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

[erewhon]

Thank you for your updates.

[WCB]

Report # 57 Yap Island, Micronesia February 24, 2014 Monday Chance of rain, 80 degrees

 

The first message of the day is to son Ken......happy birthday to you!

 

Well, guess where we went today? Yap, Micronesia.........yep we finally made it to Yap. Several years ago one of our cruise buddies asked if we have ever been to Yap. The answer was, no, and we know of no one that has been there. It has been on the itinerary a couple of times on the Grand Asia/Pacific Voyage, but for many reasons, they have never landed here. That is, until today. Conditions had to be just right, such as tides, winds, and waves for us to make it through the unusually narrow channel through the coral reef that surrounds the island and harbor. With the help of a local pilot, the Captain navigated his way into Tamil Harbor sometime before 8am.

 

After listening to Barbara H's talk on the island, many folks set their alarm clocks for 6am, when we were starting to come into the reef area. Rumor had it that manta rays could be viewed from the outside decks and verandas. So many rays, that they have been seen jumping out of the water. After talking to everyone we know, none of them saw one sign of a manta ray at the sail in. Glad we decided to sleep in until 7am, then watch from our window as well as the web camera on the navigation deck that we watch on TV. Nope, no rays. Maybe at sailaway......

 

There was a stern warning from Gene not to bring any fresh food, sandwiches, dairy, or fruit off of the ship. No flowers or animals were allowed off with us either. Did not know any of us had an animal to bring off, but you never know.

 

While we were eating breakfast in the dining room, we spotted a few dive boats taking passengers to the reef for either diving or snorkeling. From what we gathered, there are no sandy beaches on Yap, so the water activities can only take place at the surrounding reef. Since these coral reefs are far from shore, you have to take a boat to get there. We knew that Cruise Critic members had an organized tour today, although the shore excursion department had none. Anyway, the folks in the boat looked excited to be going, as they waved to the people on the ship as they sped by.

 

The only map we had of this part of Yap called Colonia was the booklet we had from our room. We realized later on that some of the points of interest were mismarked. In fact, the dock where we were tied up was not even identified on this map, so we had to guess where we were. Since there is only one pier capable of docking this ship, we suggest that it should have been printed on the map. As it turned out, we were docked on a spit of land that led through the gates to tented tables where some locals were selling island tours. Two of the local ladies, dressed in tribal skirts and leis (topless by the way), were out of maps. Of course, every one, especially the men, stopped at their table for the maps and several photos for sure. Some of the fellows were hawking tours of the island from $20. to $35. a person, all done with private cars. Considering that the gas was $5.40 a gallon, that tour price was fair enough. However, we wanted to walk, and take our time exploring.

 

So we began with a trip into one of the shops near the ship, recommended to us by our friend Maureen, who had found a t-shirt, some souveniers, and some ugly, but usable postcards. Maureen is funny....she tells it like it is. Anyway, to mail a postcard from here is cheap, 34 cents, because it is based on US postage. Their currency is also the US dollar, making it convenient for us. Once a US Trust Territory, Yap and the surrounding islands of Maap, Gagiln, and Rumung make up the Federated States of Micronesia. Over 130 atolls, 22 of which are populated, also belong to the federation.

 

Once we had found the perfect t-shirt, we headed for the outdoor area where the Yap Living History Museum was set up. In reality, it was a tent where two locals were carving canoes, and selling island trinkets of weavings and wood carvings. Three samples of village houses were built in the central square, built with basic materials including thatched roofs and walls. Souveniers being sold were necklaces and earrings made of carved wood, woven purses made from candy wrappers, and a few wooden carvings of fish. All of the items were quite expensive.

 

We found our way to a really nice hotel on the side of the hill facing the lagoon by the name of Yap Pacific Dive Resort/Trader's Ridge. It was described as a historic hilltop resort with beautiful views, serving Western standards and seafood. We were not interested in food today, but we sure were looking for some ice cold beer. After walking through the reception area and outside grounds, we found our way down some stairs to the bar overlooking the pool area. About five other ship passengers were there, working on their computers, and drinking beers. OK, we joined them, downing a cool brew in a few minutes. Did we mention that it was hot and humid today? That just goes with the territory in these North Pacific islands. We seldom drink beer at home, but in this part of the world, it can be a life-saver. Time to continue our walk, but not until we took many photos of the hotel property. It really was nice.

