Enjoy the "Treasures of the World" with Bill & Mary Ann on the 2014 World Cruise

[JamesEM]

Thanks WJBWJB for the updates, looking forward to the photos of Sri Lanka.

[WCB]

Report # 77 Sailing Towards Victoria, Seychelles March 16, 2014 Sunday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees

 

Things have heated up as we head in a southwesterly direction now. The "hot" topic of the day was the Safety of Life at Sea drill that was required by international regulations. To be more specific, an anti-pirate drill was held at 9:30am on the lower promenade deck. Captain Jonathon had come on the speakers to announce this drill, and advised us to follow yesterday's pointers as to what to do in the event of a real attack. That meant everyone had to find a place away from windows and the outside decks. That included being in our rooms too, as most of us have windows. We had already been into our morning walk when the alarm was sounded. So we did get away with going inside the deck doors, and watching some of the fire hose procedures during the drill. Other passengers had joined us, and even though we were out of the way, we needed to be further inside the ship. We did have some work to do in our room, so we headed down the stairs. We found both of our room stewards sitting on the floor in the hallway. Since they had so much work to do, they really did not like this drill at all. And since the drill was close to being over, they did not object to us entering our room.

 

Our window garden was in much need of a manicure, with some dead leaves, and dry pots. It took over an hour to soak the plants and give them a trim. It was also a good time to catch up on yesterday's report. We finished both jobs by noontime.

 

Time to go to the pool. It had to be the hottest day we have experienced so far on this entire cruise. In the short time it took to set up our lounges, we had to go in the water to cool off. Only the serious sunbathers were out today. Other folks wishing to stay cool, may have gone to Barbara's talk about things to do and see while in the Seychelles. And the culinary show was run by David, who prepared a spicy pork and orange chopped salad. It contained hot wasabi and soy saice flavored almonds. He demonstrated how to cook an almond-crusted tilapia fish, fried first, then finished in a hot oven. Later on in the afternoon, guest speaker Brian Stoddart spoke about power and relations in the Indian Ocean. We were having more fun trying to figure out if we could fry that egg on the back decking today. We just have to figure out how to liberate an egg from the kitchen.......

 

We left by 3pm, and headed to our room to watch the DVD we finally got at the front desk, Hunger Games. We had been given an introductory snippet of the movie by Marianne and Bill, who had highly recommended it. And we have to say that it was a good film, giving us a lot to think about. No doubt about it, the movie was violent. But we do not recall hearing any annoying cursing, or nudity. That seems to be the only way films get attention these days.

 

Since we missed our morning walk, we went out after the movie to get our miles in. Many guests were popping outside to take photos of the razor wire. Two security guards were posted, one on each side of the ship now. This is only a guess, but we suspect their watch is on a 4 hour shift, around the clock. Nice to know we are being so carefully watched, even while we sleep.

 

There was a "surprise" dinner in the Pinnacle Grill tonight. It was advertised as a one time only event that may leave you speechless. We are wondering how many of you would pay $79. per person for unknown cuisine? Or would the variety of wines be the only draw for this venue? Judging by the fact there was an announcement for more people to book a reservation for tonight, we doubt they had very many takers.

 

At dinnertime, we asked about the show last night after dinner. A comedian by the name of Jeff Bradley took the stage. We feel that his attempt at comedy, stunts, and illusion may have been lost on this critical crowd. By dessert time, we were joined by Maureen, our crafts expert. She was proud to show us her new necklace, given to her by some of her students in her afternoon class. It was made from, of all things, elephant dung. Yes, real elephant poop. She explained that the dung is dried and paper can be made from the droppings. She will be teaching jewelry making, using some of this same "poop" paper to create these necklaces. You just cannot make these things up.

 

While having her coffee with us, Maureen said she had come from this evening's show featuring a group called Journey South, two brothers from the UK, one a singer, the other a guitarist. She said they were on The X Factor, a UK hit series. In her opinion, she claimed they were pretty good, loud, but good.

 

Sort of got presents this evening. Two cards containing five St. Patrick's Day party buttons were laying on our bed. Silly, but good clean fun for those who like the "green" day. The better present was turning the clocks back 1/2 hour.

 

Bet tomorrow will be another hot day.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 78 Sailing Towards Victoria, Seychelles March 17, 2014 Monday Partly cloudy, 82 degrees

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all! What a day to cross the Equator once again. We would ave expected it to be even hotter today, but to our delight, there was more of a breeze blowing across the decks. Anything is better than almost nothing. We even spotted some dolphins jumping in the distance as the Amsterdam sailed in between the coral atolls of the Maldives. Too far for us to see any of the islands, we hope that one day they will be on the world cruise itinerary once again. Never been there.

 

During his talk today, the Captain mentioned that he had been getting many questions about the possibility of the missing airplane, and the ongoing search for it. Some inquiring minds wanted to know if he had been recruited in the search for any sign of wreckage. His answer was, no, but as always, the crew are on the lookout for anything unusual anyway. It is not out of the question that we could be sailing in a suspect area, and could be of some help. At this point, nobody knows.

 

Our two guest speakers gave talks on Indian cricket, and women pirates, a much more exciting subject. The rest of the daily activities were geared towards the special "green" holiday, especially the activities this evening. Beginning at 6:15pm, there was a show for the late seating guests in the Queens Lounge. An Irish comedian by the name of Paul Brogan took the stage and entertained the folks with lively jokes, we heard. The same show was repeated at 8pm for the early birds. For a change, Debbie Bacon, our Piano Bar entertainer, played and sang Irish tunes at 9:30pm in the Queens Lounge.

 

Competing with all that was the 9pm Irish Craic, a four cocktail special for the price of $19.95 in the Crows Nest. Many of us had asked the cruise director why these events are starting during our dinner time. He said that it brought in at least 25% more folks. Well, in oreder to make things more fair for the second group, they re-ran the party at 10:30pm, but in the Queens Lounge, with hopes of the party ending in the Crows Nest afterwards. Not sure how many folks will stay up for that party. Surely not us. Maybe, Barb. She loves parties.

 

We had two more presents this evening. They were two boxes of 100% cotton, tree-free crane-paper cards with envelopes. These will be most useful here as well as at home, since all of the cards are blanks to be used for any occassion. And the other surprise, was one more hour back on the clocks.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 79 Sailing Towards Victoria, Seychelles March 18, 2014 Tuesday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees, hot but nice breeze

 

It was a good thing that we had a lazy day at sea. With putting the clocks back three hours in the last seven days, all of us have noticed how much it has set off our body time clocks. It is not unusual to hear someone say they have been awake at 4am, tired all day, and falling asleep before dinnertime. When you think about it, our dinnertime at 8pm was in reality 11pm one week ago. No wonder we're dragging...... The bad thing about this is that the cold bug has begun to make its rounds again, spreading among the crew and passengers. Perhaps the cold is better than getting the NORO virus, which thankfully has not hit us on this trip, as far as we know.

