Come Along with Bill & Mary Ann Going Full Circle on the 2015 World Cruise -114 days+

[WCB]

Report # 69 Phuket, Thailand March 8, 2015 Sunday Partly sunny & 93 degrees

 

Today’s port of call was Phuket, Thailand, a place we have visited many times in the past. There are two places to either dock or tender into shore. The best way, in our humble opinion, was to anchor offshore at Patong Bay, then tender in. The other option is to dock in the industrial area of Phuket, far from town, and even further from the beach area. Docking was the option today, much to our disappointment. We’ll get into the story a bit later.

 

The capital of Thailand is Bangkok, and the total population of the country is 65,905,410 people. The size of Thailand is 198,064 square miles, and the people speak Thai. Thailand has everything…..beaches, dense jungles, ruined cities, exotic islands, fast and furious cities, and tranquil Buddhist backwoods. Cascading rice terraces are everywhere in the mountains, and the steamy tropical weather is as hot as their cuisine. Many five star hotels and resorts can be rented on a shoestring, even those that are extravagant and indulging. Thailand is also the birthplace of our daughter-in-law Lynn, who has taught us much about life as a young girl in her country.

 

The best time to visit Thailand is Between November and April, when there is less rain. What do the folks eat here? Tom yam kung, a hot and sour prawn and lemongrass soup. Satay sticks are another favorite. The best drinks are Singha Beer, and Sang Som whiskey. Having fun is the cornerstone of the Thai psyche.

 

What do you see here? Try golden stupas, Many Buddha statues, floating markets, color-coded curries, monks with bowls (locals fill with rice) are commonplace here. No Thai person would build his house without a san phra plum, or a spirit house, for the animist spirits to dwell.

 

We have been to the temples at Wat Chalong, the 45 meter tall Buddha over Chalong Bay, and Phi Phi Island, where the film “The Beach” was filmed with DiCaprio. And we have gone twice to Phang Nga Bay, where the James Bond film, The Man With the Golden Gun, was filmed. We liked that tour so much, we did it twice.

 

But first, the ship had to dock. In order to get into the port, we had to back up for one mile early this morning. Roxanne and Joe mentioned that very early this morning, they could hear the changes in the azipods and side thrusters. Located in the very front of the ship, they can hear all those changes. Backing in, like we did this morning, must have caused a lot of noise. We were alongside shortly after 8am.

 

Most of the tours were off by 9am, so after breakfast, we took a walk to talk to Barbara H., who was sitting on the pier. She has warned about aggressive taxi and van drivers, and boy, was she right. Asking her, we figured it should have cost about $25. to go to Patong Bay over the hill, about a 10 to 12 mile drive. We walked to the first gate, where all of the shops were set up, and encountered the first wave of taxi drivers. They quoted us a price of $100 to go to the beach area and back later. We just laughed. Then the price came down to $40 a piece one way. Getting better, but not good enough. So we walked out at the gate near the road, and asked prices there. They ranged from $100 down to $14.50 for one. The best bet was to ride a van with 6 other guests going the same way. Barbara warned us that the drivers may try to get more money from us at the end of the ride. She told us to walk away if that happened. Now we were getting concerned about the ride back. What if the driver is not there? We have no cell phone to keep track of him. Then there is the trip back to the ship. We have been told that the price can rise considerably to go back. And the amount of traffic could really delay your arrival back.

 

What helped change our minds about going to the beach, was that with such blistering hot weather, would we really want to risk heatstroke. With the all onboard time at 4:30pm, we did not wander far from here. And we didn’t.

 

There was a rather large craft and souvenir market set up right on the pier. Running into Leslie, she advised us to go further down to the opposite end of the hawkers, and the prices would get better. Even as much as ½ off. Actually, we had gotten off of the ship with no money or anything at this point, so this was more of a “just looking” venture. None of the vendors believed us when we said we had no money, thinking we were making that up to get a lower price.

 

We kept busy on the ship catching up on a back log of photos and reports. In between the work, we watched a movie, American Hustler, never seeing the beginning or the end. By the way, we had another letter from the Captain concerning a health notice. Although the words ”Noro virus or H1N1” have not been written in the letter, we believe this may be the case, or something similar. A food-related problem is not contagious, but a virus is. Since there has been a spike in the numbers of guests affected, they have extended measures by closing public venues such as the library, self-service laundries, Jacuzzis, and the thermal suite facilities. The housekeeping staff has been working overtime washing door handles, walls, railings, the Lido….everywhere where people touch, with disinfectant. We are sure spraying is being done late at night as well. In the meantime, we wash and wash and wash our hands, and use Purell frequently. They have even stationed two waiters outside the dining room during meals to dispense the Purell. Wish they would have done this sooner. So, are we in the orange or red alert for the virus? Strangely enough, those exact words have not been mentioned either. We say…….RED.

 

Also, we had new and exciting shore excursions waiting in our mail slot this morning. What a surprise. They are for the new stops in Israel, and include visits to Jerusalem, Nazareth, and The Sea of Galilee. One is an overnight, leaving in Ashdod, and coming back in Haifa. The price is $679 per person. Now here come the clincher…….we will be in Ashdod on Easter Sunday, the absolutely most important religious holiday in both the Christian and Orthodox churches. This happened in 2007, when we came here for the first time. It had to be the worst time ever to visit any of these sights. For that reason, we will NOT do this tour, or any other one that goes near these famous places. There are day trips that start from $90 to $235. We may look at some of those. Haifa has tours that range from $100 to $150 to see Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Nazareth the Golan Heights, and the Sea of Galilee. If we intend to do any tour, we will need to move quickly on it, since the last surprise visit we had here in 2011, all the tours booked solid, and we were stuck on the ship all day. We were not allowed to leave the dock at all, being stopped at the gate by local police. Considering the time of year they have scheduled this last minute change, why couldn’t we have gone somewhere else, like Rhodes, Santorini, Crete, Malta……anywhere but Israel??? A nice substitute will be a stop in Messina, Sicily. Since we took a tour to the top of the mountain the last time we were there, we will be happy to explore Messina on our own. It’s only a 6 hour stop anyway. Better than nothing.

 

Many passengers were in the Lido around 3pm this afternoon, eating a late lunch. Everything had to be served, even the silverware and napkins. The dining room had been closed today, as it is sometimes while we are in port. The sandwich server was quite busy making custom sandwiches and serving pizza. He is a nice kid, and does a great job.

 

Sail away was early at 4:30pm. Walking through the Lido pool area, we thought the soles of our shoes were going to melt into the fake teak decking. It must have been 100 degrees in there. Not a soul was sitting anywhere, and even the cooks in the Dive In grill were standing outside to get relief from the trapped heat. It was much better at the aft pool, where the band was already playing great music with the help of Darcy, the singer. When they played a country Western tune, Dolly, the ship’s longest-sailed elderly lady, got up and danced with one of the nicest bar waiter. Even at 90 plus, she sure had a spring in her step and actually kept up with the young fellow.

 

We heard stories about a few of the ship’s tours as we left the container port. Some had a good time on the Phi Phi Island tour, finding better seats on the speedboat, thanks to our advice. At least they were not subjected to the mandatory stop in the jewelry/souvenir store, as were the other tour groups. The majority of people hate that stop. But we believe the locals and the ship get a cut of all of the sales. Even the folks that took a private tour in a van or a taxi, had this stop. Like it or not, you went inside. If nothing else, it was a good pit stop.

 

We had one of the best sunsets here tonight. The deepest the reds got were when we left, of course. But we did catch it from our window.

 

Tomorrow will be a very looked forward to day at sea. And the clocks went back 1/2 hour this evening, helping a little.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Lizzie68]

Thanks for another great report. I always look forward to my daily read of your adventures.:)

[WCB]

Report # 70 Sailing Towards Thilawa, Rangoon, Myanmar Partly cloudy & 85 degrees

 

Finally, we have a day at sea to kick back and do as we wish. It began with a proper breakfast in the dining room, although we still have no communicable items on the table yet. That is no jams or jellies, salt and pepper, sugar and cream, or pats of butter. Everything has to be served to us by the waiters. We have to be in the “red” for the virus, even though those exact words have not left the lips of the staff members. Whatever, we are being very aware of what we touch, or what we use or will not use. Packing a pocket Purell may also help keep us healthy. If this problem is airborne, then we are at risk, no matter what we do.

 

It was very warm and humid walking on the promenade deck today. Usually the teak lounges are filled with folks, but not this morning. Way too uncomfortable. We have noticed there were a few tiny flying fish, but absolutely no sea birds. Being that there are so many fishermen out in their boats day and night, they probably are happy there are no birds to compete with them. Come to think of it, when you see the rice paddies, the local farmers go to extremes to keep the raiding birds out. You will see a series of lines with white flags that resemble large birds. These lines are connected and are pulled to mimic movement or flight over the rice plantings. Rather clever we think.

 

We have gained two new speakers onboard. Milt Keiles, who spoke about the dawn of navigation in the Pacific, and coastal to the open seas. The amazing puppetry is the subject of Roberta Sloan, who goes into detail regards the puppets in Asia and Indonesia.