 

Continuing on, we took a right turn on the main drive to see the rest of the highlights marked on the map. We saw the old Chinese junk by the name of MNUW permanently anchored in the harbor alongside the road. We could see friends Barb, Ellen, and Aart sitting on the top deck, also enjoying cold beers. They told us later that they had a pizza menu, so we guess we may have missed a good lunch. Another unassuming hotel was on the water's edge called O'Keefe's. A shuttle was taking folks from the ship to this hotel for lunch or whatever. As we continued our walk, the shops changed to hardware stores, car shops, beauty parlors, and tiny convenient stores. You know, for a small island, we sure encountered a lot of traffic. We wonder now if these Yapese folks were out to see us as well as we were here to see them?

 

Pretty soon, we were walking alone on the narrow road, and found ourselves at the top of a hill where a church was built. Since we were finding only shoreline homes and shacks, and a couple dozen chickens, we thought it best to begin walking back to the town. We did stop briefly to cool off and drink some water. Thinking we needed help, one of the local men stopped his car and asked if he could be of some help. Nice to know in case we did need some assistance.

 

Now the biggest attraction in Yap is their traditional form of money. The currency is large circular stones with a hole in the middle made from limestone. We mean really large....weighing up to several thousand pounds. Of course, they could not be moved, so when they were used as currency, they would stay where they were, usually in front of the homes, but change ownership. Today, the currency is the US dollar, but the stones are still bartered for buying a wife, according to the bartender at the hotel. All very strange and hard to understand, but totally true. Wanting to find the Stone Money Bank, where dozens of these stones exist, we followed the map to the direction marked. Well, big mistake, since it was incorrect. But sometimes taking a wrong turn can turn out to be a good thing.

 

A half mile up the road, we ducked into a small veggie/fruit market, where we met Lorraine, a young Yapese vendor, who spoke excellent English, their second language. She had some of those small tangy bananas that we love, so while buying them, we thought to ask her about the use of the crushed lime coral in the chewing of the betelnut. She also was selling small bags of the mixture. Well, she not only explained the use, she demonstrated the process. First she bit the betelnut in half, exposing the nut. Then she took a small baby bottle, like the ones we used to have with the Tiny Tears doll when we were little. The bottle was filled with the crushed limestone, which she sprinkled over the nut. Then she added a green leaf, which would turn the nut orange, and perhaps add flavor. She said the coral made the nut easier to chew, and admitted that chewing this nut made her happy, as in "high". You could never hide the fact that you chew this, because it permanently stains the teeth, gums, and lips. We discovered later that even the policemen directing traffic were chewing the stuff. Guess they are a "happy"society. Before we left the fruit stand, we asked Lorraine directions to the Stone Money Bank. She said we took the wrong turn, and had to walk back to the Waterfront Road.

 

But while we were this far, we might as well continue up this road to see another hotel called Pathways. This hotel had small huts built on the steep hillside overlooking the lagoon. Across the road from this hotel, was a green field with concrete benches under tall palms on the water. Great place to sit, cool off, and relax before finding the bank. In fact, it was a perfect spot to enjoy some of those delicious bananas. While we were relaxing, a man wearing a church-type t-shirt began talking to us. Turned out he was the local pastor of the church across the road. He was a treasure of information regarding the islands and the life people lead here. He did tell us that it has been at least two years since any ship near the size of ours has visited Yap. Smaller vessels do come about once a month, and their main objective is diving. Of course, he was happy to hear about where we come from as well. Time was ticking away, so we knew we had to get a move on, or it would be too hard to walk the distance.

 

As we passed the fruit stand, Lorraine yelled out our names and asked if we needed a ride to the bank. Gosh, how far was this place? We said no, we still wished to hike, not realizing how far we had to go. In all actuality, the distance was perhaps over one mile, but in this heat, it seemed like we walked 100 miles to one of us. Some rain would have been welcomed, because it had been predicted. That would happen later.

 

There was literally no traffic on this part of the island, and we could see why. By the time we finally stumbled upon the Stone Money Bank, the paved coral road ended, and all there was left was a dirt road full of potholes. At least we had the entire money bank to ourselves....no one else was there. Gosh, we could have robbed the bank, that is if we could have carried the money weighing thousands of pounds. Dozens of the limestone discs lined the roadsides, not really in a "bank" building. Guess you could equate these stones to the moai of Easter Island as far as being worth untold amounts. Priceless....