 

There was a nice breeze blowing today, and made for a much more comfortable walk on the lower deck today. Bet the security guards are appreciating this, since they have been on 24 hour watch since we left Sri Lanka. Standing at the railing in the hot sun can be torture, we are sure. The only upside is that they can watch for the many sightings of dolphins and perhaps some tuna. We did see a few pods of them jumping in the water, but not really close. The only other sealife we spotted were flying fish and one bird, a masked booby. Funny, just one.

 

This morning the Captain announced that they had seen something suspicious bobbing in the water. Checking it out, they found it was a stray buoy wound with seaweed. They are not ruling out anything that they see floating out here, since you never know if it might have come from a plane wreckage.

 

The day's activities continued as usual with talks from Melvin all about whales, and Brian, speaking about Indian civil services. Another popular activity was a cooking demo of chilled melon soup and curried shrimp, followed by chocolate souffle. These are some items from the Le Cirue menu in the Pinnacle Grill.

 

After finishing our books at the aft pool, we headed down to watch a movie and eat lunch. Going to the Lido sandwich bar, we ordered one roast beef sandwich and one tuna sandwich with chips to go. It is more fun to eat in our room. Even though we saw the movie, Mud, we watched it again because it was a good story. We did want to watch Barbara H's talk on the Seychelles, but it runs every three hours, alternating with the two speaker's lectures. We seldom hit the time right. Perhaps her talks should be on a separate channel.

 

We have been getting in a second walk around the lower deck at 5pm. Several different groups of folks have begun to get together daily on sea days to drink wine or beer there at that time. It's nice, because the sun has been setting early and the sunsets are becoming better and better every day. Our rountine can find us checking out the dinner entrees in the Lido, then going up to deck nine to watch the sun go down behind the clouds. There are a handful of us up there also every night.

 

We had company for dinner. Our host, Tom M. and Maureen, our crafts teacher joined us. Barb was missing, because as a President's Club member, she and the 19 other members, had been invited to a special Italian dinner in the Canaletto, which was closed to everyone else this evening. The big draw to this meal was the promise of wines, that would compliment each course. We had hoped she would join our table by dessert time, since they started at 6:30pm, but we never did see her. With all that wine, we are certain the group lingered far beyond the normal dinnertime. We did have a special order dessert........slices of Mississippi mud pie. She'll be sorry.....

 

There was an early show at 7:30pm with the Irish comedian Paul Brogan. Keith and Margaret has attended and said he was just as good tonight as he was last night. The regular show after dinner was a performance by the British group, Journey South.

 

We will be arriving to the Seychelles tomorrow, but not until 3pm. Overnighting in port, we will have the following day to see the town.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[shrimp56]

Thank you so much for taking us along on your journey. I'm getting to "see" places I'll never visit probably.

 

Between you, Captain Jonathan and Johnny_B I have having a delightful armchair voyage:)

[WCB]

Report # 80 Victoria, Seychelles March 19, 2014 Wednesday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees, humid

 

Today was a half and half one. One part sea day, and the other part, port day. Both parts were primarily hampered with gray, overcast skies, threatening rain. In fact, Captain Jonathon had predicted some rain on our way here, but it seems to have fallen heavily all night in the Seychelles instead.

 

The sea day portion gave us our two speakers with continuing talks about the rise of India's international business, and ocean immigrants, liners, and cruise ships. As long as the game of Trivia happens, then all is not lost. We have heard that the competition is fierce during that 11:45am game time. Not all participants are enamored with the new cruise director's handling of the questions and answers. Of course, our former CD was put on the chopping block at times too. This is a tough crowd for sure. And they call that fun??

 

We took advantage of the overcast, but warm weather to spend a little time at the aft pool. Captain Jonathon announced that we would be arriving to the port of Victoria an hour or so earlier than planned. The aft deck was as good a place as any to watch most of the sail into the harbor. The final docking procedure was watched on the bow of the ship, as the Amsterdam turned her port side to the dock. This is the first time in a long while that we have been dockside. Now maybe, they will hose our windows tomorrow, since they are so salt-crusted, we can barely see out of them.

 

The ship was cleared by 3pm, although there were no shore excursions sold for the late afternoon or evening. Most people wanted to stroll around the downtown area of Victoria. That is, until they realized how terribly warm and humid it was. We continued on, walking towards town, even though we could not get a map of the area at the front desk. The map in our room booklet was not very helpful, since we have no idea where we were docked on that map. Every time we have been here, we took tours, and really did not pay attention to the distance from town to the ship. We do know that there will be a shuttle running tomorrow, but we felt we could walk it tonight.

 

Once we saw the roundabouts, we knew we were close, but continued walking on the main road until we came upon a table of fresh fish being sold on a roadside table. Judging from the smell, they may not have been that fresh. When the sidewalk ran out, then we knew we had gone too far. Back-tracking, we soon found our way to the heart of town. It was a beehive of activity and traffic, since by now it was well after 5pm, and the locals were heading home. We were in serious need of finding something cold to drink, so we went in search of a restaurant.

 

We found the perfect one with an upstairs balcony facing the famous silver clocktower in town. The name was Rendezvous. The local beers were about 65 rupee, or $5.25 US each (approx. 12 rupee to the $1.). Since we were so thirsty, we had to have two each, like for medicinal purposes. This looked like a good place to have pizza perhaps tomorrow. We are not really into trying the Creole cuisine, but certainly are game for Seychelle's pizza.

 

All too soon, the sun went down, and it was time to find our way back to the ship. We were much closer than we realized, when we recognized the walking path we had taken while on a tour here last year. Passing the National Museum of History, we came across one of our nicest security guards, who asked us to take his photo by the museum. It was nice to see that he had been to the Hindu Temple, as he is from India. Like Shiv, most all the Indian crew make it a point to visit a temple every chance they get while in foreign ports.

