Live from the Eclipse, Apr 19 - May 21, Sydney to Honolulu to Vancouver B3B in an Aqua Cabin

[Ken the cruiser]

Here’s a laundry slip update. It appears starting this cruise, Celebrity raised the rates around $1 on every item except for socks and underwear. Those stayed the same.

 

 

Also after breakfast, I took a couple of photos from the port side which gives a better view of Kailua Kona.

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Had another fun Celebrity excursion this afternoon. We went to a coffee plantation, a cloud forest, and then to the beach to see turtles and ancient petroglyphs. 
 

But first we had to tender over to shore and check into our excursion on the pier. Since we got there about an hour early, we walked around for a little while.

  

 

 

 
Then it was time to check in. And after a little delay due to a morning excursion running a little long, we were off. The first stop was a small coffee plantation where they sold their home grown Kona coffee beans for $23 for a 6 oz bag! I have to say the samples we got to try were quite tasty, but not to the point where I would spend $69 plus tax for a pound of beans.

  

 

  

 

 

  
Then we were off to the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary, where we were each issued a walking stick as the up and down terrain was quite the challenge most of the time stepping over large roots combined with a wet and rocky terrain most of the time!

  

 

 

  
These were rescue birds just looking to say hi!

 

 
especially this cockatoo who said “bye” to us as we were leaving! 😁

 

 
A fiddlehead which signifies the start of a new shoot on this huge fern.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Then we were off to the National Historical Park. But on the way we saw a bunch of free-range goats along the highway! 😁

 

  

 

 

  
A petroglyph representing a male

 

 
A petroglyph of a game they used to play back in the day!

 

 
A petroglyph representing a female giving birth
 

 

 

 

 

 
Then it was time to catch the last tender back to the ship! We would definitely recommend this excursion as it was very informative and a lot of fun, especially if you’re in good physical condition. 😁

Edited May 14, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

After dinner in Blu on our way to Hilo, our last Hawaiian stop, we headed up to the OVC for dessert and took a couple of photos of the sun setting.

  

 

 
Then we were off to the theater to watch a very funny comedian, Mark Simmons

 

 
and then the Majority Rules Game Show in the Entertainment Lounge. A little before 10 pm we headed out again to watch the Groove 60s Party in the Grand Foyer!

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 27 - May 14 - Hilo, Hawaii

  

 

 

[wingatesl]

23 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

There are no power outlets anywhere near the bed. Besides the 110v outlet in the bathroom, these are the only outlets in the cabin and they are next to the desk.

Thanks. We will plan accordingly.  

[Ken the cruiser]

Good morning from Hilo, Hawaii, our last Hawaiian port before heading out to sea! 😁

 

 

 
Here is what we’re doing today.

  

 

 

 

 

[mahdnc]

32 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Good morning from Hilo, Hawaii, our last Hawaiian port before heading out to sea! 😁

 

 

 
Here is what we’re doing today.

  

 

 

 

 

 

Have a nice time, Ken.  My wife and I very much like the Big Island.  Akaka Falls is pretty.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Today was another fun 4 hour excursion, only this time we went to two waterfalls, drove briefly through a rain forest, and then walked through one! 😁

 

Once we boarded our 14-passenger van, we were off to our first stop, Rainbow Falls.

  

 

 

Unfortunately, it was very cloudy there today, so no rainbow on this visit.

 

 

  

Then we had a short ride through a rain forest

  

 

 

 
before arriving at the Akaka Falls which is over 400’ tall!

 

 
 

 
and then went on a 40-minute walk through the nearby rain forest where it rained hard for the last third of the walk. Fun times!! 😂

  

 

 

 

 

 
No idea what this is, but I thought it had a pretty red spearhead-looking top! 😂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
A closer view from the other side of the Banyan Tree in the above photo 

 

 

 

 

Then it was time to head back to town to stop by the King Kamehameha statue and a gift store at the Hilton Hotel. Our van is the red one you can barely see in the below picture which drove around to pick us up as it was still pouring rain!

  

 

 

 

 
And then it was time to head back to the ship. We would also definitely recommend this excursion if you are in reasonably good shape, as we went up and down quite a few stairs in the rain forest, 😁

 

[jjduck]

Hi  Ken the Cruiser,

 

Your review of my home state makes me smile, especially your fascination with those pesky pigeons and chickens!   Even though I'm a bird lover, those critters are sure everywhere!  LOL!