 

Time to get back, because a Yapese music and dance show was going to happen shoreside. Expecting that to be on the pier, we found out that it was at the outdoor museum arena. Since it appeared that it still may rain, we left everything onboard but the umbrellas and a plastic bag for the camera. By the time we got to the show, the group of locals were ready to begin their dance called "churu". Many ages of dancers participated in this form of storytelling and oral history. All were dressed in colorful costumes, especially the ladies who were decked out in red, green, blue, and yellow grass skirts with leis to match. You may wonder if these ladies were topless? The answer is yes, but still partially covered with the neckwear. Their performance included the use of long sticks which they used as a symbol of weapons. They were very practiced as no one missed a move, which could have been painful. Right in the middle of the show, the rain began to fall. Not really heavy, but enough to send folks under the big trees. What surprised us was how many people left the ship with no umbrellas. The group got a huge round of applause as they paraded off of the greens. As always, the little kids dressed in the matching costumes stole the show.

 

By 4:30pm, all were onboard and we prepared for the sailaway on the aft deck. By now, the rain had begun to fall heavier, so we retreated to the aft on deck seven. There were only five of us down there, and we got the best view of the narrow channel the Captain had to follow as he left the harbor. During his pre-sailaway talk, he said that this port had been the most challenging ever for him, and he would be glad to be out of here. He added that he would have even whiter hair after this experience. From the aft deck, we could see the shallow reef on each side of the ship. Tried as we could, we did not see any sting rays in the reef area.

 

There were only five of us at dinner, because four of our buddies had gone to Le Cirque for dinner. If we have not mentioned this special dinner before, the Pinnacle is transformed into the legendary Le Cirque of New York City for one night. Ranked among the top restaurants in the world, it is famous for its French cuisine and famous celebrity clientele. The price? Well, dinner is $49, and with wine pairing it is $79. per person. Perhaps Bill & Marianne have eaten there before, since they live in NYC. So we will be curious as what they thought of the dinner there.

 

All in all, we can say that today's successful landing in Yap was awesome for everyone onboard.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[MMDown Under]

Thank you for your detailed description of your first visit to Yap, Micronesia, an interesting place which, as you say, not many people get to visit.

[amster65]

There are a lot of blogs on this world cruise, but yours is the best, no doubt.

[marysb]

What a wonderful day you had. Some of the best experiences can be from an adventure on your own.

 

Again, thanks so much for sharing with us. It is very much appreciated.

[WCB]

Report # 58 Sailing Towards Manila, Philippines February 25, 2014 Tuesday Partly clloudy, rainy, 85 degrees

 

A day at sea is just what we needed to recover from such a full day we spent yesterday in Yap. Now we have our sights set on Manila in the Philippines, which we will reach by Friday. On the original itinerary, we were supposed to stop in Cebu. But that port was cancelled months ago, shortly after they were hit with the terrible storms and floods. Now we will be spending two full days in Manila.

 

So this morning Barbara H. gave a talk on things to see and do in Manila. It is a huge city with lots to see, so we would recommend to anyone who has not been there before, to take a tour of the highlights. The traffic can be overwhelming, and the streets full of people. It's much easier to navigate in buses and groups, we think. We are certain that Barbara will say the same thing at her talk.

 

We did try to spend some time at the aft pool, but the weather was not cooperating too well today. It was nowhere near 85 degrees, since the clouds covered the sun off and on all morning. We got tired of taking cover every 20 minutes or so. Deciding our time would be better spent working on reports and photos from yesterday, we went back to our room and worked on that project. One of us made a run for a hamburger and a plain hotdog at the Dive In Grill, eating them in our room.

 

What did we miss during the day around the ship? Well there was a souvenier market sale in the atrium this morning. They well selling trinkets from previous ports, and they had HAL vases for sale. The guest speaker talked about Apollo: the final journey to the moon. And the Dancing with the Star program offered classes on the samba.

 

We watched a movie by the name of Rush, all about racing cars. By the way, we are still waiting for the movie, The Hunger Games, to be returned to the front desk. It is going on three weeks now that we have been on a waitlist. You would think they would have more than one of those DVD's. Speaking of the front desk, we had to fill out Philippine Health Declarations Forms and turn them in to the staff. The officials need to know our occupations, telephone number, and the state of our health in regards to colds or flu. They also needed to know if we have been to any chicken ranches in the last few weeks. We wonder if the few chickens we saw yesterday in Yap would count?

 

We were been invited to a 50th anniversary cocktail party in the Explorers Lounge this evening. Even though we do not know the celebrating couple all that well, we thought it was nice that they included us with their 100 or so guests. We went around 7pm, and found that we were standing in the receiving line with Captain Jonathon. We asked him about the port of Yap yesterday, at which he said that he hopes to never sail into such a treacherous harbor ever again. Christel, the guest relations manager also told us that HAL will never send another one of their ships into this harbor ever again. We are certain that the Captain had the Costa Concordia in mind as he and the pilot navigated in the narrow channel surrounded by rocks and coral.