 

It was so nice to get back to the air-conditioning of the ship. During dinner tonight, all of us commented on the oppressive humid conditions this afternoon. Very little breeze also. Even the folks that live in the sticky states like Florida agreed that this heat could be a killer. It is a reminder that we need to take water with us. Although no one at our table, including Maureen, went to the Creole BBQ held in the Lido pool area from 5:30 to 8pm. Many guests did attend, so there were few diners in the dining room. We ordered fish and chips, and were happy to see they were served in the metal tower with food service newspaper. The dessert of upside down pineapple cake with vanilla ice cream just made our day. Perhaps this treat has been served for lunch, but it is the first we have seen it on the dnner menu. Funny how you can sail for 74 days, and not had this delicious dessert yet. Sweet.

 

The entertainment this evening was a recent movie in the Queens Lounge by the name of "12 Years a Slave". We chose to watch a Bond movie in our room, which we do not remember seeing before. And it is a good thing that the ship is so insulated, because the noise of the surrounding fishing vessels was extremely loud as their many huge generators run round the clock. We suspect they are tuna ships, with a processing plant very close by. The oily smell of the cooked fish hovered very near our ship all afternoon.

 

Tomorrow we are in port until 5pm or so, and plan to explore on our own for a change. No tour.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 81 Victoria, Seychelles March 20, 2014 Thursday Day Two Chance of rain, 86 degrees

 

Now that is funny......that is the first time we happened to notice that rain was in the forecast for today. When we got up this morning, the skies were partly cloudy as the newsletter says every day. In fact, a breeze was blowing, and it looked like the sun was coming out, promising blue skies. Because of that, we never even considered taking the umbrellas with us. However, we do notice that the local ladies use an umbrella for shade, which is smart.

 

If we planned our day right, we could eat breakfast, then spend the rest of the day at the Botanical Gardens and exploring downtown. Oh yeah, and going out to lunch, of course. There was a shuttle running today, complimentary from the port authority, that took the guests to the center of town. Since we would be heading in the opposite direction, we walked to the gardens instead. First, we checked to see if more maps had been provided by the townsfolk, and indeed they were. Some travel agencies must have included brochures from their businesses also. They were all full of most useful information about the Seychelles.

 

Here are some of the facts we learned. The Seychelles are comprised of 115 granite and coral islands .Some are sanctuaries for rarest species of flora and fauna found on earth. The most notorious of these rare plants is the coco de mer, the unique palm tree that has the largest set of coconuts that exist. The Latin name for this indigenous palm is Lodoicea maldivica, but it is the shape of the coconuts that have been equated with magical qualities as well as a humourous side for what they resemble. There is one specimen planted in the Botanical Gardens, planted by the Duke of Edinurgh when the park was created in the early 1900's. It has had as many as 70 nuts growing on it at one time. They are so large and heavy, it is not recommended to stand under those palm trees.

 

The islands were settled in the 18th century by the French. Eventually, the British took control, and held it until recently in 1976, when they gained their independence from England. One leftover symbol of British occupation is the silver clocktower in the center of town here in Victoria, on the island of Mahe. Named Little Ben, it was erected to celebrate the Seychelles as a British colony in 1903. It is a replica of London's Vauxhall clock tower. One interesting fact about this city is that it is one of the tiniest capitals in the world.

 

The Seychelles are loaded with beaches for swimming, snorkeling, and diving. Other activities include hiking, golf, and fishing. What do they catch here? Try marlin, sailfish, green jobfish, and shipjack tuna to mention a few. Speaking of fish leads us to the cuisine offered here. It is Creole, due to the fact that the food is a combination of French, African, Chinese, and Indian. This island is a melting pot of these different cultures, because many of the labor force was brought here to man the very fertile plantations. Grown here even today are cotton, tea, sugar, vanilla, and spices. Back in the old days, the spices brought the biggest wealth to the islands, since there was a huge demand for them worldwide. Today, we are certain it is the 65 beaches on Mahe that bring the vacationeers to stay in the numerous hotels, resorts, and villas.The weather has got to be a factor, since it is always warm here. December through March happens to be the hot and humid time with windless days and temps in the high 90's. The rest of the year, it is cooler with temps in the high 70's.

 

Back at the Botanical Gardens, we paid around $10 for the entrance fee per person. This garden takes you straight uphill, not an easy place to stroll. But better to do it at our own pace, instead of with a group, like we have done at least three times over the years. No, today we were going to take our sweet time exploring every corner of this special garden which was created back in 1901 There are six endemic palm trees, including the famous coco de mer. We never knew there were over 27 types of exotic palms in this area, but they are here to be seen. Ten trees are also endemic, but there are over 56 exotic trees planted in this garden park. Some of the unusual varieties included the ylang ylang, known for perfume use, kapok or cotton trees, and even durian, the stinky fruit tree.

 

It is the giant tortoises that draw many tourists to this venue. They are from the island Aldabra, the world's largest raised coral atoll. Housed in a pen of their own, about a dozen of them live here. A funny thing happened when we entered the gates to the gardens. While studying the garden map, we kept hearing a peculiar noise, like a cow bellowing. But who would have cows in their yard? Following the noise, we discovered it was coming from the tortoise pit enclosure. And guess what they were doing? Yes, spring was in the air, and the males were "misbehaving" with the females. The bellowing was coming from the large male tortoises, not cows. These creatures weigh up to 300 kilograms, over 600 pounds. The term "misbehaving" came from the folks at the nearby Pentecostal Church, where they hear this behavior every year during their Sunday services. Bet that draws a chuckle from everyone. It sure did from us, and the other tourists here today. By 10am, the noise ceased, never to be heard again on this visit. We suspect that it got too hot for them, in more ways than one.

 

Many birds take shelter in this wooded park. Most of them were doves, pigeons, and a set of three geese. The geese were penned with a nice pond for their use. When one tourist fellow went too close to the fencing, one goose grabbed his shoe and honked loudly. We have raised geese like these, and found that this time of year, they can be most aggressive. You do not turn your back on them, because they'll grab anything they can and cause injury. Another creature that resides in this park are fruit bats. But instead of hanging upside down in the trees, they were actively eating fruit. The paradise flycatcher and magpie robins are hidden in the trees to be heard, but not seen.

 

It was well after noontime by the time we left the gardens. Since all aboard time was 4:30pm, we thought it best to go to lunch first, then tour the town. We went back to Le Rendez Vous, and sipped Eku beers, another local brew, and enjoyed a margherita pizza. The pizza was excellent with lots of melted cheese on top. Not quite as good as Sydney's, but a close second.

 

Then we were off to the Sir Selwyn Clarke Victoria Market, dating back to 1840. It is an open-air complex, not large by any means, but full of fishermen and farmers selling their catch, fruit, veggies, and spices. We found a bag of a dozen limes and were able to buy them for a mere $2. They give our sodas an extra zip, and the vitamin C can't hurt either. Along the way, we passed the Hindu Temple, St. Paul's Cathedral, and the Immaculate Conception Cathedral, all built in the 1800's.

