up from couch cushions and large pillows. There was also a hooded falcon and his trainer. We were joined here by the only other group doing this tour today -- two Saudi Arabian gentlemen dressed in their long white robes and headcloths and one woman dressed in full, black burka.

 

We were then treated to a demonstration of falconry which has a long proud tradition in Arabic culture. We found out that the hood worn by the falcon is also called a burka. At the end of the demonstration after the bird captured its prey (quite impressive) and ate his meaty treat reward we were allowed to put on the protective sleeve and let the bird rest on our arm.

 

While the demonstration was going on the sun was setting over the desert so that we were also treated to the desert sunset.

 

When the demonstration was over we were slightly delayed in leaving the site as the Saudi men (who had chosen to pay extra to ride in a luxury closed 4x4 vehicle) could not take their eyes off of the classic "antique" vehicle that we were riding in . The collection of these vehicles that are being used to operate this tour are on loan from the Sheik. And we watched while the two Saudi men took turns sitting in and pretending to drive the Land Rover, even turning on the motor and turning on the lights so that they could have their pictures taken.

 

Back in the vehicle, continuing on through the park it slowly got dark. By the time we arrived at our oasis the sun was entirely gone. The six of us were the only guests this evening though this operation is set up to handle 40. Apparently it is a brand new company. Though the Saudi's ate separately from us, across the oasis shelter, we all gathered together after the meal and we got to talk. It is clear that they are trying, in this experience, to capture some of the old desert ways that were so prevalent in the '40's and '50's before oil money arrived and changed their world overnight. Of course, our experience was sort of like watching "Happy Days" as it glorified the good things and forgot the hardships.

 

As we walked into the Oasis we were greeted with rosewater poured on our hands to wash them -- and, of course, clean towels to dry.

 

The next part of the greeting was Arabic Coffees and dates. We learned how to signal in the Arabic way that we do not want a refill of coffee.

 

While we waited for the meal preparations to finish we were led outside and offered a brief camel ride. The camels were lined up and tied together, with brightly colored crocheted muzzles on to protect us from spitting and bites. DF still, however, got bonked by the head of DH's camel as she mounted hers.

 

After the camel rides we went to wash up and discovered a rustic stone building behind the oasis with modern plumbing and running water that drained into carved wooden sinks, scented soaps and fresh terrycloth hand towels. Yes, a sanitized version of the old ways.

 

Returning to the main compound we were shown a demonstration on how the local bread was made as well as the soups -- our first course. And we were offered a traditional beverage of fruit juices - yummy. We were then instructed to take the paper thin crisp bread and dip it into the delicious lentil soup.

 

Between courses the women were offered the chance to have our hands painted with henna tatoos. I chickened out but both DF and the Saudi woman took advantage of the opportunity. The artist who painted the henna was hidden behind a burka that did not even show her eyes and her hands were also hidden from view by black gloves - she did a remarkable job. The material applied is thick, like chocolate and required a full thirty minutes to dry so that DF spent the time during our next course, the appetizers, holding her left hand up. The Saudi woman accidentally smooshed some of her henna and had to have a touch up.

 

The Saudi woman showed only her eyes above her veils and I would love to know how she did her very smokey black eye make up -- she looked gorgeous. Later, she did have to take her veil down to eat and left it down during our after dinner time. I always wondered how nutrition was accomplished under a burka.

 

For appetizers we had two types of "samboosas" -- a fried dumpling very much like Indian Samosas -- one vegetable, one beef. We also had hummus, and a second similar spread made with "oozee" (which is apparently the word for beef -- I do not know how to spell it), tabouleh, tomato and onion salad, and a green salad. In addition to the crisp bread we now also had triangles of a stretchy, soft pita like loaf in our bread basket. Even though I only sampled I was already full at the end of this course. The soup was just too good -- as well as the coffee and dates.

 

After a break between courses there was a demonstration of traditional cooking methods which were used (but in a modern, sanitary way) to cook our meal which consisted of a slow roasted lamb that was tender and delicious, two types of rice pilaf, chicken and more vegetables. DF is a vegetarian and her needs were totally accommodated.

 

To the aftermeal! We were led over to an area where low couches had been set up on more silk carpets and offered shisha pipes (water pipes or hookahs) along with our first dessert -- a huge bowl full of these crispy donut hole things that are soaked in date honey. We had them with our dinner last night also but these were so much better. More Arabian coffee was served as we sat and those who chose bubbled away at their shisha pipes. We spoke some with the Saudi men. The woman did not speak English.

 

Then the dancer appeared -- wearing a billowing royal blue robe decorated with silver embroidery -- she was a young woman with shiny long black hair who danced most provocatively. I cannot even imagine how she got some of her body parts to do what they did so apparently under those robes. It was a treat -- and she was joined while dancing her last song by the two Saudi men -- but we were not allowed to photograph that.

 

We wonder who those men really were.

 

After our second dessert, bowls of fresh fruit salad, it was time to go back to the hotel.

 

Our experience was so private and personal that it really wowed us. We are not sure what we would have thought of it if they had been at capacity, with forty people.