 

While chatting with Christel, the guests relations manager, we asked about the rumor about the person from the ship that had been attacked while in Madang. She confirmed that the person attacked was a crew member who had been out for a bike ride. The object of the attack could have been his bicycle. The good news is that he is fine, and back to work, but shaken from the experience. You see? One of us was not wrong by having the sixth sense of possible danger surrounding us. Christel further warning us about wearing any jewelry while in these ports, especially the stops we will have in western Africa.

 

Two entertainers were at showtime tonight, Amber Jade, a clarinetist, and singer, Seamus Earley with a brand new show. Rumor has it that both ladies were quite talented.

 

Finally, after many weeks, we put the clocks back one hour tonight as we head in a westerly direction to Manila.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[John Deere]

Have you heard how many passengers will be leaving the voyage in HK and how many will be joining there?

 

Nancy

[WCB]

Report # 59 Sailing Towards Manila, Philippines February 26, 2014 Wednesday Partly cloudy, chance of rain (not), 80 degrees

 

Another sea day to relax was ours, as we sailed towards Manila. Our CD Gene mentioned that we are on a slow boat to China, as the speed of the ship has been reduced to 12 knots. The only difference today is that the seas have calmed down quite a bit from yesterday. Not that it was that bad, but we did have swells between 6 and 8 feet that caused the ship to roll from side to side, then pitch and dip forward to aft. The best place to view this action was while walking on the lower promenade deck. That is if you could walk a straight line, and not like a drunken sailor. Although we never saw the barf bags come out, there were trays full of green apples and graham crackers available at the front desk for anyone to take. It was a reminder that you needed to keep some food in your stomach to prevent seasickness. It really does help, along with seasick meds.

 

The executice chef, Daniel, and culinary manager, Paul were available to answer questions regarding to the food related products and services on this cruise. We did have a one-on-one conversation with both of them last night at the anniversary party. Curious as to the type of beef that they serve here, they told us that the crew has select beef, but we get RR, which we believe is Ranchers Reserve from Washington State. It was difficult to pin them down as to the quality of the meat such as is it prime or choice? The bottom line was that the beef they use is not grain fed, but grass fed. That definitely explains the difference in taste, fat content, and texture. Perhaps this Q and A will be repeated on TV, so we hear what other folk had to ask. A few years back, we had a tablemate who could not understand why the ice cream he got for dessert every night was soft and melted. His approach was the "spoon" test. That is, if the spoon will stand upright without falling when inserted into the center of the scoop, then it was perfect. We heard many reasons why that was not happening with the creamy delight. Finally, they came clean. The freezer where the ice cream was stored was not working properly, so it was never frozen like it should have been. The tell-tale sign was that the ice cream began to have ice crystals in it, caused from melting then re-freezing. Once the freezer was fixed (it took a month), then our buddy was a happy man. So were we. It just took them a long time to come clean with the truth.

 

There was yet another strange talk in the showlounge this afternoon given by a guest speaker. The subject was Memory Boost Camp....how to stop losing and misplacing things. We can see where this may be appropriate at a home for the elderly, but why on a cruise ship like the Amsterdam? Well, the more we thought about it, we said, hey look around and what do we see? Yep, mostly elderly people, some well into their eighties and nineties. We give these repeat cruisers a lot of credit for traveling on such a long and busy trip. They are truly the treasures of the world, to be respected for sure. But for the majority of folks, we think the subject matter of this particular speaker has appealed to only a small crowd. Margaret and Keith who love to attend all of the on location lectures reported that only about 50 people have been going to this type of lecture. Perhaps we do not need to be reminded that we all are getting forgetful at one time or another.

 

A much more approriate subject was discussed by Barbara H. who did a one hour lecture all about an overview of World War II in the Pacific. That could be a continuing series that would have lasted for at least 100 days. But our time in this particular area is running short, and today was as good a time as any to deliver her talk. The funny thing is that Margaret and Keith had written a suggestion that this subject matter could be a fantastic opportunity for a lecturer to educate us now. They even took the time to provide an outline for the talks. And here it shows up in today's daily newsletter. We do know for a fact that the 2013 Asia/Pacific Grand Voyage was full of WW II history, so we know from our friends Rod and Diana's professional reports that many excellent lecturers, including Barbara, did exactly that on that cruise. So Barbara was well-prepared to do that here, even though it was concentrated into one hour.