 

We figured that we could catch the shuttle back to the ship, but we could not remember exactly where they said the pickup point was. It was somewhere on Independence Street , but by the time we walked to the end of it, we noticed their stop was at the opposite end and across the street. Oh well, we were halfway back to the ship, so we just took our time walking. This time we followed the path the locals took yesterday.....along the harborfront and through the kiddie park. It was in the shade most of the way.

 

Still looking for a new Seychelles t-shirt, we sifted through the stands near the ship. All of the best sizes were gone, and so were the best designs and colors. Oh well, maybe next time. It was heavenly boarding the ship and getting that first blast of air-conditioning.

 

Another complimentary wine, beer, and soda party was held in the Lido pool area during the sailaway party. Chef Daniel had prepared 6 different types of gourmet pizza, but all we could smell was fish. Whether or not fish was in or on the pizza, we did not stick around to find out. In our opinion, if you put everything including the kitchen sink on pizza, you ruin it. It sure brought back memories of when we were on a Maasdam trip years ago, and the pizza had salmon hidden under the cheese. No thanks. Since we had already eaten pizza for lunch, we grabbed a soda, and heading to the aft deck to watch the sailaway out of the harbor.

 

We were joined by tablemate Marianne, who had gotten back this morning from their overland to India. Unfortunately Bill was not feeling well, and was laying low for the afternoon. It was nice to hear all about their trip, which had gone well for the most part. In her description, some of the finer details, like seats on the plane, should have been better planned. They got the leftovers, even though HAL had plenty of time to book in advance. Not one of the couples had seats together.....they were spread out in middle seats instead. We talked until the sun was going down, comparing notes with her with the time we did the overland in 2007. Sounded like not much had changed since then. And as it turned out, neither Marianne or Bill made it to dinner. One of the downers of this particular overland, was that the night of day five had no hotel stay. They ended up flying all night, from New Delhi via Dubai to the Seychelles. Not the best way to end an epic journey.

 

Comparing notes with each other at dinner, some of us had stayed in town, and Barb had gone to a beach resort for the day. We all agreed that it was hot and oppressive....a nice place to visit for a day or two, but that's all. We have been asked if this is one of the most beautiful places on earth, as they advertise? Perhaps some of the remote islands could qualify, but not Victoria on the island of Mahe. Yes, there are resorts, but too many of them. In our humble opinion, if you want paradise, we still say go to French Polynesia in the South Pacific. Specifically Moorea and Bora Bora.

 

The entertainer was a fellow by the name of Barry Hilton, a South African comedian. Only a few of our tablemates went, since we were all done for the night. We always tell Keith and Margaret to save seats for the three of us, knowing that it will never or seldom happen.

 

It caught us by surprise, but when we went for our evening walk outside, we found that it was raining. And it felt ever so good. Nice way to finish a day in the Southern Indian Ocean.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 82 Sailing Towards Port Louis, Mauritius March 21, 2014 Friday Partly cloudy, 82 degrees

 

Today and tomorrow will be lazy days at sea, or so we hope. After the fun-in-the-sun port of Victoria, Seychelles, we need these resting up days. On a side note, Maureen, our crafts buddy, mentioned that the folks in Victoria told her that few ships stop in the Seychelles these days, due to the pirate activity reported there over the last few years. News like that hangs around for a long time after the fact.

 

The hardest job we had today was filling out the Mauritius Immigration embarkation and departure cards. There will be a mandatory face-to-face passport inspection with the officials the day we dock in Port Louis. It has been nine years since we last visited this island, and we sure do not remember doing this. We did have a nice surprise to find that our number to be called that morning to the checkpoint was the letter "S". Normally, that is reserved for President Club members, and deck seven folks. Recently, the five star Mariners have been included in this "special" group. This means that we can go to the inspection anytime between 8am and 9:30am. Since we will not be on a tour, it really does not matter a whole lot to us. But we do like being included with the priviledged group. Tell you a secret......we have always gone when we wished, and nothing has ever been questioned. It's basically crowd control, and as long as everyone does not go first, it does not matter. What matters is that everyone has to attend, or no one will be allowed off of the ship.

 

Barbara H. gave a talk on the upcoming ports of Mauritius and Reunion. Most everything will be closed early or not opened at all in Mauritius, because we happened to be stopping there on a Sunday. Equally bad timing is the port of Reunion, where we will visit on a Monday. Barbara said Mondays are almost like Sundays, so much will be closed. We doubt we will have trouble finding a restaurant opened and some of the marketplaces. Sometimes these less than perfect stops cannot be avoided, since there are few options out in the middle of the Southern Indian Ocean.

 

A new guest speaker has joined the ship by the name of Dr. John Palmisano. A marine biologist, he gave a lecture on the major groups of marine plants and animals. Something tells us that we are going to like this speaker. Brian Stoddart is still onboard with a talk about the African Continent.....150 years of global development. Now that we are heading in that direction, we need to learn as much as we can about Africa. In fact, our safari in South Africa is coming up a week from today. Where has the time gone?

 

We spent some time at the pool, with a quick swim. But we had so much work to do with photos for the last two days, we headed back to the room for a simple snack and movie or news watching. Hoping for some news on the lost plane, we were frustrated to find that the TV reception was cutting in and out. Around 6pm, we took a walk to deck nine to watch the sun go down. As we head due south, the sunsets are getting really nice. An added bonus to the sun setting, was seeing a large pod of tuna jumping wildly right near the bow of the ship. They had also been around the ship early this morning, right when one of us left the morning walk. That's always the way it goes.

 

Dinner was formal this evening.....a White Dinner, meaning everyone was to dress in something white. Too bad our tablemates Bill and Marianne were not there, since Bill has been feeling under the weather since coming back from India yesterday. Sometimes it is unavoidable to pick up a bug when going overland. The food can be too spicy, or the water, OK but different than what we are used to. He has to recover, because they are planning a trip out of Durban to Victoria Falls and Chobe. We did have company this evening. A pretty young lady from the jewelry store joined our group. She is here with a special collection from a New York jewelry store. You could not miss the fabulous necklace she was wearing. It was set with several tanzanite stones surrounded with numerous diamonds. As the evening went on, we casually asked her how much a piece like that would cost. She casually said about $65,000. Really? Then with a little help getting it off, she passed it around the table for all of us to see it closer. It was a big WOW, but where would you wear something like that when you went home? Only if you were attending the Academy Awards and had a bodyguard with you at all times. In addition to the necklace, she was wearing equally exquisite diamond earrings and a dazzling ring. She was unsure as to the price of the earrings, but added that we were welcome to come to her in the ship's store to check it out. Oh, that could be really dangerous. All in all, it was a lovely evening, even though the all white decorations gave us the feeling of being in a hospital ward. They needed more glitz.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[JamesEM]

Hopefully your visit to the Mascarene Islands will have a lot of photo opts even though most shops will be closed.