I'm glad you have had a good time.   It has been refreshing to hear and see Hawaii through your eyes.

 

Enjoy the rest of the cruise and I'll be looking out for more of your reviews.  You have a nice and easy to follow writing style.

 

Aloha and safe travels!

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, jjduck said:

Hi  Ken the Cruiser,

 

Your review of my home state makes me smile, especially your fascination with those pesky pigeons and chickens!   Even though I'm a bird lover, those critters are sure everywhere!  LOL!

I'm glad you have had a good time.   It has been refreshing to hear and see Hawaii through your eyes.

 

Enjoy the rest of the cruise and I'll be looking out for more of your reviews.  You have a nice and easy to follow writing style.

 

Aloha and safe travels!

Thanks for those kind words. I have to say we are enjoying retirement and cruising to all the places we do. Being in the Hawaii Island for a total of 7 days on 3 separate islands has definitely allowed us to appreciate more of what Hawaii has to offer.
 

Funny thing about the birds. I didn’t see any of the elusive Kona or Hilo pigeons on the Big Island these past 2 days and only saw one rooster off in the distance. Come to think of it, we also haven’t seen any sea gulls on any of the Polynesian islands we visited on this cruise! I know, who would have even thought that possible! 😂

[Ken the cruiser]

After another tasty dinner in Blu, we went up once again to the OVC to have dessert. Then I popped outside and for one of the few times on this cruise, there wasn't a pretty sunset. However, there were some awesome looking clouds on the horizon! 😁

 

 
Tonight there was a variety show, first with an awesome acrobatic act we’ve seen before, Maxim and Olga, followed Kelsey Rae, one of the production cast singers.

 

 

 

 
Then we headed over to watch the League of Nations game show. Later on we went to the Grand Foyer to watch the Movie Quotes Game Show conducted by Eddy Jenkins.

 
But most importantly we’re on our way to Canada with 5 sea days ahead of us to look forward to! 😂

 

 
It will be interesting to see how the weather and the Pacific Ocean swells treat us along the way! I really like this website for tracking what’s potentially ahead of us. 😁

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 28 - May 15 - First of 5 sea days in a row

  

 

 

 
And Starlink continued to provide acceptable service while we were docked in Hilo with the Premium package.

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Got up briefly this morning at what I thought was 6 am and took this sunrise photo, then went back to bed.

  

 
Unfortunately, when we later got to Blu around what we thought was 8:55 am just before they closed, it was actually 9:55 am. We forgot to scan the Daily last night before going to bed, and lo and behold we were supposed to move our clocks ahead one hour! Ooops! 😂

 

So off we went to hear the 10 am lecture about Green Sea Turtles by Brent Nixon, as we didn’t want to miss his first lecture. And true to form he was great, to include his animation of how a sea turtle uses its fin to move through the water! 😁

 

 

 
However, since we missed breakfast and had seen Eddy’s 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Pop Music lecture twice before, we headed to the OVC.

 

This afternoon there are 2 more lectures followed this evening by 2 games shoes, one being the Liars Club, and the production show, Rock City!
 

 

Definitely a full day of entertainment on our first of five sea days in a row! As far as the premium internet service goes on our balcony on deck 11, it’s still working quite nicely for what we use it for.

 

 
Now it’s time to watch for Humboldt whales heading to Alaska. Probably not much chance seeing any, but it’s fun sitting on the balcony and watching for them! 😁

 

Edited May 15, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

As I mentioned, we planned to go to two lectures this after. The first was given by Nina, who we saw extensively on our last leg from Sydney, and was once again very informative.

 

 

The second one was given by Mary Amanda Fairchild who was simply awesome, as she on the Solstice back in 2015, where her husband, Brent Nixon, also gave his fantastic nature-based lectures. 
 

 
It also appears she will be giving a lecture on each of the coming sea days as I would imagine Brent will be as well. Yay! 😁

  

 
We have definitely hit the jackpot on all three legs of our cruise when it comes to being entertained, and I would imaging having Eddy Jenkins as the cruise director had a lot to do with that. Sure glad we decided to go on these original “place holder” cruises we booked over 27 months ago when they first came out! 😁

 

As a side note if you didn’t already know, you can get a free deck of playing cards by just going to Guest Services and asking for one. We reconfirmed this today, as our old one got soaked in the rain forest yesterday! 😂

[Mark.Jules]

Several years ago on Solstice we heard Brent and Mary Amanda, they are amazing. We enjoyed each lecture they gave. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