 

A special afternoon tea was held in memory of Julia F, a longtime guest of HAL. She has been on many world cruises and achieved President’s Club status years ago. She was not feeling well when we boarded, although she was well taken care of by family. However, she passed away a few weeks ago, and is now honored by her family Don and Fran and all of her ship friends and staff. Very nicely done. She will be missed.

 

It was way too hot to go to the pool, even at 4pm. Walking the promenade after tea was torture, since there was barely a breeze and the waters were smooth as silk. During the Captain’s talk, he mentioned that tomorrow will be sunny and 98 degrees when we get to Yangon. And the worst part is we need to wear long pants and have our arms covered tomorrow on our tours for the next couple of days. If we were shorts, we will need a cover up at the very least to enter any temple grounds..

 

The movie in the Wajang Theater was Beyond Rangoon, a 1995 film. We will try to watch it tomorrow on TV, perhaps after dinner. Friends Alan and Sandra went to see it, and were both impressed with learning more about Burma…..the way it was, and the way it still remains today. Guess we should learn a lot more the next two days, since we will be spending many hours touring Yangon and Bago.

 

Spending a little time at the Ocean Bar, it was fun watching the dancing happening there. The dance hosts are not allowed to dance arm-in-arm with the ladies, however. Due to the dreaded bug, the only dances they can do are the ones that don’t require direct contact, such as country line dancing or the Bosa Nova, for instance. Passengers Dieter and Ilsa led many in some dance steps, as they were former teachers, as well as dance instructors on other cruise lines. We guess they may be in their 80’s, because they have been married for 60 years. And they still have the moves.

 

Dinnertime came right after the sunset, which wasn’t great, but it wasn’t bad. We had company tonight…..Tom M, our host, joined our group. The three of us had the BBQ chicken salad for our entrees, and we think we made the better choice. Since he knows most all of us well, he had a good time. All of us have long tours the next two days, so we headed off to bed. It should take 1 ½ hours to get to the center of Yangon, so we have time to relax on the bus going and coming back. Never been there before, and are looking forward to it. Thanks to friends who have been there before, we are armed with a better map and some excellent information. Should be good.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[cruz chic]

Thx for the update.

[freestyling]

Thanks for allowing me to ride-along on your world cruise. I'm having a great time.

[Bostonjetset]

I finally caught up!!

 

Thanks for chronicling your trip for all of us. It is such a pleasure to read. What an adventure you are having. I am MANY years away from retirement but a trip like this is definitely on my bucket list. Your writing style is wonderful; I feel [as I'm sure others do as well] as if I am right there with you guys! Safe travel! :D

[WCB]

Report # 71 Thilawa (Yangon), Myanmar March 10, 2015 Tuesday Partly sunny & 101 degrees

 

The Amsterdam arrived to the port of Thilawa for the city of Yangon, Myanmar quite early this morning. The Captain had said we had to go up the Rangoon River at a specific time due to tidal fluctuations. He also warned that it was going to be a very hot day, with temperatures in the low 100’s. He wasn’t kidding……it must have been in the 80’s by 8am.

 

Tourists have boycotted Myanmar for years, due to unrest regarding the oppressive military government. Those who have visited recently have nothing but praise for the kindness and hospitality of the Burmese people. Reportedly, in the backwaters of Myanmar, there is cultural richness. Their golden stupas look like giant candlesticks. Centuries-old way of life on the Ayeyarwady River still exists because of isolation. There is a huge contrast from this way of life to the 21st century citizens with cell phones email, and satellite dishes. We are warned that we, as travelers, are always under the watchful eye of the Junta, the military police, which tries to keep locals unaware of the outside world. And they want to keep the outside world unaware of human rights abuses inside the country. As we are writing this and watching BBC News, we were surprised to see a report on protests taking place in downtown Yangon this afternoon. Wondering why we were in such a gridlock of traffic, now we know. This is too close for comfort, we’re afraid.

 

The current capital of Myanmar is Nay Pyi Taw. The population of Myanmar is 48,137,741 with an area of 261,159 square miles. The official language is Burmese, and the children as young as five, must learn English. The best time to visit is during the cool season, November through February. We are here in their summer, March through May. And no doubt about it, it’s hot. Hot and dry.

 

Things to see include the Shwedagon Pagoda, the grandest monument in the Burmese world, the temples of Bagan, wonky bridges, hilltop stupas, motorized canoes, and the timeless pace of the outlying villages. Things to do include a cruise on the Ayeyarwady River on a decrepit boat, and shop for trinkets at the Scott Market. What’s there to eat? The Burmese canteen typically will have htamin (rice), hin (curries), peh-hin-ye (lentil soup), and balachaung ( fiery shrimp and chili paste). The drink favorites are Dagon, Myanmar or Spirulina Beers, which is said to have anti-aging properties. A three word description of Myanmar is “we are blessed”. And lastly, the Burmese kyat equals 1/7 of $1 US dollar. However, the black market value is 1000 kyat to the $1 US dollar. The ship’s card printed this conversion, so we guess it is legal.

 

Our 8 hour tour we booked for today was with our travel agency. Our destination was sight-seeing in Yangon, the name meaning “end of strife”. Don’t think they are quite there yet. This city alone has over 5 million people, although our guide said 7 million, and is built on the Yangon River. Most of the colonial part of the city, built by the British in 1885, is dilapidated architecture, now dwarfed by modern towers. The boulevards are wide, mixed with lots of greenery, with signs of Buddhism everywhere.

 

We left the ship at about 9am for the 20 mile drive that took about 1 ¼ hours to get to our first stop at the Shwedagon Pagoda. Meaning “golden hills”, this complex is built on Singuttara Hill with the main tower rising to 32o feet high. The most venerated feature of this stupa is that it holds 8 hairs pf the Buddha. The dome is covered with 70 tons of gold, said to weigh 100,000 pounds. The gilded crown is studded with rubies, sapphires, and topaz. The gold and silver weather vane has 1100 diamonds. The orb on the top is encrusted with 4350 small diamonds……..one of which is 76 carats. It is said to shine when the sun rises and sets every day. We arrived to this very crowded venue at 11 am.

 

Our driver dropped us off at the west gate, where we were required to take our shoes and socks off before entering the complex. We know this is regarded as respectful, but it is the only way you can get into the temple. The rules are even stricter, since you cannot wear shorts, sleeveless tops, and revealing clothing. This applies to both men and women. We can handle the clothing request, but the shoes off is something else. Oh well when in Rome, do as the Romans do. We had about an hour to explore on our own. First you climb a flight of stairs, then take three sets of escalators to the top. If you needed something to cover your legs, then you could rent a wrap-around skirt called a longyi. Our guide, Lay, had demonstrated his while we were on our way here. It is a tube of cotton cloth about 45 inches wide and four yards total circumference. It is pleated in front then tucked in at the waist. Most all of the older men wear them, as do the ladies.

 

Anyway, once through the entrance, the view of the pagoda was stunning. This complex was built 2500 years ago, and is surrounded with a series of temples and shrines with the stupa in the center. Eight small Buddha shrines are spaced around the temples, and named by the days of the week. The extra day is Wednesday morning and Wednesday afternoon. Why? We don’t know. Our guide did not escort us as a group, so we had no one to answer questions. We do know that if you happen to know what day of the week you were born, you would light a candle, say a prayer, and pour water over the shoulders of the Buddha on your day. Then you would be required to leave some money in the little glass temple box.

 

We got some fantastic photos of both the pagoda and the local people, who come here to pray and meditate. It was a good thing that the flooring was marble, mostly white in color, with green and maroon mixed in with it. The white color was much cooler on our feet, but not necessarily clean. We would find that out later. For some reason, our tour guide did not give us wipes for our feet, like the other guides did the other groups. Guess we had to ask. And he forgot to tell us there was a foot washing room next to the restrooms where we entered the complex. The hour was almost up, so it was time to head back, as we did not want to be the last ones to the bus. We left the pagoda grounds at 11:55am. This is where we ran into traffic trying to get out of the gates. There must have been a 20 minute wait for the light to turn green. Only a few vehicles at a time made it across the busy intersection. This would be a continuing occurrence from here on out today. It’s no wonder that motorcycles are not allowed in the inner city in Yangon. That would make traffic even worse, if that was possible.

 

It was around then that Henk, our host, asked to take a vote. Those who wanted to go to the National Museum, and those who did not. The majority voted for a no-go, since our time was getting away from us. That should have been the end of it, but a few folks did want to go, even if the time was cut short. So, that was the decision, and the rest of the guests said OK. What we did not know was that cameras would not be allowed inside at all. Neither were cell phones or ipads ,or anything that took photos. No large purses or bags were allowed inside. There was no way that we were going to leave our camera on the bus or in a locked locker inside the museum. Even Henk advised against it. So we stayed outside, taking pictures of the grounds and statues. On the property, were a couple of shops selling souvenirs. We did find a Myanmar flag pin, so the stop was not a total loss. As it turned out, we never did find these pins anywhere else we stopped. What did we miss? Our friends told us that they saw the highlight of the 26 foot high Lion Throne, the one used by the final King of Burma. The displays included jewel-crusted beds, silver and gold rugs, and ceremonial dresses. After 20 minutes, we left for the next venue……lunch.