[WJBWJB]

Hi All ,

 

The blog is now updated through report 82 including all older reports.

 

Happy Reading!

 

http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com/

[WCB]

Report # 83 Sailing Towards Port Louis, Mauritius March 22, 2014 Saturday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees, possible rain

 

Another day at sea found the temperatures still high as well as the humidity when we took our early morning walk. Now that we are sailing south, the east side of the ship has been unbearably warm, especially on the promenade deck. Most all of the smart folks were sitting on the opposite side, and only a handful of people were walking. Truthfully, we did not last long, because there was a job waiting for us in our room. That was three days worth of photos to be dealt with.

 

We usually do not let things get behind, so three days was too long. We did not realize it was 12:30pm until the cruise director came on the speaker and announced that there was a pod of dolphins, 200 in all, jumping in front of the ship. Great timing for us, because we were able to whip out the good camera and get some shots from the window. These were the smaller of the dolphin family, but they sure did put on a good show as they lined up and jumped in a row.

 

In the meantime, two talks were held in the Queens Lounge. One was on the aid and development of Africa and the other on oceanography and biological interactions. Sounds like pretty deep science to us. Have you ever heard of speed wine tasting? Well according to Barb who has attended a few, you are served several types of wines in a matter of minutes for $5.00. Bet lots of guests find it necessary to have a nap after that activity.

 

Besides picking up our passports at the front desk, we had to buy some Euros for the stop in Reunion. They absolutely will not take US dollars we were told. Tomorrow's port of Mauritius should be fine for taking dollars, except not much may be opened. During the Captain's afternoon talk, he mentioned that we would be coming into a storm system that may bring rain tomorrow. We have been lucky so far with little rain to hamper our visits.

 

We did get some pooltime in, and a wonderful breeze popped up. Dark clouds were everywhere, but the navigation team kept the ship zigzagging to miss the rain. With the winds and seas getting higher and rougher, we know the weather will be changing soon. So we left the pool to have some lunch in our room and watch a silly movie.

 

By the time we decided to take a walk, the decks were closed because the crew was hosing them down. Going up to deck nine was not much better. It had rained heavily and the upper teak decks were about flooded. The winds almost blew us over. So much for that. It was also dark, having missed the sunset at 6pm. Good time to check the entrees in the Lido. We had already decided on the marinated steak salad and the Yankee pot roast with mashed potatoes.

 

Most all of us were back to the dinner table, except for Bill, who had gotten sick in India. Since he is running a fever and had to make a visit to the ship's doctor, he is quarantined now until 10am tomorrow. His wife, Marianne, did come to dinner, sharing all of her overland trip information with us all. They did have a great time, but unfortunately, several of them picked up a nasty bug on the way back. Perhaps it was a food borne illness, not NORO. Bill and Marianne did have a HAL tour planned for tomorrow, but if he still has a fever after 10am, he will not be allowed to go off of the ship. In that case, he will get his money back for the shore excursion. We sure hope he will be better soon.

 

Three nights ago there was an entertainer, a comedian, who may have bombed, according to Margaret and Keith. They reported that he was so bad, they actually walked out of the showlounge. It was his topic of humor that did not get laughs from this crowd. Last night there was a trumpet player, but no one mentioned his show tonight. Two young ladies from London's West End, by the name of Elite, took the stage to sing a wide variety of showtunes this evening. Maureen had gone to the early show, then joined us for dessert. She said that the girls were OK, but had piercingly loud voices that went right through her. Think we'll pass on this one.

 

Hope tomorrow's port of Mauritius is not a washout.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[erewhon]

Thank you for the updates.

[WCB]

Report # 84 Port Louis, mauritius March 23, 2014 Sunday Part One Partly cloudy, 85 degrees

 

Our port of call for today was Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius. But before we were allowed to go ashore, we had to attend a face-to-face inspection with the local officials. This process did not commence until 8:20am, instead of 8am. Sometimes local officials do not follow the ship's schedule. Some of ship's tours were to begin at 8:15am, so that was not happening on time. Local officials usually follow their own schedule, so they have to go with the flow. We decided to go to the check first, then go to breakfast in the dining room. The line was long, but went fairly quickly. One detail that many folks missed was the fact that we had to carry the passport receipt with us to get off of the ship. Every other time we got these, they went in our safe as proof that we gave back our passports to the front desk girls.

 

There was a welcome committee of four dancing ladies with a small group of musicians to greet us on the pier. Island maps were being handed out on the pier too, so before they ran out, we decided to leave the ship to get one. That's when we found out how many people did not have those passport receipts with them. An official was checking everyone, and without it, they were sent back to get it. Anyway, we went back, did some emailing, then left the ship around 10pm.

 

Since today was a Sunday, we knew that the local vibrant market would be closing early before noon. So we took advantage of the complimentary shuttle that dropped us off at the Cauden Waterfront. The ride only took 9 minutes, and the bus would run from 9am to 4pm. We could have walked, but this pier is isolated from the main roads with no sidewalks. And in this heat and humidity, why walk? Better to save our energy for exploring the town.

 

Mauritius has a history similar to that of the Seychelles. It's a fairly small island with a population of 1.3 million people of French, British, Indian, Chinese, and African descent. Originally settled by the Dutch, the French took over, followed by the Brits, who seized it. The French were the ones responsible for bring the slaves from Africa to man the sugar cane plantations. However, the British freed these slaves, but then imported indentured workers from India and China. Eventually the island got their independence in 1968. Port Louis has retained the feel of the colonial port, but also has a modern flair about it. The languages spoken here are French, English, and Creole. The MUR rupee is their tender, with 30 rupee to the $1.00 US, although US dollars are widely accepted. The climate here is tropical with the low temps in the 60's and the highs in the 90's. Humidity is a constant 80%, making it sticky. But it is the perfect conditions to grow sugar cane, their main export to Europe.