[Ken the cruiser]

3 hours ago, Mark.Jules said:

Several years ago on Solstice we heard Brent and Mary Amanda, they are amazing. We enjoyed each lecture they gave. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Since our 2015 Alaska cruise on the Solstice, they have always been our most memorable lecturers, and their presentations today only reconfirmed that! The only sad part was the folks we talked with today when dining at Blu didn’t go to either one of them. Unfortunately, it’s sad to say but some folks just don’t follow the words Savoy Brown once said at a concert a long time ago that we live by when we’re on a cruise,

 

“You paid the admission fee, you might as well kick hell out of the wall while you’re here!” 😂
 

Edited May 16, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 29 - May 16 - Second of 5 sea days in a row

  

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

During dinner, took a couple of photos of the sun going down,

 

 
It was amazing how the clouds changed along with the movement of the ship over a 10 minute period.

 

 

then one up at the OVC after dessert.

 

 

The production show, Rock City, was again a big hit, and so was the late night Liar’s Club game show, which always has a way of getting everyone laughing! 😂
 

[Ken the cruiser]

Today has been an easy day so far. Here’s what the ocean looked like when we woke up at 8 am this morning. A little overcast but the seas were calm.

  

 
Then after breakfast we passed on Eddy’s lecture as we saw it already, but went to Brent Nixon’s very engaging Humpback Whale presentation.

 
 

 

 
Then we headed to lunch in the MDR where we were seated in an out of the way table overlooking the “fixed seating” MDR area on deck 3. If some haven’t seen what the multi-deck MDR looks like, here’s a photo from our table.

 

 
Then it was time to chill for a little while back in the cabin before we go to listen to Mary Amanda’s lecture on Famous Women Mariners at 3:30 pm. I wonder if she’ll mention Captain Kate? 🤔

 

But when we got back to the cabin I noticed the waves had gotten a little more choppy.

  

 
So I checked our current location via CruiseMapper and the current wind readings from windy.com, and we may be approaching some more turbulent times in the next day or two. I guess only time will tell, but it sure looks like we’re heading right for the yellow stuff. 😁

  

 
 

 
As far as the premium internet service goes out here on the high seas, it’s still putting out acceptable speeds.

 

Edited May 16, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

This afternoon as I mentioned we were going to go to the Mary Amanda lecture, but went early to check out the Matinee “Music of Eclipse” performed by the various lounge acts around the ship to include the Eclipse orchestra.

 

 

 
It was then time for Mary Amanda’s lecture which was once again was very well done! 

  

 
Then after dinner following dessert up in the OVC, here’s what the sun beginning to set looked like tonight.

 

 
Then we were off to watch the always funny Bob Brizendine whom we’ve seen before on another Celebrity cruise.

 

 

 
And the early show was once again packed this evening!

 

 
It was then time to watch the Challenge Game Show hosted by Roxtar followed by the Pub Quiz before heading back to the cabin to rest up before going to the pop up production show in the Sky Lounge at 10 pm. 😁

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 30 - May 17 - Third of 5 sea days in a row

  

 

 

 

[39august]

Please tell us more about the famous women mariners!

[Ken the cruiser]

3 hours ago, 39august said:

Please tell us more about the famous women mariners!

She talked about Anne Bonny and Mary Read, Ching Shih, Captain Kate and about 3-4 other interesting women who have sailed the high seas. It was quite an interesting lecture.

[mahdnc]

3 hours ago, 39august said:

Please tell us more about the famous women mariners!

 

The Wreck of the Ella Fitzgerald?

[Ken the cruiser]

I have a request for anyone currently on our Eclipse cruise from Honolulu to Vancouver AND you are reading this using the Celebrity Basic Internet service. Would you mind running the following internet speed test and posting the results to include what type of device you’re using and where you did the test from. I went to the iLounge to see if I could get them to do the test using the Basic service and they couldn’t because they were on the corporate WiFi connection rather than the one we are using. She did say they don’t allow streaming on Basic, but I think it’s definitely more limited than that. Personally, I will be surprised if anyone onboard using the Basic service can even see this post. 
 

www.speedtest.net

 

For example, I’m using their premium service and got the following results on my iPhone in our cabin. 
 

 
This reason I’m curious is because I overheard a lady at breakfast this morning saying she hasn’t been able to access the internet for more than a minute or two the last 2-3 days. 🤔