 

Lunch turned out to be at a small restaurant called Padonmar, where we were escorted to pre-set tables for our two groups. The meal was OK, but not up to the standards of our travel agency’s usual fare. The menu included tofu shrimp crackers, vegetable soup, a straw-woven container of rice, chicken curry with boiled potatoes, and sliced tomatoes with onions. Very small plates of the food were placed between every four persons to share. Considering that we have been under the “no sharing” plates on the ship, we were reluctant to do this. Oh well, our buddy Mel said that if he was going to get sick, then we were going down with him. He is a kick. Anyway, the quart bottles of beer made us all happy. Henk had said that we were to get two bottles each, but that did not happen. You had to beg for it. The meal ended with a plate of fruit that included mango, melon, and watermelon. By the way, watermelons are abundant in this city, since they can be grown year round. And the slices were sweet as can be. We left this restaurant by 1:50pm.

 

Following lunch, we went to the Scott Market, which has the largest collection of Myanmar handicrafts that can be found in one place. But you would have a hard time finding everything, because there are over 2000 stalls. This market is 70 years old, and bustling with activities. We were given 40 minutes to do some shopping or window shopping. We did find a small shop that sold some interesting pre-cut lengths of sparkly embroidered chiffon with a silk underlay. Walking into the heart of the huge building, we took a left turn, and ran into the sewing area. There were tiny stalls filled with various bolts of fabric and trimmings. Local shoppers were choosing fabric, while the young seamstresses were creating clothing for them on the spot. Some of the stalls had as many as four girls sewing in a space 12 by 12 feet. They used regular, but older models of machines, as well as sergers, and irons. We must have watched a dozen gals creating unique clothing on demand. Not sure how much the ladies were paying, but it probably depended on the quality of the fabric used.

 

Other areas concentrated on jewelry, some 24 karat gold and real silver. It was difficult to locate many men’s shops, but we really did not have too much time to look. There was a food section for buying fresh fruit and veggies. Then there was the café-style take-away food. Some of the vendors did not mind their pictures taken, while others did not. And we respectively did not take those photos. This place was so large, we were concerned that some folks may get lost. However, if you follow the pitch of the high roof, you can find the entrance. Most of our group was waiting by the exit, so we left around 3:30pm.

 

Very close to the market, was the Sule Pagoda, another famous landmark, which is 2000 years old. We only had time for a drive-by. Then we stopped and got out of the bus in Independence Square, the Customs House, the High Court, and City Hall. Running around for 10 minutes, we got some good pictures, as well as some postcards and handmade cards from some young vendors. We left here at 3:45pm.

 

We had one last stop to make, and that was at a small handicraft shop called Pomelo. This stop was our “humanitarian” portion of the tour. There was a steep flight of stairs to get into this showroom. But it was worth it to see the crafts made by some disabled or poor young girls. Myanmar artists work with these young budding artisans, teaching them skills that help them overcome their situations. We did purchase a very nice beaded blue necklace with a matching bracelet. In addition to our purchases, a portion of the tour proceeds were donated to this organization. A win/win for all.

 

Even though the ride back was wracked with traffic jams, we got back to the pier by 6:30pm or so. Long day, but a memorable one. We joined our small group for dinner, and were happy to find Leslie and Handler had joined us. Most of their tablemates are away for 10 days, so they plan on coming to our table for several of those days.

 

Have to get some rest, because tomorrow will be another marathon day with a 10 hour tour. At some point, we may be saying……what were we thinking???? But how often will the ship stop in this port? Might as well see as much as we can, since we will be spending two nights here, as well as 2 ½ days.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[PathfinderEss]

Great updates, hope you enjoy your tours.

[DeeniEncinitas]

Enjoy your fantastic tour! WOW, would love to do this cruise!

Thankyou for your wonderful reports.

I so enjoy reading them.

Denise

[Bostonjetset]

Thanks for another fabulous update! Burma has definitely been on my list and your descriptions made me want to go even more!!

[WCB]

Report # 72 Thilawa (Yangon), Myanmar March 11, 2015 Wednesday Day Two Partly sunny & 102 degrees

 

Today would turn out to be a heck of a marathon one. We thought getting back to the ship last night was late. Well, today was even worse…..being delayed over two hours, arriving too late for our Pinnacle Grill dinner. However, we saw a lot despite the long hours.

 

To begin, we had booked this tour with our travel group, knowing that it should be better than the ship’s tour. Leaving the ship at 8am, we soon discovered that we were to have the same guide and bus. Lay, our guide from yesterday, was OK, but did not talk a whole lot. He also did not escort us at any venue, with explanations or answers to any questions we may have had. Oh well, it is what it is.

 

Reading the tour description better, we should have caught that the ride to Yangon is 1 ½ hours from the port. Then you had to add the 2 ½ hour from Yangon to Bago. Yep, four hours to go a total of 80 miles. That explains the type of roads they have here, as well as the traffic jams. Good thing our first pit stop was at a gas station half way to Bago. The city of Bago was once the glittering ancient capital of lower Myanmar. They were ruled by the Mon Dynasty from the 14th to the 16th centuries. In 825 AD, the Mons from China lived here and they called the city Pegu. Today ½ million people live here. Outside of town, they grow rice, peanuts, cashews, and make fish paste. Teak forests exist in the higher elevations, and have been over-harvested, leaving only 19% of them left. The trees are still harvested with the use of trained elephants.

 

Finally arriving to the city of Bago, our first stop was at the Kyakhatwaing Monastery, the largest monastery in lower Myanmar, arriving just before noontime. Originally, our first visit was supposed to be the cemetery, then the morning market at Htaukkyant. Our guide had decided to skip both, and possibly do them later. If we had arrived to the monastery well before noon, we would have had a chance to mingle with the monks, asking about their daily life and routine. It would have been nice to learn firsthand about their studies of Buddhist law and meditation. We understand that either 150, or 500, or 1000 monks live in this large complex. We tend to think the number is 1000. We had arrived at the tail end of the lunch time meal, where most of the monks had already eaten, and left for different parts of the building. There were a handful of monks (wearing flip flops, by the way) still eating lunch. We did get to see them sitting on the floor at round tables with one foot legs. Why we had to take off our shoes and socks, is a mystery. It had something to do with arriving after 12pm. Earlier, we could have kept the shoes on.

 

We should mention there were many dogs running around the monastery with puppies. Heaven knows what we were walking in. At one point, a motorcyclist passed by us in the main tiled entry. The floors were made of marble, but much of it was chipped and worn. You had to be most careful walking, avoiding stepping on the broken tiles. Bill stepped on something sharp, which was not a good thing. Lucky I had alcohol wipes to clean our feet after this visit.

 

Exploring the outer halls, we found the kitchen. The cooking had already been done, and they had some serious sized cooking pots, we assume for cooking rice and veggies. These pots were four foot in diameter, and three feet high. On one side was a wood-fired oven for cooking bread. Not sure how they heat the huge pots. On the other side of this room were the dishwashers. They were monks wearing their robes tied up around their legs. Looked like they were knee deep in soapy water, washing everyone’s plates and bowls. We are not sure if these monks are the same ones we saw walking the streets. They were getting food and water from the locals, as well as money. No matter what they are given, they have to eat it all. That would include rice, veggies, fruit, and meat from chickens, pork, or fish. Little beef is eaten here, because the cows and water buffalo are working animals, and are not killed. Since the noon bell had rung, the monks had to cease eating and drinking. They will not be allowed to eat until tomorrow morning at 5am.

 

All young boys are required to become a monk. Some are as young as 7 years old. Lay, our guide, had gone into the monastery at 7 or 8, not liking it too much. When a boy is older, he must go into the monastery once again. Lay went back in his early 20’s, but only lasted 7 days, because he said he likes to eat too much. Two meals a day was not working for him. So he left. Girls are allowed to become nuns. We saw a group of young girls ,dressed in pink longyis with their heads shaved. They seemed to shine when we took their picture. The boys are dressed in maroon robes, and are also shaved. Most kids their age, even the young ones, do not play, from what we saw. They work at an early age in Myanmar to help the family.

 

We had heard chanting when we entered the complex, but it had stopped by the time we left. The traffic going through Yangon had delayed our visit here.

 

Lunch was next at a 2 story place called Hanthawddy Restaurant. The rickety structure had stairs that led up to the second level. There would be no way out in case of an emergency or fire. We prayed that lunch would be swift. Especially the fireman who sat across from us. He noticed there were no sprinklers. We had shared plates again, like yesterday. The serving sizes were minimal, although the best item on the menu was the eggrolls. We were given a late of green bean salad, mixed vegetables, fried fish in curry that everyone thought was chicken, rice, and a plate of sliced fruit. We had our choice of drinks…..water, soda, wine, or beer. At least our group was friendly, and our host Henk, took charge and made sure everyone had enough food and drink. The beers were quart bottles of Myanmar Lager once again. We took the second bottle of beer back to the ship….no way were we going to try and drink two of those.