 

OK, on with our walk. The marketplace was first, so we headed across the length of the waterfront to the underground passageway to the old section of the city. It was like a beehive of activity as the locals were busy food shopping for the day. The first building we entered was the veggie, fruit, and spice market. The produce was fresh and clean as a whistle, despite the crowded conditions of the market. We were elbow to elbow with mostly sari-clad Indian ladies and Muslim men. Many of the vendors were Creole, except for those in the meat, fish, and poultry markets across the street. Once again, as old as these buildings were (1800's), they were clean and fly-free. Most of the meat products were already sold for the day, and what fish that were left, was still very fresh. We were told that among the favorite fish dishes, those containing oysters, shrimp, crayfish, and crabs are the first pick of the locals.

 

Souveniers being hawked in these markets were t-shirts, shells, coral jewelry, model ships, and the notorious dodo bird wood carvings. The dodo bird, once a resident of this island, has long been extinct, but has remained a symbol anyway. Many dodo-decorated handbags, and clothing items were being sold. Another popular thing to buy here is rum...the best one had a dodo bird on the label, of course. We did find one neat t-shirt for each of us, and one funny-looking wood carved dodo bird. Shortly after leaving the food markets, all the vendors were picking up their wares, and leaving for home. Good thing we came here early.

 

Back at the waterfront, we walked through every store in the complex, checking every menu at each restaurant for pizza and beer. One small shop caught our eye along the way...the Baobab T-Shirt Store. We have bought some of their t-shirts in other parts of the world, and they held up well. So another one found a home with us. Lunch was next, so we decided on a sure thing by going to Pizza Hut. We were sold on it when we asked if they had beer. Yes, they did serve it, so we had two Phoenix beers with a large margherita pizza. Relaxing at a table on their shady patio, it was great watching the harbor activity and the many cruisers passing by us. There is a nice two story mall attached to this waterfront, and it is air-conditioned as well. This is the modern part of the city, with the highend stores you find in all big cities.

 

The ride back to the ship was quick, and we were ready for the sailaway party on the aft deck by 4:30pm. The Captain said we had to wait for a late bus, which had to be an HAL shore excursion. They guarantee that the ship will never leave without them. Guess that's right. We watched the slow sail out of the harbor and stayed, despite the stiff winds and rough waters , until the sun set at 6:18pm. It was not a great one, since the sun dipped behind thick clouds on the horizon before setting.

 

We noticed that by the time we got back, all of the razor wire was gone off of the lower promenade deck. The contraptions that held the firehoses had been dismantled yesterday. No more 24 hour watch for pirates, which we are certain the security team are grateful.

 

All of us were back to dinner tonight. Our buddy, Bill, did not get released from "room quarantine" until 5pm. So they had to forgo their tour, for which they did get a full refund. Although not 100% better, he admitted that he would not wish to have that experience ever again in his lifetime. Everyone teased him mercilessly, even though all of us have had these symptoms at one time or another. And you do not have to leave home to pick up these maladies either.

 

For dinner, we ordered the turkey entree, and it was like having Thanksgiving in March. Comfort food for sure.

 

Tomorrow, we will be in Reunion, but it appears that the ride will be rough tonight. At least we had no rain in the pier area today. The folks that took tours to the higher altitudes did get some rain. Hope the weather is rain-free in Reunion.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[InTheWASide]

Thanks as always for the wonderful reviews all through the Grand World Voyage. I've been looking for, but have not yet seen (maybe I missed or it hasn't happened yet?) the days when senior execs come onboard and do the Q&A's and maybe mention the future of HAL a little bit.

 

To me those are always some of the MOST interesting of your wonderful posts.

 

Has that taken place yet?

[WCB]

Report # 85 La Possession, Reunion March 24, 2014 Monday Chance of rain, 81 degrees

 

The small island of Reunion is decidedly French, even though it was taken over by the British in 1810. And the history follows the same route that made the Seychelles and Mauritius Creole in nature. Slaves were imported from Africa to cultivate the sugarcane and vanilla plantations, and the cinnamon, clove, and pepper orchards. Since little information has been provided by our room booklets, more details of the island's history escapes us at the moment. What we can tell you is Reunion offers an island of beaches, still active volcanoes, collapsed calderas called cirques for mountain climbing, waterfalls, and national parks. The making of the base of perfume is also a big industry here. On our first visit back in 2005, we took a tour that brought us up high in the mountains to see these sites. We do know that St. Denis is the economic capital of the island, with old French colonial homes, outdoor marketplaces, and chic French stores.

 

So today, the local port authority was offering a shuttle ride to the Mall de Rodriques at the St. Gilles Les Bains beach area. And it was free. Normally, we would have been bussed to the town of La Possession, but with today being a Monday, we learned that not much is opened. Mondays are treated like Sunday in this part of the world. At least at the beach area, some shops were opened with the promise of more opening up after noontime.

 

The bus ride took over 30 minutes, taking the freeway most of the way. There were black clouds floating by, so we did pack the umbrellas. Of course, we never did use them, but leaving them on the ship meant rain for sure. It was obvious to us that it rains a lot here, because everything is so green. We were dropped off by a souvenier shop on a promenade lane that led to the beach. It wasn't just a beach on the Indian Ocean, but a coral park that encompasses 3500 hectares on the west coastline. It is called the Natural Marine Reserve created in 2007 to protect and preserve the coral reef. Since there were only two tiny shops open in this outdoor mall, we spent most of the day walking the surf on the beach and through the pines that lined it.

 

This entire stretch of beach is separated from the villas and hotels by a road. One can have the use of the public beach or use the swimming pools of the private villas. Being a French island, the beaches are topless too. Or bottomless, if you are four years old and under. The only drawback here was the excessive coral either in the water's edge or broken up in the sands. We would not walk without shoes or go in the water without aqua shoes. It was best just to take a million photos, because it was drop dead gorgeous. Walking through the special pines was a treat, because the trees were full of birds. Some of them were yellow seed-eaters and a few were the orange ones we saw while in the Seychelles.

 

Anyway, everything to do with the water is here. Surfing, scuba diving, deep-sea fishing, and even whale and dolphin watching are the biggest activities here. What we found interesting was that the shoreline had little wave action. But if you looked beyond the coral and the reef, the waves were huge. At times, it appeared there were small sailboats bobbing in the swells, but it turned out to be the tops of the waves we were seeing. Something tells us that when we leave tonight, we will be heading into rougher waters.