 

For the first time ever, we had a mandatory temperature check before entering the Philippines in the Explorers Lounge held before both dining room service times for dinner. It was the speediest one we ever attended. They scanned our room card, then we walked swiftly past a unit that measured our temperature. No probing, or ear check, or forehead scanning. Guess we passed because no one said a word, except keep moving please. We attended at 5:45pm when absolutely no one was in line.

 

Rain was predicted for the day, but as far as we know, it never did. Many more folks joined us at the aft pool to enjoy the sun and partly cloudy skies for the afternoon. A good movie was on TV, so we watched Prisoners in our room. It was a powerful film, and even though it was 2 1/2 hours long, it kept us on the edge of our seats the whole time.

 

Tonight was a classic formal night, meaning that it was not a theme evening. While checking out the entrees in the Lido at 6pm, we noticed that this restaurant was filling up with customers dressed very casually....even wearing shorts and t-shirts. There could be two reasons for that. One is that many folks are tired of getting dressed up, and a large group of almost 160 or so will be leaving us in Hong Kong, the end of another segment. They are most likely packing now before we reach Manila for two days. Once we leave Manila, there is only one day at sea, then we dock in Hong Kong. Better to get the packing chores done so they can enjoy their two days in the Philippines.

 

Two surprises tonight were presents on our bed....finally. They are Tiffany and Company coffee mugs with the design of the world printed on them. Iconic symbols of every major country was stamped on them., but not our exact itinerary. The other surprise was a note to put our clocks back one hour, which we always appreciate.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[wander]

I understand your thoughts about the "Memory boost Camp" talk, and I realize not many may want to hear about such things because of things like their age, being on a vacation, etc. However, from the perspective of a retired medical educator, the time to learn about such things and even practice them is BEFORE they are needed. Once the problems start, regardless of age, the more difficult the "battle".

 

Like so many lessons in life, the prime teaching moment is past by the time we realize we need to be prepared and learn about something. Just human nature I suspect.

Edited February 27, 2014 by wander

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Mary Ann and Bill - I may have missed this on your this year's World Cruise report but I remember on your past ones, that the Head of the Mariner Society and Stein Kruse came on board for a few days around Sydney I think. Then they met with the passengers and imparted news of HAL and the Mariner Society. Has that heppened yet?

[Lady Hudson]

Mandatory temperature check?? Never heard of this before. Please explain. Thank you.

[WCB]

Report # 60 Sailing Towards Manila, Philippines February 27, 2014 Thursday Partly cloudy, 85 degrees

 

We had a very nice experience today. Last week Shiv, the Executive Housekeeper, offered to give us a tour of the laundry facility on the ship. We gladly said yes, and would wait until he had the time to take us. We've known Shiv since he was the assistant housekeeper, and worked out of the office near our room. He has always gone the extra mile to see to it that we have everything we need once we board the ship. His office is now located on deck three, with the room closing near us. But we still keep in touch with him daily. Like we said, he is a great guy.

 

So, when we walked past his office today after our walk, Shiv came out and asked us if this morning would work for a tour. All right, you bet. Meeting him in ten minutes, he led us down to deck B and the main hallway of the working deck inside the ship. We entered the facility from the far end, so the order we saw it went in reverse.

 

We began in room that housed the drying and folding machine for sheets, pillowcases, and table linens. This unit was at least 10 feet long, cylinder-shaped, and worked like magic. Clean and wet sheets, for instance, would be fed into the machine using a roller technique. Almost instantly, they are dried with hot air, then folded lengthwise, and dumped into a tray underneath to be stacked. It took only two workers to feed this machine. By the way, all of the workers we saw were young Filipino men, who could stand the heat down here. Also, the sheets are changed every fourth day for the passengers.

 

Across from this unit, were two very new washing machines that had been installed while the ship was in drydock last December in San Francisco. They each have the capacity of holding 400 pounds of wet wash (sheets/pillowcases/towels/linens) in three compartments. Built just like a front-loading washing machine, they have to have the correct amount of weight to operate right. This is done by weighing the wet wash in a wheeled bin on a huge scale. All the detergents are controlled automatically and the loads take about 45 minutes to complete. When these units were installed, an outside wall where the soap dispensers were mounted had to be removed for them to be installed. The wall was welded back after the job was done.

 

More machines lined the wall,each taking 165# of wash. Dryers followed, some of them took 120 pounds , while others took up to 200 pounds. One separate washing machine, capable of extremely high water temperatures was used only for decontaminating NORO virus linens and toweling for one room at a time. The good news was that the machine was empty, not being used. Keep in mind, all of these machines run 24 hours a day, non-stop, to take care of up to 1380 guests and additional crew members.