 

During lunch, there were TV’s overhead with the news turned on. Oddly enough, a newscaster was talking about last night’s demonstration in the city’s center. He said that 800 police were present to control a huge crowd of students, who were protesting. At least 100 of them were arrested. They were protesting against paying tuition for middle school and colleges. They want it for free. The government does not tolerate these demonstrations, and in the past, it has caused much resentment against the government.

 

Outside the restaurants, were a few shops and a ton of vendors. They were extremely pushy as they tried to sell fans, postcards, watercolor cards, paintings, Chinese folding hats, purses, and face cream. This cream is worn by all of the girls and women. Even some of the younger boys. It is made from the sap of a tree, and smeared on the face to use as a sunscreen. Most girls made a round circle of the yellow paste on their cheeks, making them look ghoulish. Some created designs and stripes and hearts. As for us, we did buy some postcards and watercolor notes, since they are all hand done, and quite useful. We left this venue by 1:45pm.

 

Ready for stop three. We drove to a Mon village, a typical countryside village by 3pm. We saw the weavers here, working on ancient bamboo looms. Most all of the weavers were young girls. It is a very labor-intensive job from what we saw. Child labor comes to mind seeing it demonstrated. We waited until the majority of ladies made their purchases of fabric. Stopping back before we left, we bought two lengths of fabric, and can assume from looking closely at it, are convinced it was made here by hand. They are big enough for the longyi, but would I wear that at home? Probably not. A tunic sounds much more practical.

 

There should have been a cigar rolling demonstration in this village, but we saw none. Our guide was strolling by himself, not showing us around the village. We earned later back at the ship, that the cigar rolling was being done in some of the wooden houses along the road. Guess the HAL group had gotten here earlier, and now the folks were napping or something. This should have been a 20 minute visit, but it was 45 minutes. Most all of the folks had gotten back on the cool bus and waited for the rest of us.

 

We still had the reclining Buddha to see, so we left for the drive to the Shwethalyaung Reclining Buddha, housed under a roof to protect it. This Buddha is over 180 feet long, 52 feet high, and rests on a 5 foot platform made of brick. Only Bill went up to see it to take photos. He had to take off his shoes again. One of us stayed back, since the Buddha could be seen from the outside through the wrought iron fencing. As expected, the floor was very soiled. There were piles of bird dropping on one side of the marble flooring, which required an alcohol wipe to clean the feet. Can’t be too careful.

 

Next to this complex is the 1000 year old Schwemawdaw Pagoda which started out at 70 feet. Eventually, it was enlarged to 348 feet in 1954. Higher than Yangon’s Shwedagon Pagoda, this one has relics of Buddha hair enshired in it. It is one of the most famous of Myanmar’s pagoda.

 

We all begged to make a photo stop at the newer reclining Buddha right next to the one we just saw, This Buddha was outdoors and was much nicer looking. We had 10 minutes there before we left. Funny thing is this Buddha’s photo was in our travel agency’s booklet, not the one described in the tour. At least we got to see it.

 

It was getting much later than expected, but we did make a pit stop at a very nice restaurant along the roadside. We all voted to go there for lunch if we ever come back to Myanmar. Right near this restaurant were a series of tented dried tree trunks with some roots attached. Wood carvers were creating pieces of art with each huge hunk. Some of their work was displayed in the restaurant such as tables and chairs. Wish we had time to see more, but we were already running late, and had another stop to make.

 

This would be the World War 2 Cemetery on the outskirts of Yangon. It contains 27,000 graves of Allied soldiers who died in the Burma and Assam campaigns during that period. It was a beautiful setting, well-kept, and manicured. It was also quite moving to read some of the tombstones of the British, Burmese, and Indian recruits, most of them under the age of 40. We all had 20 minutes to walk through this cemetery. At least the sun was going down by now, and the breeze had picked up, cooling it off a tad.

 

The drive back to the pier was torture, taking twice as long as coming here. We weren’t sure if there was another demonstration, or this was just normal commuter traffic. One of the passengers on the bus yelled to our guide (who must have been sleeping), that if we time it right, we should see the Shwedagon Pagoda all lit up. Well guess what? We did, even though it was from a distance of a mile or so, it was impressive to see. What was not impressive, was moving 20 feet every 20 minutes, waiting for traffic lights to change at four way intersections. The infrastructure for the overwhelming traffic has to be dealt with in the future, if Myanmar wants to promote tourism. Lay said that overpasses are in the future plans, but probably done mostly by hand. That may take a loooooong time, but it does put many people to work.

 

So, we missed our Pinnacle Grill dinner reservations by too much, so we called immediately to inform them we cancelled. This may have given them a chance to close early, and take the crew bus back to Yangon for a special tour. The Lido was opened for snacks from 9pm to 11:30pm, but we chose to call in a room service order of Caesar salads, and swiss cheese burgers. Despite the number of folks coming back late like us and getting room service food, our order was delivered within a half hour. And it was excellent…..best burgers on the ship.

 

Looking forward to tomorrow, even though the ship will be in port until 1pm, we do not intend to leave the vessel.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[erewhon]

Thank you for your interesting reports.

[WCB]

Report # 73 Thiwala (Yangon), Myanmar March 12, 2015 Thursday Day Three Partly sunny & 103 degrees

 

This third day in Yangon’s port was not supposed to happen. Originally, the plan was to leave the pier by 5 or 6am. However, with the recent deletions of ports in Egypt, we ended up staying longer here, as well as going to two ports in Israel, and another one in Sicily. Being up a river here, you have to plan your escape with the tides. Too low, and you cannot sail out of the harbor. That is what happened today. By noontime, we could see the banks of the river turn into mud. Actually the entire river is silty, much the same as the mighty Amazon. Several rivers converge in Yangon, and dump into the Rangoon River, compounding the muddiness. Now the one question on everybody’s minds was, why did they not know this before they changed our sail away time? Usually tides are predictable and well charted. But what do we all know???

 

We had absolutely no plans on going ashore today. In fact, we have not have mentioned this, but there is nothing on shore except the riverbanks and taxis outside the gate. It is truly a working port large enough for a shuttle to be provided to the port gate. Once outside the gate, you are on your own. There was a last minute tour added for this morning, but we doubt many folks took it. If they had toured for two days, like we had, no way would you want to go out again. The general consensus is that once you have been here and seen it, once is enough. It would be interesting to come back in ten years for instance, just to see if there is progress in the tourism area.

 

We had so much catching up to with photos and reports, we enjoyed the downtime in our room doing it. Actually, it is Friday now, and we are still running behind. Glad to have a few sea days to relax. Anyway, the sail away was held on the aft deck with the band and singer present at noon to 1pm. At least a breeze had popped up, and it helped to cool everything off. The lines were dropped, and we sailed about 20 yards into the center of the river with the band playing “Anchors Away”. Then, we dropped the anchor and sat, spinning around in the river current until 4:30pm. The Captain had come on for his PM talk, and explained that the river was far too low to get out of the opening. So we had to clear our space at the pier for another ship to dock. It could have been a car carrier or something big like that. So this was the speediest sail away ever…….20 yards.

 

Continuing on with our work, we watched a movie while doing the computer jobs. Then finally stopped for a lunch break by 4pm. By 4:30pm the ship began its exit out of the river, so we made our way up to the bow, and watched from there. It was not the nicest of sailing out to sea, in this muddy river with floating garbage. No matter where you looked, the air had that heavy look of pollution. So much that you could smell it outside and even inside the ship, because we had been docked there for over 48 hours. Even by dinnertime, we could see the murky water even though we were out to sea.

 

The only other job we had for today was filling out landing cards and info for our arrival to India. Although we will not be going to Mumbai, but will be on an overland trip, we still were advised to fill out the paperwork. Never know what the officials will require. Hopefully they don’t get their wires crossed, and are looking for us on the ship.

 

Since today’s port was still technically Yangon, we thought we would add a few facts that we gathered over the last couple of days. So here we go……..

 

The local women shop for food twice a day, since they have no refrigerators for the most part.

 

Both husbands and wives work these days to make ends meet. If there are children, they are watched by the grandparents who live with them in the same house. It is much the same in most Asian countries.

 

There are no streets lights during this time of year, because the rivers are low, and they depend on hydroelectric power from the dams. When everything dries out from the lack of rain, they pray for it to come back.

 

During the worst monsoon season back in 2008, over 200,000 farmers died during a massive cyclone that hit here. There was much destruction from flooding in the low lying cities and countrysides.

 

Cigarette manufacturers and liquor companies are not allowed to advertise in Myanmar. Both are problematic with the health of the Myanmar people.

 

They are able to grow three crops of rice annually, and most of it is exported to China and Japan.

 

Teak lumber was exported raw in the past. Now they figured out that if the wood is made into the finished product in Myanmar, they command much higher prices for it. A little late, since only 19% of the teak forests exist today. It takes 30 years for a teak tree to mature before it is harvested.