 

Since it was hot and balmy, we were in need of some cold refreshments. Remembering that we had passed a few cafes at the mall, we went back to check on them. We knew we were out of luck for pizza, since all of those restaurants were back in town, and too far from here. The mall cafes were offering only fish and crepes, and nothing else had opened up for lunch there. So we went back to the beach, and went to an outdoor cafe by the name of Rondavelle Cobis. The local beer was Dodo, made by Bourbon, and was really good. No, we are not making that up. The funny thing was that the young owner/waitress did not speak much English, and we spoke very little French. Between pointing at the menu and hand language, we ordered two paninis with a tray of French fries. The paninis were cheese and ham slices in over footlong baguettes. We could have shared one, but the price was right, and we assumed they were half the size. They were so good, hot and crunchy on the outside like good French bread should be. Obviously, we enjoyed every bite. Did we mention that they only take Euros here in Reunion? Sounds expensive, but our lunch was no more than we paid in Mauritius yesterday. It's all relative.

 

It was getting late, and we did not want to wait until the last bus at 4pm. So we searched for t-shirts at the one corner shop that was opened, and found two suitable ones. The bus was waiting right around the corner, which was perfect. We only had a 10 minute wait for the driver, and we were off towards the pier. The ride went quickly, about 30 minutes or so, as we took more photos of the volcanic mountains in the distance. The peaks never came out of the black clouds, although we heard that it rained very little up there today.

 

Sailaway was a piece of cake, since the pilot only had to take us a matter of yards to get outside the little harbor. Remember we mentioned the turbulent waters off the beach? Well, we hit some good, deep swells, and a violent wind that swept chairs and lounges skittering across the aft deck. The water in the pool cascaded over the edges, and the deck kids had to stack the lounges and chairs to keep them from crashing into people. Think we are in for a rough evening.

 

We heard there was a folkloric show held in the Queens Lounge at 3pm. It was a local performance troop by the name of Mascareignes performing the dance and rhythm of Reunion. This should be on TV later in the day, so we really did not miss it.

 

Dinner was good as always. All of us were there, later to be joined by Maureen, our newly assigned permanent tablemate, when she chooses to eat late. One of us ordered the prime rib,and the other ordered the alternate steak, not trusting the prime rib to be tasty and tender. It was a toss-up as to which one was better. As the dinner progressed, we were rumbling in our chairs with excessive vibration from the rough waters. We all walked out by 10pm like drunken sailors, although not a drop of liquor had been consumed by us. This will be a test of our sea legs for sure.

 

Well, we have three wonderful days at sea as we sail towards the continent of Africa and the city of Durban in South Africa. Time to begin packing for the safari......

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 86 Sailing Towards Durban, South Africa March 25, 2014 Tuesday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees

 

What a difference a day can make. After a long night of 45 mph winds pushing waves into the sides of the ship, we woke up to dark, cloudy skies, and very choppy seas. The deep swells in the water kept the ship in motion practically all day. Even though the daily newsletter said we would have 85 degree weather, we doubt it ever got anywhere near that. The winds and the waves were the best on the lower promenade deck, where we took a walk after breakfast.

 

This is when things got exciting. Every sea day after walking three or four laps, one of us takes a break to either watch for fish, but more so, to catch their breath. Got a little more than a break, when a huge wave sent a spray of water that came up and over the railing, hitting the ceiling and the windows on deck three. Everything got soaked, including me, because I had no time to react quick enough. Well, that woke me up in a hurry and gave some lounge- reclining guests a laugh for the morning. Knowing it was not meant to be mean-spirited, I laughed as well.

 

Most everyone stayed inside the ship today doing the usual activities. Two lectures were held in the Queens Lounge, one all about fish, and the other about the Sochi Winter Olympics. A Royal Dutch High Tea was held in the dining room at 3pm. If one is in the mood for popcorn, a movie in the Wajang Theater would work. Today it was, Now You See Me, a 2013 flick.

 

We have had some questions regarding the upcoming Mariner Appreciation Days with Stein Kruse, the CEO of HAL and his entourage. Here is what we know. This group will be joining the Amsterdam in Durban. We and 140 other passengers will miss the festivities , because we are all taking overland trips to go on safaris. The special days they will be onboard will feature Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient and close personal friend of the late Nelson Mandela. Recently, we received an invitation for a welcome cocktail party in the Queens Lounge on March 30th. Of course, we will not be able to attend. Nor did we get an invite to Mr. Tutu's talk in the Queens Lounge. Other folks received tickets for this event, because there will be two talks to accommodate all of the folks. During those four days, we assume there will be several lunches for the Mariner members to attend according to their level in the Mariner program. What's missing this year? Well, there will not be a wild drinking party held in the Lido pool area. In fact we heard there will be no building of any kind in the Lido pool area. Now that is a good thing in our humble opinion, because the crowds of people they shove in there is not really fun. We have heard many guests complain about the disruption of their cruise with this extra fuss and building of structures. We can live wthout it. And will, because we won't be here.

 

Dinnertime found all of us back to the table, with Maureen joining by dessert time. She keeps a list of questions and answers from both trivia games of the day. When we are ready, she whips them out and enjoys becoming the trivia host for us. Barb knows the answers for the noon game, but not the 5pm one. She wisely does not answer before giving us all a chance first. It is surprising how much we DO know, but also how much we DON'T know. The answers most times are on the tips of our tongues, but speed is also the name of this game. If you snooze......you lose. Anyway, we have loads of fun when Maureen joins us.

 

Two more days to pack for our 5 day overland trip in South Africa, but more about the details tomorrow.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 87 Sailing Towards Durban, South Africa March 26, 2014 Wednesday Partly cloudy, 79degrees

 

As the Amsterdam made her way around tha southern tip of the island of Madagasgar, the temperatures have dropped to a much more comfortable degree.79 to be exact. It sure made life easier as we walked this morning. Many more passengers have come outside to relax on the teak chairs. Honestly, some stay all day. The only sealife we have seen are very small flying fish. No birds.

 

We took some time to pack a few essentials for the upcoming trip. It brought back memories of past excursions we have done in Africa. The best were in 2009, while sailing on the Rotterdam's world cruise. That was the year we stopped at Mombasa, Kenya, for an overnight stay. We joined several members of our travel group, and went to Tsavo East, where we saw every plains animal like the elephants, zebra, antelope, giraffees, wildebeest, wart hogs, and lions. The second area we flew to was Zambia/Zimbabwe and Botswana. We stayed at a lodge at Victoria Falls, enjoyed a sundowner cruise on the Zambize River, and rode elephants the following day. Chobe in Botswana was our next stop, which we reached by car and boat across the river. It was there that we boarded a boat to see the wild river animals like the hippos, crocs, and numerous birds. A safari by Landrover followed the banks of the river. It was there we saw elephants, kudu, antelope, zebras, and giraffees.