 

The regular guest laundry facility was next to tour. We entered where our blue bags of laundry arrive in large bins. One fellow dumps the contents, one at a time, labels them with iron-on tags, then proceeds to separate the items by color and delicates. All small items go into a mesh bag and are tagged with one label. There was a spotting table, which is good to know. Shiv did say that if you mark the laundry slip with special instructions, like for delicate handwash, it should be done.

 

A wall of cubbyholes near the tagger held the baskets that we get our laundry back in the room. A group of fellows were filling them with the correctly marked items. Racks for the hanging clothes were lined up as well. As we continued on, we found two steam iron mannekins that literally blew up the slacks and shirts with hot steamy air. These can be found in any cleaners at home. They are quick with little hand ironing necessary. They did have ironing boards, both regular and the steam pressing ones. The group of ironers were happy to show off their skills as we passed by.

 

We asked about cleaning pillows, duvets, and blankets. All of the feather-filled items are fluff-dryed with 155 degree air to re-distribute the feathers. It also helps to deodorize them. The blankets are washed in regular machines. They had two wet/dry cleaning units that use natural fruit-based oils to clean the clothing. Shiv admitted that it was inferior to the usual dry cleaning you have onshore, but was as good as it gets here. With that, we thanked all of the hard-working fellows for their demo.

 

Shiv continued to take us through the linen and alcohol storage rooms, and the upholstery and carpenter shops. The most interesting was the sewing room, where we found four men working on crew clothing. They actually make all of the uniforms for the officers and staff. Yes, the dark blue wool suits worn are created here with patterns they have hanging on the side wall. Only the white shirts are store-bought. All broken and torn clothing is repaired in this room.

 

Lastly, we strolled through the dry food storage and paper product rooms. It was like going to Costco, with shelving full of the everyday items we use in the dining rooms. We could see the opening where the palleted deliveries are off-loaded from the trucks on the pier. Lots of heavy work is done here on delivery days.

 

Thanking Shiv, we climbed the narrow stairwell, and back to deck one aft where we had entered this very different world from what we are used to seeing. Fantastic tour. It how better can it be to be a private one at that.

 

The rest of the day flew by as we relaxed in the warm sun on the aft deck. All day long, we had been sailing around the many islands of the Philippines as we headed in a northwesterly direction to the east coast of Luzon and Manila. As the day progressed, more and more of the Filipino staff came outside with their phones to call home. At one point, there were twenty crew members on the promenade deck talking to family members, making plans for the next couple of days that we would be docked in Manila.

 

While one of us was getting a haircut in the spa, the other was busy getting some local pesos to use for lunch or whatever we may need in town tomorrow. We are still having some problems with the internet, either cutting us off, and refusing to log us off. Keeping track of the minutes lost, we just have to fill out a form, and the request for lost time gets approved a day later. Since so many of the passengers and crew are having problems, there is no question about refunding minutes. The librarian admitted that he will no longer be using the ship's system, because he has lost so much money like us, and has had too much frustration with it. Can't say we blame him.

 

While watching the sun go down around 6pm, we noticed how many fishing boats there were surrounding the numerous islands we were passing. Each boat was lit up with a bright light, we assume to attract the fish. Even some small rowboats were in the mix, which we could hardly see with our bare eyes. Up on deck nine, it was touching to see some crew members watching the fishing boats as they talked away in their native language. Bet they are really looking forward to Manila, as are we.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WJBWJB]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries (note that not all reports have photos especially the at-sea days!)

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

So far Reports 50-59 are available. As more are added I will put an update here.

 

Thanks!

[roberts2005]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries (note that not all reports have photos especially the at-sea days!)

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

So far Reports 50-59 are available. As more are added I will put an update here.

 

Thanks!

 

Thanks for doing this. I look forward to their pictures

[Gail and Ken]

Thank you so much Robert. After following your folks on their magnificent cruises for the past 4years its nice to see their handsome faces along with the blog.

 

Sent from Gail's Galaxy S3

[wander]

Shiv is a delightful man. He was assigned to our dinning table one night on the Fall 2013 Asia Pacific cruise. I immediately recognized him from a previous cruise (or cruises) but did not say anything until he commented - we have cruised together before - I remember you.

 

The Laundry tour sounds really interesting!

 

 

LADY HUDSON - When we went to Manila this fall, we also had a temperature check, a way to potentially pick-out folks with a fever. We simply had to check in at a desk and then walk past a thermal device aimed at our head. Painless and sanitary. Several years ago when we were on a land trip in China, at each airport we had to pass by such a machine both before and at the end of each flight (we had about 8 of them). In a few places one could see the screen that showed a number (temperature), much like speed monitors do. At the time I wondered how accurate they were - but I did fine and in reality did not have a fever.