 

Watermelons are grown year round in Myanmar. They are stacked in roadside stands and sold by the thousands. They are both cheap and very delicious.

 

Our guide, Lay, said that the crime rate is low in this country, with the exception of the Golden Triangle, where opium is still prevalent. He also stated that the government is the highest crime in the country. He better watch his back if he continues his side comments. Remember, the junta is watching.

 

And lastly, hospitals are not like the ones we know at home. Here you may get a rusty iron bed, with no linens or toweling. You must bring it all with you. The level of care leaves much to be desired. Not a good place to get ill, not that any place is a good one to get sick.

 

Dinner was back to normal this evening, with the addition of three guests. Leslie and Handler joined us as well as a friend of Martha’s. We had all done different tours in Myanmar, so the evening was fun with the sharing of stories. The general agreement was that none of us want to remove our shoes and socks anymore on any other tour.

 

To make up the lost time by staying late, the Captain is doing over 20 knots to get us to Colombo, Sri Lanka on time on Sunday. Hope it works.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 74 Sailing Towards Colombo, Sri Lanka March 13, 2015 Friday Partly Sunny & 82 degrees

 

Things are not as rosy as you would like them to be, whether on a Grand cruise or otherwise. Or perhaps because it’s Friday, the 13th, all did not go so well today. But we’ll get into that later. Most of the day was OK.

 

It was very obvious to us that the ship was going between 21.6 to 22 knots as we head towards Sri Lanka. To make up the time, that speed is necessary to keep on schedule. Hopefully, the currents are in our favor, or else the distance would be not do-able.

 

We got another letter about the health situation on the ship. Since the staff is seeing a vast reduction in the number of passengers reporting to the infirmary, they have relaxed a few of the services that have been suspended. This includes re-opening the thermal suite and the saunas, as well as the self-service laundries. The dance hosts can resume their duties, and the paddle, board, and card games can continue. The full service will continue in the Lido, but the books and magazines will not be available. Jacuzzis will remain closed, and no handshaking is allowed at social gatherings. So this virus is not going away anytime soon, in our humble opinion.

 

It was pure heaven to put on our swimwear and head for the back deck. The worst of the humid sticky heat was mostly gone, and the breeze was blowing nicely across the decks. This would be the nicest part of our day, even though we had been invited to the Captain’s Dinner in the Pinnacle Grill this evening. That should have been the highlight of the day.

 

During the afternoon, we lost the TV signal that provided some of the news stations. Either they are working on it, or we are getting into a black out area. Luckily, it did not last all night.

 

Anticipating the meal that the guests were served at this dinner a few weeks ago, we decided to forgo lunch, and have a simple snack in our room. We knew from past dinners, the hors d’oeuvres would be the best part of the meal. If we planned it right, we would be among the last to enter the Wajang Theater, where this cocktail party would take place. That way, we could congregate near the preparation counter, where the food was being cooked and plated. Coming into the room too early, you are escorted to the top of the Wajang Theater, where most of the food is not served. By the time the waiters make their way to the top, the platters are empty.

 

Tonight was a formal evening labeled as The White Night, symbolizing purity and elegance by wearing all white clothing. Hey, we don’t write this stuff, we only quote it as it is written. Wearing all white means you better be darn careful what and how you eat this evening, or you may be wearing it down the front of your pure and elegant gowns and jackets. Not everyone was willing to take that chance because we saw all colors of dresses, pant suits, and tuxedos and suits and ties. Some ladies do go to extremes in the “dress up” department. Looks a little bit like prom night in high school, even though the majority of folks are well past that stage in life. Ridiculous….yes, but oh so fun to watch.

 

The festivities began at 6pm with cocktails and special hors d’oeuvres in the Wajang Theater. This part of the evening usually lasts for ½ hour, which is sufficient time to mingle, enjoy a drink, and sample some very good treats. We walked in with most of our dinner group towards the end of the line, which time wise was about 6:05pm. Ordering something other than wine or champagne, we had to wait for our drinks. So we squeezed our way into the room and headed for the counter. Just the way we had planned. We watched one of the chefs slicing a beef filet into bite-size pieces. The meat had been marinated, then wrapped in prosciutto, and baked in a hot oven for 15 minutes. Served quite rare, the meat melted in our mouths. Excellent. And since we had gone without lunch, we savored every bite. Also being sauteed, were large shrimps with tons of garlic. Trays of those got passed around, but somehow missed our table. Standing at a small round table with two other guests, we chatted with the ship’s crew doctor, who was very friendly and informative. We discussed the differences with the NORO virus and bacterial maladies. Basically, there are no differences in the symptoms, but a major difference with how the disease is spread. Viruses are extremely difficult to control, despite all the measures they are taking. He also gave us some good tips for our overland trip in India. Captain Jonathon had also joined our group, but could not get a word in edgewise, due to a passenger who talked so much, she never came up for air. Every trip has a number of these folks.

 

Anyway, the party was cut short, when we were reminded to exit the room around 6:20pm. Guess we needed to be seated in the Pinnacle Grill by 6:30pm. Why, we don’t know. The restaurant is closed to the public for the entire evening anyway. So we were seated with four friends…Barb, Don, Ed and Jan with Peter, the purser for our host. Great table. Now this is where things began to go awry. One of us does not drink wine, so every year at this event, we ask for another cocktail, and receive it without question. This time, one of the wine stewards (we did not recognize him) turned us down, saying only white or red wines were available. We asked him to talk to his boss, and he said he would. Well, he never did, leaving us waiting for the drink. Peter finally called the fellow over and told him straight out to bring the drink. Again, it did not come, even with the demand from an officer. Also, we had said we would be happy to pay for the drink. It was not a problem. That went ignored. We would have let it slide, but Peter, would not let it go. After all, now this was an insult to all of us. We have to add that the wine was not being poured for the rest of the table as well. After 10 minutes of waiting, Peter got up, and excused himself. Unknowing to us, he had gone up to deck five and the Ocean Bar, ordered Bill’s drink, and came back down to give it to him. If Bill had been seated on the end of the table, he could have done that himself. We thanked him for going the extra mile, but we are certain someone’s going to hear about this tomorrow. That is no way to treat your customers or your superior officer. And at this point, Peter summoned the cellar master to fill the glasses of wine, and keep it coming all evening. It was very obvious that they were understaffed at this affair.

 

Things got even stranger when the food started to arrive. Talking to friends a few weeks ago that attended this dinner, we were expecting a totally different menu. What was served was foie gras mousse and blueberry gel, sprinkled with crispy prosciutto ham. This came inside a tiny jam jar, like a lidded canning jar. Following that was a bowl of fluffy white tomato veloute or soup. That was tasty. We waited what seemed like forever to be served the second course. We were having fun visiting with everyone, but it appeared our table in the corner was not being served as quickly as the surrounding ones. Again, not enough servers for the amount of diners

 

Eventually, a black slate of food was served. This contained a piece of black cod, a scallop ravioli, with cauliflower cream, fennel, and crustacean reduction. This was toxic for one of us, so it had to be sent back. Normally, we check out the menu a few days before the dinner, but we made the wrong assumption that the food would be the same. What we had forgotten was that the head chef in the Pinnacle Grill had left in Singapore, and we had a new guy now. That explains the changes. I said thanks, but no thanks, do not bring a substitute. That would delay the serving progress even more. So what happened? They brought a slate full of chicken slices with the same crustacean reduction. Oh no, had to send it back. Two minutes later, when all were done with this course, another slate came with the chicken with a non-crustacean sauce. I downed it swiftly without choking. A spoonful of a mojito sphere was served, which was a balloon-type edible thing filled with a tart lime juice. It did explode in our mouths, which we luckily kept our mouths closed, or we would have been wearing the green liquid down the front of our outfits. Peter warned us NOT to drink it down with wine…..conflict of taste big time.

 

Then we waited and waited. The entrée would come someday, we joked. The very hot plates arrived with a pile of oxtail terrine. You ask, what is that? Well, from the looks of it, we would say it was last night’s oxtail entrée, pulled off of the bones, mixed with a sauce, then piled on the plate. It looked like cat food, no kidding. Five of us thought it must have tasted like cat food, not that we eat that often, but our cats in the past have. Ha-ha! The potato square was good, called pomme dauphinoisse. Not sure where the carrot crème, hazelnut, demi-glace was, but we suspect it was the smear on the bottom of the plate. Unfortunately, five of our group left the majority of the food on the plate, saying it was inedible. We did eat most of it, because we were hungry. Peter chastised us, so some of the leftovers were distributed on our plates too. Guess we had to stand together.

 

Dessert was better……a marinated plate of strawberries with aceto gelato…..a shot glass full of melted ice cream. A skinny tower of gold painted chocolate was filled with diced strawberries and cream. Coffee probably followed, but Ed and Jan wanted to leave. By now, it was 9:30pm. Never have we taken so much time to eat so little. Normally these dinners are over in two hours. Don and I were having back problems, so the three of us excused ourselves. With that, Tina, the manager, came running with our gifts. We explained about the muscle cramps, and she understood, although she would not know about the rest of the fiasco until later that night.