 

Last year, we had the luck of picking an excellent camp near Kruger Park. We spent five days and four nights at a family-owned lodge, where we did two game drives every day, along with daily nature walks with armed guides. We saw the "big five" as well as ervery other African animal you can name. We lucked out last year, because it had rained almost every day the week before we arrived. Despite a few muddy puddles, we were able to make every game drive. We do hope for the same conditions this year, as this is the same place we are going to once again. We know the drill, or the routine now, and what to expect. And today we start the malaria meds, which we will continue to take until all 30 pills are gone. Can't wait.

 

Today's activities included a Mongolian Cookout in the Lido pool area. Lots of folks like the venue, and this must be the fourth one they have done so far on this cruise. In addition to this food fest, they had a Lido Pool Party which included happy hour drink specials (select beverages), games, and plenty of DAM dollars to be given away.

 

Barbara H. gave a talk on Durban, and one of the guest speakers lectured on marine reptiles. We did catch most of his talk on TV, and found it really interesting and informative. The Bucket List was shown in the Wajang Theater.

 

After spending a short time outside by the pool, we went down to watch a movie in our room. It was an older movie with Steve Martin, who adopted a 2 year old orphan girl. The title was A Twist of Faith, and we highly recommend it.

 

It was Dutch Night in the dining room , and it was also formal. We also had company...two ladies we know well from previous cruises, Ellen W. and Sue A. It is a funny thing about those who eat on deck five at the same dining time as us. You seldom ever see them. So it was our pleasure to share an evening with them. Maureen had come up with a trick to play on our guests. We rehearsed around five questions from trivia so we would all know the answers, beating the girls to the punch. The only thing was they were almost as fast as we were in answering. Hard to fool the smart ones....

 

While chatting with Ellen and Sue, we learned a little more about the Mariner Appreciation Days coming up after the ship leaves Durban. There will be a few lunches in the Crows Nest, but those will be for the people that have 850 days and higher. The President Club members will have a dinner in the Pinnacle Grill with the esteemed guests. The rumor mill has it that in lieu of the big cocktail party, a donation will be given to Tutu's charity. To start with the donation theme, there will be a silent auction held tomorrow in the atrium on deck five. Some of the things to be bid on are two tickets for a shore excursion in Cape Town, cooking classes, dance lessons, a monogrammed bathrobe, and a complimentary drinks with our cruise director and hotel manager. The ship's shops have gotten into the mix offering a globe, free photos and DVD's, casino packages, and some wine packages.

 

And the clocks went back one hour again tonight.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 88 Sailing Towards Durban, South Africa March 27, 2014 Thursday Partyly cloudy, 79 degrees

 

The seas have finally calmed down the closer we get to South Africa. That would not last all day however. The skies have turned blue with a few clouds on the horizon. But that would not last all day either. Might as well enjoy the day, our last full one on the ship until April 1st, when we come back from our safari.

 

At breakfast this morning, we discovered that our wait staff had new uniforms. Dressed in off white jackets with either a black-striped shawl collar, or a black Mandarin collar, they really looked sharp. However, they are extremely impractical, because white will show every spot in no time. We asked Pande if the change was for the CEO of HAL, who will be arriving tomorrow. He said not really, because they were supposed to do the switch after Singapore, when they received the jackets from Indonesia. Apparently other ships in the fleet have changed to the new look, and the Amsterdam was among the last to do so.

 

We spent most of the morning gathering our things to take with us. It did help making a list a few days ago, because that way we doubt we will forget anything. The small rolled duffel bags that we were gifted on this trip will be the right size to check in at the airport. We are allowed to check in one piece of luggage weighing up to 50 pounds, but that would not be necessary. Last year there was no cost for this luggage. A personal carryon cannot weigh over 18 pounds. We are OK on that one too.

 

We had to pick up our passports at the front desk, and while there, get some African rand (ZAR) to use for incidentals. Tomorrow in Durban, we will have to clear immigration formalities first. That means presenting ourselves between 6 and 7am in the terminal for this check. This was specific to only the independent overland guests like us, not the HAL tour groups. We would be free to leave or return to the ship until we were ready to go. For us, that should be around 11am.

 

With all that done, we spent some relaxing time at the pool, chatting with Barb , then Larry and Cheryl. Cherly is originally from South Africa, and told us what living there was like. We can say that it sure is not like living where we do. Not by a long shot. One example was leaving your property in the morning and coming home in the evening. It was necessary to call your armed guards 20 minutes before leaving your garage. Security has to be there to guard your exit, and make sure the house is locked and secured. The same applies to coming home, only in reverse. That got us to thinking about the swanky homes in Walvis Bay we walked by on our way to the bay where the flamingos reside. We saw the same type of armed security guards she described. Also, the residential streets were about deserted during the day. In hind site, we should not have been walking alone, assuming it was fine. Like we said, it is not like home, where kids are out playing and folks are walking their dogs.

 

For some unknown reason, we have been without all of the TV news stations for 24 hours. We assume we are in between satellites, and will get reception from a new one soon. Hate being cut off from the world that way. We had intended to watch a movie, but by 3pm, we had news back, so that took priority over the movie. One of us made a run to the sandwich bar, and came back with one roast beef and cheese sandwich and one turkey and cheese sandwich. They were good for a change.

 

Time for a walk. What a surprise to find that the skies had turned cloudy, and the seas were becoming rough again. Captain Jonathon had mentoined that he intended to arrive to the harbor in Durban by 4am, so we think he picked up the speed and pulled the stabilizers in to make better time. By 8pm, we were bouncing off of the hallway walls making our way towards the aft elevators.

 

We had fun at dinner tonight, because six of us are all excited about leaving for 6 days. Barb and Maureen said they will really miss us, and wished us all a good and safe time. Hope we all have some good stories to share with them when we get back.

 

So we will be away from the ship until after April 1st, but promise to keep a detailed diary and take thousands of photos. Since we do not know what is available internet-wise, we will post if we can. Wish us luck..........

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Gail and Ken]

Have a wonderful and safe trip.

 

Sent from Gail's Galaxy S3

[Kween Karen]

I will be thinking of you on your excursion and will be anxious to hear how wonderful it is!!

[alibabacruisers]

Thank you for your blog, first of all. Secondly, I hope you have a wonderful time on your overland excursion! I look forward to details later.

[cruz chic]

Thanks for the update.

[BettyPC]

I love all your reviews and hope you will be doing another one in 176 days!!

 

 

I will be thinking of you on your excursion and will be anxious to hear how wonderful it is!!

[JamesEM]

Wishing you the best on this years excursion.

[Stratheden]

Stay safe. Looking forward to reading your next reports.