[ger_77]

Thank you for the blog link - yes, it is wonderful to put faces and names together - although it is a double edged sword, now I have MORE to read when I get home from work in the evening! ;)

 

Will look forward to time well spent.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

[hpf]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries (note that not all reports have photos especially the at-sea days!)

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

So far Reports 50-59 are available. As more are added I will put an update here.

 

Thanks!

 

Thanks for the blog posting. The photos are great. Now I'll have another day of not getting any housework done. LOL.;)

 

Helen:)

[Bescotti]

Hi Mary Ann and Bill

 

I've been following your entries from your past world cruises and now love seeing your blog with photos. The photos have a different focus than some of the other world cruise blogs, showing everyday things such as your window garden and purchases, beside the usual location scenes - and I'm really enjoying it! It's providing me with lots of information for when I finally get to do either an entire or partial world cruise, hopefully, in a couple of years time.

 

Doing a live blog at sea is both time consuming and costly so, like many others here, appreciate the time and effort you put into.

 

Bev

[alibabacruisers]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries (note that not all reports have photos especially the at-sea days!)

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

So far Reports 50-59 are available. As more are added I will put an update here.

 

Thanks!

 

I agree with the others...thank you for posting the link. I love seeing the pictures with the blog!

[alibabacruisers]

Thank you Bill and Mary Ann for your blog! I love reading your posting and appreciate it greatly because of your hard work! I do have a question that I hope you can answer. All the souvenirs you buy throughout your travels....when it comes to bringing them back into the US, in your case, do you declare the wooden or shell items? Is there a decontamination process? Thank you in advance.

[bjbear]

Thank you so much Robert. After following your folks on their magnificent cruises for the past 4years its nice to see their handsome faces along with the blog.

 

Sent from Gail's Galaxy S3

 

I too, thank you Robert. I've also followed them faithfully every year and love their reports.

 

Sue

[bet410]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries.

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

Thanks!

 

Thank you so much for doing this! I love reading their descriptive blogs, especially having been on two world cruises myself so I can picture exactly what they're describing. The entries bring back so many wonderful memories, and seeing the pictures really adds to the enjoyment.

 

Since we use blogspot for our own blogs when we travel, we are on there fairly frequently. Is it possible to add a gadget that would allow people to subscribe to this by email? I'm soon leaving on a cruise (Grand Africa & Mediterranean) and may not have the opportunity to keep up with their blogs through Cruise Critic.

 

I look forward to further posts. They are a great way to take the Grand World when we can't do it in person!

[WCB]

Report # 61 Manila, Philippines February 28, 2014 Friday Day One Partly cloudy, 88 degrees

 

Manila, the capital of the Philippines, is one of the world's largest capitals. Metropolitan Manila is made up of 6 districts and 12 cities. How many people live here? Try 12 million. It is huge, and so is the traffic. The Spanish ruled here for over 300 years, giving the city much of its historical charm. More recent history finds Manila involved with much World War II activity, with extensive damage caused from the fighting between the American and Japanese armies. Who would guess that a number of years later, Manila would become a shopper's paradise with markets and malls galore? We hear that outside the city, the mountains turn lush with volcanoes, both active and extinct. The landscape turns into hillsides of rice paddies. Last but not least, the array of food from a blend of Filipino, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, and American can keep you busy for weeks of dining options.

 

But we only have two days here, so it is hard to see it all. As for us, we have taken tours of the old and new Manila more than once. Some of our buddies have gone on a ferry to see Corregidor Island, where many battles occured during the war. General MacArthur's headquarters were based in a carvernous tunnel on this island, making it even more famous....a very sobering place to visit. One of our destinations will be Rizal Park near the pier where we are docked, and a trip to Robinsons Mall for an afternoon of window shopping and lunch.

 

Lucky for us, there was a complimentary shuttle provided by the local Port Authority. It was running from 9:30am to 11pm to the Robinsons Place Manila Mall, which is great. The ride only takes 20 minutes if the traffic is moving. But first before we left, it was necessary to finish the blog from yesterday and get it sent. It is so hard to keep up with daily reports, and so far, we have been pretty disciplined in doing so. We only wish that the internet would cooperate all of the time, but that's another story. It has gotten much better. So while one of us typed, the other went down to check out the pier stalls and look for the promised maps Barbara H said the ship had ordered. Good thing, because all of the freebies were almost gone. We did receive one woven fan, a detailed map, info on the Intramuros district, and another map with fun things to do in the Philippines. Included on this map were fast facts and hints for traveling around the city. Oh yeah, we also now own two necklaces made of strings and painted wooden beads......all complimentary.