 

The gifts were two rubber-capped Royal Goedewaggen ceramic drink mugs, decorated with the 2015 World Cruise itinerary map. They are heavy, and will never be used as a coffee mug as they are breakable. Peter remarked that the box was nice. He is one funny man. Anyway, they are a nice HAL souvenir to add to the collection at home.

 

The entertainer was Gary Arbuthnot, an international virtuoso, who performed incredible music scores from movies, Broadway, and opera. But we did not attend.

 

The best thing of the day was the extra hour we turned back on the clock tonight. And so much for our Friday, the 13th.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 75 Sailing Towards Colombo, Sri Lanka March 14, 2015 Saturday Partly cloudy & 85 degrees

 

Today the temperature was up and so was the humidity. Walking outside was like walking into a sauna. At least the dining room was cool with the shades drawn to keep out the strong morning rays of the sun. Yesterday, the Captain had predicted rain, but if it was going to shower, it was probably later in the day. The skies were mostly sunny.

 

Breakfast was good this morning, more so because of our skimpy dinner last night. We did not order room service burgers like some of the folks said they were going to do after the dinner in the Pinnacle Grill. We had decided not to say anything about the situation, since it was a weird one. Perhaps the word would be given among the officers regarding the slow service with the wine serving and lost drink order. However, while we were almost through with breakfast, Tina, the Pinnacle manager, came over and apologized for the disappointing dinner. It was not until after the seven of us left the table, that she realized no one, except us, had eaten the entrée. When we stated that was only the half of the story, she looked puzzled. No one had mentioned the bar staff misunderstanding, since Peter had left with us as well last night. When we explained the embarrassment that was caused by the refusal to either pour the wine or not bring the cocktail we ordered, she was shocked. She said that never should have happened and apologized profusely. We felt she needed to be aware of what was happening in her restaurant. She thanked us, and said she would look into it, so as not to have it repeated again at the next Captains dinners. That was good enough for us.

 

We did our usual walk around the promenade, finding it sticky and hot. Not too many people were sitting in the lounges, leading us to wonder if more people have fallen ill. Just about then, Captain Jonathon came on the speakers with a general request for anyone who was experiencing any symptoms of the GI illness, please go to the infirmary for medication. What many passengers don’t realize is that once you are seen for this illness, you will be quarantined for at least 48 hours. Being that more cases have popped up again, he said that not everyone was complying with this order. This is the first time ever that a Captain has had to beg the folks to wash hands and do Purell. We did notice several cabins on our floor being super-cleaned and even sprayed from floor to ceiling with an electric sprayer. Hope this does not turn into the situation on the Prinsendam in 2010, where we were in code red for almost a month. Do you know that if a large percentage of the ship has the virus, we can be denied docking in many ports? We are being so careful washing our hands constantly, using the disinfectant, trying not to touch surfaces, because we will be leaving the ship in a few days. The last thing we need is to leave here sick.

 

Barbara H. gave her talk on Cochin this morning. She has been under the weather as well, with a cold, sore throat, cough, and loss of her voice. Hope the antibiotics help her soon.

 

The new chef, Jeejo, prepared some exotic Indian dishes in the Culinary Center this morning. Perhaps we will watch this later on TV, since we may be eating some of these dishes while we are at the safari camp. Should be part of the adventure.

 

There was a horse race at the Lido pool this afternoon. Cruise Director Gene held this exhilarating event and took bets on your favorite horse. Not sure if this was a DAM dollar event, since we did not know anyone who went to it.

 

Guest speaker, Roberta Sloan, talked about the influence of Saturday Night Live on comedy in America. This is a very different subject for this cruise.

 

A good movie was shown in the Wajang Theater today……Wild, with Reese Witherspoon. Will definitely have to watch it tomorrow, because we are sure it will be a movie we will enjoy.

 

This evening, we were invited to a special event just for the Presidents Club members. The Captain and Henk, our Cruise Director invited the members and their families to a :”Sunday Roast” in the Irish Officers Pub, located on deck A. Our small group was enticed to eat, drink, mix, and mingle with the staff to our heart’s desire. Now, what was this all about, we wondered? We met at midship deck one, where a door was opened for us to go down a flight of stairs. Last year, we did come down to this deck with Shiv, the Head of Housekeeping. But we did not see this private section reserved for the officers. The pub had been recently remodeled, and looked just like one you might find anywhere in any city. With a little imagination, you could be onshore somewhere.

 

Small tables were set with silverware and napkins with fake candles in the middle. Most were tables for two, some for four. We took one for four, where Barb joined us for what we thought would be snacks and pre-dinner cocktails. One of us ordered whiskey, while the other ordered a very nice Scotch, which they did not stock in the bar. Oh no…..hope this does not turn out like last night. Several bar people did keep asking to bring me a drink, but I said the order was in, and it was coming soon. Yeah, heard that before. No, tonight was different, because the drink did arrive and from the looks of it, it was a double. While we waited, several officers as well as the head chef came over for a chat. They were followed by Gene Y. who stayed and talked to us about the officers we all know on the Statendam. In particular, he knew Rick Barnes, the , and Randall Corcoran, the Hotel Director. He has worked with them before, and agreed they were both talented and also close friends. He had no idea where they would be re-assigned when that ship is sold. Perhaps the new ship, we think.

 

While we were talking, Presti came by and told us they had a dinner prepared for us, and would we like it now. Well, that was unexpected. Here we thought a few snacks were coming, since the designated time at this party was only one hour. A plate full of food was served to each of us. It was truly a Sunday dinner, only served on Saturday, and contained sliced roast beef……deliciously seasoned tenderloin , with side vegetables of Brussel sprouts, carrots, potatoes, and turnips. A huge gravy-filled Yorkshire pudding was so large it covered half the plate. Maureen, who is British by birth, had explained what a true Yorkshire pudding should be , instead of the dry one we usually get some nights with prime rib. This was filled with a savory beef gravy, and tasted so much better. We thought of her as we enjoyed every bite of food. Drinks were offered for the entire hour, although one was enough for one of us. Don’t like the headache the next day. Never did. Only had it once, and once was quite enough, thank you.

 

During the meal, Henk, our Hotel Director, joined us, sitting down for the remaining time. He was very interested in hearing about last night’s dinner. Once again, he knew nothing of the mix up with the drinks. As always, he brought out his pad and pen, and proceeded to take notes. Truthfully, we were not even going to go there, but he asked. He was totally unaware of the incidence, and promised to make good on a resolution. We did not ask for this, but he promised a re-do on the dinner for our whole table. If everyone is in agreement, we shall do it again before the cruise is over. Fair enough. Only we sure hope that the menu will be more conventional like filet mignon or lamb chops. Something elegant, but easy. Henk promised Barb a handful of caviar and excellent red wine. That made her day. Henk has always gone the mile for us as well. He’s one of the good guys.

 

The final touch to the evening was a goblet filled with strawberry jello with fruit, topped with a pile of rich, creamy whipped cream. On the very top, was a triangle of that gold-decorated chocolate candy sticking in the center. It was decadent, and we ate all of it, except one of us. It was well past 8pm, and we had not informed our tablemates that we would be eating elsewhere, since we did not know that last night. The room was emptying by 8:15pm, so we followed everyone out. There was a very nice, but older waiter who often helps out at ur large table in the dining room during dinner. He was our greeter here, and also escorted us to the elevator out. But along the way, he insisted we see the crew mess hall and their rec room. Obviously, these fellows eat in shifts, because there were not hundreds of chairs there. The rec room had more tables and chairs with a pool table and a soda machine. Nice of the waiter to show us around. Since few passengers ever enter these rooms, the staff members that were in there, were very happy to see us there. Nice to be treated special, we are liking this Presidents Club thing.

 

We headed off to our table in the dining room, escorting one of our friends. All she needed was a man’s arm to hold on to, and we were happy to help. Leslie and Handler were guests again, and did appreciate the fact we came to join them, even though we did not eat a dinner. Now dessert was a different thing. Jello with fruit, and an apple concoction worked out well. We were all finished by 9:15pm, and left for our rooms. Think we are all still tired from two days in Myanmar.

 

Tomorrow’s port will be Colombo, Sri Lanka, where we have a tour that will take us south of the city to an old fort. We will be able to keep our shoe and socks on. Great.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[SilvertoGold]

Thanks for the description of the Captain's Dinner. Hard to describe how surreal this was to read.

 

A bit of a stretch that the HD did not know about this. I would have thought Peter the Purser would have said something. Nevertheless, I am glad to hear of the resolution!

 

Wonderful posts - thanks for doing them so interestingly and diligently.

[cruz chic]

Thx for the updates. I enjoyed them.

[tommui987]

Does WCB have a webpage for his photos? (I don't use Facebook).

[WCB]

Report # 76 Colombo, Sri Lanka March 15, 2015 Sunday Chance of rain & 88 degrees

 

The port of call for today was the city of Colombo, Sri Lanka (formerly called Ceylon). It has a total area of 25,325 square miles, and has a population of 21,324,791 people. The commercial capital of the country is Colombo, while the administrative capital is Jayewardenepura in Kotta. They speak Sinhalese, Tamil, and English. Associated with political turmoil, things have settled down over the years. We were here on a world cruise on the Seabourn Sun in 2001, and were surprised to see many armed-to-the-hilt military soldiers everywhere in the city and the country sides. Groups of them were hiding behind piles of sandbags on the roadsides. We thought, “What the heck are we doing here?” Had we done our homework, we should have known that at that time there were skirmishes with the Tamils, bordering civil war. Well, we made it the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage and back, and all turned out OK. It was a fabulous day. Little did we know back then, we would be making several more visits here in the course of traversing the globe.

 

Sri Lanka means auspicious island in Sinhalese. It’s completely a tropical paradise, shaped like a teardrop. What do you find here? Beaches, Ceylon tea plantations, historic cities, fresh coconuts on the beach, and leopards in the jungle, to name a few. The Elephant Sanctuary at Pinnawela is a wonderful place to visit.

 

Speaking of visits, what’s the best time? December through March is best to avoid the monsoons. And what is there to see? Museums, monuments, colonial buildings, and the frenetic city of Colombo. There are super-sized Buddhas, ruined palaces, the Dutch colonial past of historic Galle, and the long ride to Kandy and the Temple of the Tooth. We have also visited that famous area many years ago. Have not seen tis itinerary on the shore excursion list for many years now. When we did it, we got back to the ship 2 hours late. Thank goodness they had waited, and actually greeted our group with umbrellas because it was raining when we got back. That is, one crew member with an umbrella for each of the forty-five passengers on the bus. Things to do here include enjoying the sparkling sands of Sri Lanka’s beaches, dipping your toes into the warm Indian Ocean. A visit to Yala National Park could give you the chance to see wild leopards and elephants. What are the favorite things to eat here? “Hoppers”, delicious pancakes made from fermented rice and coconut milk. They love spicy rice, coconut milk, curries, pickles, chutneys, and crab, which is abundantly caught here. A dish called Kottu is widely eaten. It is made with veggies, eggs, and cheese, with something called parantha bread. What about drinks? There is toddy, a local wine made from fermented palm nectar from the palm tree blossoms. The stems of the flowers are tipped upside down, and the nectar drips into bowls. To take this a step further, this wine is distilled and bottled. It is called arrack, and it is a potent alcoholic drink.

 

Finally, here is a random fact about Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka gave the world cinnamon - the island has been trading this delectable spice since at least 2000 BC. Incredible.

 

One other tidbit is about the buying of gemstones. According to Barbara H.’s talk, unless you know your gemology regarding rubies, sapphires, emeralds and topaz, don’t buy them here in the open market. Go to a qualified seller, or better yet, buy them at home where these stones are certified. If you get too good of a deal, you are more than likely buying an expensive piece of glass.

 

Well, on with our tour. We booked an 8 hour excursion with our travel group, mostly because the last three times we were here, we took the same tour each time. That one stayed in the city of Colombo, and ended with a lovely visit for tea and sandwiches at the Kingsbury Hotel. It was great, but we wanted to get out into the country. So we went with 50 other folks to Galle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, 73 miles south of Colombo. Probably a 2 ½ hour ride. Our guide’s name was Pria, and he spoke wonderful English, and was quite informative as we started our long ride south.

 

He began telling us that most of the citizens were Singhalese Buddhists – 74%, with the rest Muslim, Tamil and Christian. Slavery existed here before the British arrived. As we started across the city, we saw a flock of pelicans flying over the lake. They are there, in the same place, every year. The bus drove past a series of landmark buildings and monuments as we got closer to the major highway that would take us to Galle. Even though today was Sunday, and the traffic was light, it still took us over an hour to drive through Colombo.

 

Pria spoke about many things, but the ones we remember are about the weather. It rains mostly in the higher mountains. The average yearly rainfall is over 4 meters. There are four major rivers on the island, but in the areas that are dryer, they have water collection tanks for fresh water. We saw many of these tanks on rooftops in Colombo.

 

There are 25,000 junior monks in Sri Lanka. Their ages range from 5 to 20 years old. The five laws of Buddhism are simple……….do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not lie, and do not drink alcohol to excess. Pria admitted that the last law is sometimes ignored or bent a little.

 

School is compulsory from 5 to 16 years old. Only 10% of the students will be able to pass the test to go further with their education.

 

The national tree is the Sri Lankan ironwood. Many carvings are made from this hardwood. We did see some of these masks, fishermen, elephants, boxes, and bowls made from this wood. All of it was pretty expensive, depending on where you buy it.

 

One of the industries here are taxi drivers or tuk-tuk drivers. You see them everywhere by the dozens. Once a fellow saves up enough to buy the motorized three-wheeled vehicle, he goes to work driving the locals anywhere they need to go. They are a cheap way to travel, and also a very dangerous way to go.

 

We began getting too much static on the bus speakers, so we decided to use the VOX system instead. These were not working two days ago, but did better today. We finally reached the toll highway by 9:30am. Once again, there was little traffic, and the going was easy….a little slow, but good enough to get us to Galle on time. Our guide continued educating us on Sri Lanka.

 

The big holidays here are the Lunar New Year, sometime around April 14th, whenever the moon is full. The Buddhist belief is to forgive and forget, and start the new year fresh. Easier said than done, but good suggestion anyway. The first full moon in May is also a big holiday. Locals decorate everything, cook tons of food, and bring it out for all to share…..for free.

 

Women have babies at home with the help of midwives. Now we are not sure if this applies to the city ladies, or the country folk. The Buddhist ways dictate that dead bodies of family members must be kept in the home in a casket for seven days. They light oil lamps, and open all the windows. Then they are cremated. However, they are not allowed to be brought out on a Tuesday or a Friday. Again, no one asked why? Perhaps because most of the folks were asleep in the front of the bus. All other religions bury their dead within 24 hours.

 

On a lighter subject, the ride south was very pleasant as we passed plantations of rubber trees, which had been planted by the British. Most all of the tea, coffee, and cinnamon plantations were up higher in the mountains. Our guide said that the higher the tea and coffee trees are grown, the better the quality. We did see rice fields that had been harvested already. Rice was being dried on blue tarps on the roadsides to get the hottest of the sun. It also gets the dust and dirt from the wind and traffic. Oil palms are also grown for their palm oil. Coconuts are a big business as they can be used completely. The leaves are woven and used for roofs. The wood from the trunk is cut into rafters….some have lasted for 100 years. The husks produce rope, carpets, and handicrafts. The meat from coconut is used in most all dishes and the milk is in everything. It has no cholesterol, and helps to keep the heat of spicy food edible. There are 61 varieties of bananas, too. It is said that the nutritional value of a banana is suitable as a total food for humans, although we would never try that.

 

They got snakes here. Out of the 83 types of snakes in Sri Lanka, 5 or most lethal. Among those are the cobras and vipers. In 1999, over two thousand snake bites were reported. In a typical year, 400 to 600 deaths occur from these bites. The most incidents occur with the farmers and workers in the plantation and rice fields.

 

We saw a Buddhist Temple on the way where young children were attending Sunday school. The kids go for the morning hours.

 

Around 10am, the bus pulled into a very civilized pit stop off of the highway. This wasn’t just a bathroom stop, but a building full of small cafes and shops. There was another identical one on the opposite side of the highway as well. The parking lot was set up for dozens of buses and cars. Since there were two sets of restrooms, our stop was brief. Too bad, because one of the shops was selling some very nice wood carvings that we really did not need. Always nice to look however.

 

Continuing on, our guide said there are only 6000 wild elephants left on the island. Locals can hunt wild boar, but the meat has to be shared with others, or there is a $250 fine for each incident. Having eaten wild boar, we would be quite happy to share our portion with a charitable organization.

 

Animals that can be found on the island are elephants, leopards, sloth bear, sambar, spotted deer, mouse and barking deer, porcupine, ant-eater, civet cats, giant squirrels, and monkeys. Abundant sealife includes whales - blue, sperm, killer, and pilot. Dolphins and turtles can be seen year round. And there are 233 species of birds, and 171 retiles, including crocs.

 

Malaria does exist, but locals can get shots for it. That reminds us…..we need to begin our anti-malarial meds tomorrow. India is around the corner, so to speak.

 

The biggest event on the way to Galle was seeing a very large monitor lizard crossing the highway, making it across in the nick of time. We also spotted several colorful kingfishers on the high wires, but the bus was going too fast to get good photos.

 

We arrived to the city of Galle at 11am. We would have a stop at Oak-Ray Anchorage Wood Carving Restaurant to have tea, coffee, and a snack. Basically, this was a pit stop before going into the fort. Gosh, the people on both buses whined because there were a series of steps to go up and down to get to the patio for tea. Can’t say we blame them……this should have been mentioned in the tour description. Several folks had canes and disabilities that prevented them from going up. Sadly, the refreshments were not served downstairs in the shop. Nor could they visit the restrooms. We all were back to the bus at 11:45, all except one man. He was buying jewelry in a shop somewhere, and did not get a great welcome when he came back at noon….late.