 

Entertaining us from 8am to about 10am, were a local band and native girls and guys performing the bamboo dance. Two of them were decked out in costumes of "big" people, which we have seen also in Mexico and Central America and even Brazil. By 10:30am, we were ready to go and so were three large buses that were waiting outside the gate. Between the passengers and some crew members, the bus filled quickly and we were off.

 

Robinsons Place Manila is considered a regular mall here. Compared to the Mall of Asia, the third largest mall in the world, it is small. With over 600 dining, service, and shopping venues, together with Robinsons Department Store and grocery store, it more than big enough for us. There are four levels where one can find everything and anything you need or don't need. Some of the restaurants are open until 2am, taking care of the late night crowd that go to their theaters. There are four major entrances, all guarded by policemen armed with rifles. Yes, rifles. Need we say more? Most people stay inside this spacious mall just for the air-conditioning.

 

Our main reason for coming was to get some exercise and go out to lunch. There were numerous pizza places, but most were the fast food type. TGIFridays was a better bet, since they serve some of our favorite Mexican cuisine. So we did end up getting one of the last tables for two available at 1:30pm. We shared a chicken quesadilla and a platter of boneless chicken wings, crispy fried chicken strips, celery sticks, chips and dips. Our waitress suggested the San Miguel draft beer, which was served in a chilled 16 ounce mug. The beer cost the equivalent of $2.44. each. Good deal. We were halfway into our meal when Barbara H, our port lecturer, and Joanne, the future cruise consultant were seated next to us. We found it amusing that with all of the choices they had to choose from, the ladies picked Fridays, like us. We chatted until their entrees arrived, which turned out to be Mexican fare also.

 

We followed up our visit with a stop at Robinsons Supermarket on the first level of the mall. They have everything our supermarkets sell at home as well as Filipino food. We remembered from last year, that their 16 ounce Coke Zero bottles were about 50 cents each. We stocked up on those along with some bags of chips. While we were here, we always like to check out all of their items. We found one interesting fruit sold here.....the durian. If you have never heard of it, you would think it was a strange-looking type of pineapple with a prickly skin, like cactus. It is what's inside that is nasty to those who do not have a taste for the fruit. It smells like something rotten, or worse. The sign on the fruit said it is high in fiber and good for digestion, like a laxative. Guess we will never find out, because we would not go within a mile of one that has been cut in half. In fact, we have heard that it is forbidden for anyone to bring a durian onboard the ship.

 

The bus was waiting right outside the front entrance, and we were back to the ship in less than a half hour. The traffic was almost at a standstill on the main boulevard leading to the pier, and it was only 4pm. Bet the tours coming back at 6 or 7pm will have it a lot worse. Speaking of tours, some of our tablemates did the same tour to Corregidor Island, but did not book the same way. One bought the shore excursion through the ship, while the other went with an independent group. Should be interesting to see how they compared.

 

Relaxing in our room before dinner, we watched a movie about life in modern Manila for a young, but out-of-work homeless family. It portrayed the seedier side of the city, and we were surprised it was even shown while we were docked here. Very depressing to say the least. Let's just say crime has no good ending.

 

There were only seven of us for dinner, four of whom were pretty exhausted after their all day tour. It turned out that the Corregidor Island tours were identical, but the difference in price was $160. each. We have been there and done that many times by taking the HAL tours. But there is insurance involved with the more expensive tours, where there is zero coverage by going independant. Most times everything goes well, but it only takes once to be caught in a bad situation. It's a chance that many more passengers are willing to take these days, due to the rising tour costs on the ship.

 

Along with several Filipino items on the menu, we enjoyed the meatloaf with mashed potatoes entree this evening. Sounds funny, but sometimes good old down home country food is just what we needed. Add the small lemon tarts with blueberries for dessert, and we were happy campers.

 

It will be strange to be "parked" all night as we are spending another full day in Manila tomorrow. If the weather is as good as today's, it should be a nice day.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[2cruisecats]

Hi All

 

With permission of Bill and Mary Ann (my parents) -- please feel free to check out the blog version of their postings if you are also interested in seeing some of the photographs that go along with their cruising documentaries (note that not all reports have photos especially the at-sea days!)

 

The blog can be reached at http://cruisingwithbillandmaryann.blogspot.com

 

So far Reports 50-59 are available. As more are added I will put an update here.

 

Thanks!

 

 

Thank you for posting the blog link. It was great to see the picture of the window garden!