 

We arrived at Galle Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, at 12:30pm. Dozens of buses were parked near the entrance. It was obvious that this was a major tourist destination with many people inside. Luckily the bus drove inside the gate, and went full-circle around the 91 acre fort complex. Our guide pointed out the highlights, then they took us to a museum. Personally, we are really big on museums, but if it is small and a short duration, we don’t mind. Well this one was so small, we lasted inside 15 minutes. Not 45 minutes as suggested by our guide. Now there seemed to be a conflict about this museum, after we re-read the tour description in our booklet. The old museum had been destroyed by the 2004 tsunami, and was re-built by the Dutch government over a 3 year span. Now housed in the fort’s Dutch warehouse, we should have seen exhibits of marine artifacts that were recovered during the underwater expeditions. There were items that included artillery guns, shoes, earthenware, smoking pipes, ropes, and maps possibly dating back 800 years. We saw none of that. What we did see was another Maritime Museum, newer than this one. Wonder if that was where we should have gone?

 

Anyway, the history behind this fort goes back to pre-colonial times. This fortified city was built by Europeans. The city attracted Arabs, Persians, Romans, and Greeks as they crossed the Indian Ocean on the spice route. In 1505, the Portuguese took over, eventually the Dutch prevailing over them 135 years later. It was the Dutch that built the famous fort and ramparts we saw today. Of course the old town has turned into sa series of narrow streets full of boutiques and cafes. The old churches and shuttered mansions are still in place, remodeled into hotels and restaurants….a true tourist paradise. One end is anchored by a clocktower, while the seaside has the lighthouse. We were given 45 minutes to explore this fort without a map. Too bad, we may have missed a lot. We were the last back to the bus, which left at 1:20pm.

 

Lunch was next at the Jetwing Lighthouse Hotel, a five star hotel, very close to the fort. The buffet meal was typical Sri Lankan food, all labeled in English. We began with garlic noodles, penne pasta with tomato sauce, crispy fried prawns, and fried white fish. Curries were on another island and were made with chicken, fish, and beef. Sauteed vegetables and many types of rice were offered. The next isand contained fresh salad makings, which we stayed away from. As much as we love salads, we did not want to chance any problems with a GI illness. Enough of that on the ship. Dessert was the best. We had fudge, caramel custard, pineapple upside down cake, sliced fruit, and many creamy cakes. On top of that, they had three types of extra rich ice cream with chopped cashews and chocolate syrup. Cubes of jujube candies were plated too. This all went down with Lion Lager at 4.8% alcohol.

 

We left the hotel sadly around 1:45pm. Had a long ride back , 73 miles, but not boring. Somewhere around the 50 mile mark, a tire blew up unexpectedly, waking everyone up. The driver pulled to the side, and checked it, deciding to continue since there still was the second tire holding us up. There was a mention of another bus meeting us to continue, but we could not afford the time to wait. All aboard was 5:30pm. So we traveled the remaining distance, 22 miles, with our fingers crossed. We were back to the pier, safely, by 5:15pm.

 

There was 15 minutes to look over the souvenirs at the pier. We needed nothing, so ended up buying nothing.

 

Sail away was quick at 6pm. The nicest part was that the sun was going down, and the sunset was really nice. And it was cooler as well.

 

We are now headed slowly to India, and the first port of Cochin, where we leave the ship for a safari. Can’t wait……….

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 77 Sailing Towards Cochin, India March 16, 2015 Monday Partly cloudy & 85 degrees

 

Today was a most welcome day at sea. It seems like we are barely moving. Checking the navigation channel, the ship’s speed is around 8 knots. Like we said, barely moving. The distance to reach Cochin is obviously not far. The problem with slow sailing, is that there is little breeze, and the heat and humidity are up once again. Walking on the promenade was not a pleasant experience. Sticky in seconds.

 

There was some new hardware installed on the promenade deck yesterday. The fire hose are stretched out fully, and they are permanently attached to a contraption on the metal railings. This way they can be aimed in a half circle without being held by hand. All that is missing is the razor wire, which we are certain will be added below the railing when we get to Cochin or Mumbai. Can’t be too safe, if that will really help. Yes, it can slow pirates down if it ever comes to that. We highly doubt that it will come to that. (Wish we had not watched the “Captain Phillips” movie so recently.) But they did not have the LRADS that we have. Remember the Long Range Acoustical Devices that can blow up ear drums? Hope we have lots of them.

 

The usual talks were happening on the ship, but we desperately needed the time to catch up on yesterday’s photos and report. While one of us laboriously went through the pictures, the other packed for the overland to India tomorrow. We will have four separate flights on different airlines over the next week, and have to be careful of the sizes and weights on the carry-ons and the checked bags. These numbers were different for each airline. So there was no choice but to pack with the lowest amount allowable. That is about 33 pounds for the checked bag, and 15 pounds for the carry-on. Packing used to be so easy, when we did not have to worry about liquids or sharp things. Now you have to think about every item, and either pack it in your carry-on, or check it. It is for only seven days, and we will have laundry service at the safari lodge. That should help keep the bags light. The small hand held luggage scale that we got as a gift works well. Nice to get useful gifts like this. We are also taking one of the rolled duffels for a checked bag. It is a bit larger than the leather duffel we got last year. But the extra space is perfect for this trip.

 

When we took a break for lunch, we found a letter on the door explaining tomorrow’s Indian Immigrations Procedures to be conducted early in the morning. Since we will be doing an independent overland trip, our number (four) will be called right after the “S” folks are called. Actually, we are S (President’s Club), so we can go first or next, following the deck seven people. We hope to be first in line, to give us time for a proper breakfast before leaving the ship. Our ride should be there around 9:30am.

 

Sometime in the late afternoon, while one of us was finishing up yesterday’s report, the other was continuing the walk on the deck. Out of nowhere, several small outdoor motor boats approached the ship. They came as close as 20 yards. Many folks panicked thinking this could be an aggressive move. Some even went as far as calling the front desk on the hallway phones. Of course, we know there are two junior officers on watch 24 hours a day on the navigation deck. Surely they saw these boats coming, and did not consider them a threat. Sure reminds us of another time we were sailing out from Dubai, and were passing the narrow Straits of Hormuz. The same thing happened with small boats coming right at the ship. You half expect a bomb to go off, or rifles to come out. Again, these fishermen were simply curious, and rowed or motored over to wave at us.

 

Another interruption was announced around 6pm, with the Bright Star call for the medical staff. Thinking it may be a drill, they solved that mystery immediately when they named a specific room number on deck two. Checking everyone we know, the room was not theirs. Will try to find out more later. Barb lives on deck two, and the room number was close to hers.

 

At dinner tonight, Tom G. joined us for a few minutes, and chatted about the GI warnings. He said this virus is not going away anytime too soon. There are more cases popping up daily. He did say that the doctor’s visit would not be charged to our account if we had to go there reporting GI symptoms. However, not everyone knows that reporting the illness will get you locked up in your room for a few days. Not sure how this works for a couple, if only one has the illness. Wouldn’t the quarantined person give it to the healthy partner? In the “old” days, you got shipboard credit for a voluntary quarantine, but not anymore. But you can get into trouble if you violate that quarantine. Tom G. stressed the importance of hand washing, which all of us at our table knows. It is our wish, that the bug is gone by the time we get back in Dubai.

 

Speaking of Dubai, Presti told us today that 97 passengers will be getting off there. Only 45 or so will join the ship. Then when we get towards the end of the Mediterranean, like somewhere in Spain, many of the Europeans will fly home. At least those who do not want to sail Transatlantic, then fly back. At that time, we shall be down to 800 guests. Unless……..HAL happens to sell that segment very, very cheap.

 

After dinner, we took our usual walk outside. We heard a strange noise in the surrounding water, and realized it was raining. We mean real rain, pouring. Lightening was streaking sideways across the sky. Funny, the Captain never mentioned rain in the forecast at all. Sure hope it is a passing shower, and will not be onshore tomorrow. That could get messy.

 

So after tomorrow, we shall be gone for seven days, coming back on March 23rd. If we get WIFI on the route, we will keep in touch. If you hear nothing, it means we do not have access to the internet. We will be back. Wish us luck.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[windsor26]

Have a great overland trip Looking forward to your report about it

[MMDown Under]

Enjoy your safari, Bill and Mary Ann.

 

Looking forward to reading of your adventure, on your return. I enjoy reading your informative reports of your World Cruise.

[BettyPC]

have a great time & will look forward to your Safari adventures.

[RMLincoln]

Blessings for a safe and healthy safari. You bring a lot of joy to us and we greatly appreciate your efforts to include us in your travels. Many thanks, m--

[PathfinderEss]

Sorry to hear about the GI problems on the ship, hope it clears up soon. Mean while enjoying your continued great reporting.