Monday, November 14, 2011
Nov 12 - Singapore
Nov 12 - Singapore
The ship docked at about 7am. We had to be out of our cabin by 8am, even though we were not getting off the ship until 9:10am. After breakfast we sat in the Tahitian Lounge until we were called to get off the ship. For those of you whom have not taken a cruise. The ship arranges disembarkment based on earliest flights out and early Tours that end at the airport. Those that will be traveling independently are let off after. This is to minimize a bottle neck either at immigration, customs or just finding your luggage in the cruise terminal. In general the cruise line have gotten pretty good at managing this process and with only about 500 of us getting off (and not returning ) it wan't bad.
I had been concerned about the customs information that we had received concerning a 5% duty, but they just put all of our bags thru the x-ray and sent us on our way. Myrna found a van driver who would take us to our hotel (Crowne Plaza) at the airport. The cost was 45 Singapore dollars. A good price with the US dollar worth around 1.22 Singapore dollar.
We only had to wait about an hour to get into our room, after we settled in we took a taxi the Singapore Flyer, the tallest observation wheel in the world. Evelyn and I have been on the London Eye which was the tallest until the flyer was built in 2009. The weather is hot, muggy, and raining on and off. After we got on the Flyer it began to pour very hard. So hard that after we got off (30 minutes later) they closed the ride because of the weather.
We had a little lunch at the Flyer, Evelyn and I shared some dim sum and Don had a plate of spicy noodles, Myrna just sat with us and didn't eat, but tasted Don's plate.
After that we took a cab to Orchard Road the main shopping area of Singapore.We didn't have much time before it really began to really rain very hard. This did not stop Evelyn and she got her Starbucks mug from Singapore. We tried to walk around, but it was just raining too hard so we took a cab back to the hotel. We were in Singapore In 2006 and sa the highlights. We would have gone into Raffles Hotel and had a Singapore Sling as the drink was invented there, but with the rain we opted not to.
We will eat in the hotel tonight. Our flight home leaves tomorrow morning at 7:20am so we need to get up early. The hotel is attached to terminal three which is where our flight on United Airlines. We have to change planes in Tokyo and arrive at LAX at 10:25 Sunday morning.
Just a word about the hotel. It very nice, large room, big tv, both a tub and shower. It has nine stories and the floors are open to the outside. The best part as i said before is it is attached to terminal three where our United flight leaves from.
We had dinner in the hotel restaurant. They had both a buffet and menu options. Evelyn and I had the buffet for 52 SD and it was very good. They have sushi, roast beef, pork, chicken, and many fish dishes. Except for the roast beef every dish was prepared in an asian style. I was very impressed. The deserts and the entire presentation was quite something.
Don and Myrna, being the adventures' eater that they our had a club sandwich which they said was excellent. I had about 140 SD left, not enough to pay for dinner so I put the dinner on my room and then when I checked out I paid part of the bill with SD. I thought it was a creative way to get rid of them.
Nov 13 - Singapore to LAX
We had a 4:15 am wake-up call and left the room at 5:15 am. The bellman put our bags onto a terminal cart and we pushed it to the United check-in. We are all flying business class so after checking in we had coffee and sweet rolls in the lounge before boarding. The security check was done at the gate and I was picked for extra checking, which put me at the head of the line, where I got a pat down and they checked my carry-on for what ever they were checking for. The hotel is actually attached by a very short hall to terminal 3, it only took minutes to get from the hotel to the check in. The Chengi Airport is beautiful and very well run. We could learn a thing or two from them.
The flight to Tokyo is about six hours and we have a two or three hour layover until our flight to LA. Based on the timing I think the flight to LA will be around nine hours.
We landed at Narita Airport about 20 minutes late due to traffic. As we are transferring to another international flight we did not have to deal with immagration or customs. We did have go thru a security line that x-rayed our carry-ons. We sat in the lougne long enough for Don to have a beer and then we walked to the gate. I was picked for another security check, this time for explosives. They swabbed my hands and carry-on and then had me take off my shoes and the checked the soles of my feet. It didn't take long and everyone was very polite.
The flight is a little longer then 9 hours and after dinner we both slept around five hours. We we woke there was an hour and half left to LA. The seats in business class lay flat and it was easy to get into a comfortable position. Our seats face backwards so we have been flying backwards the whole time.
We land on time and after clearing immagration and customs in the record time of a little over an hour our van picked us up and drove us home. Trip over.
Sent from my iPad
Hal
Nov 11 - Kuala Lumpur (KL)
Nov 11 - Kuala Lumpur (KL)
Last night was the last formal night of the cruise and the Captain hosted a farewell party before dinner. At dinner we exchange address information with our table mates, you always do that, but never keep in touch. Maybe it will be different this time, we seem to have a very compatible group.
We have most of our packing complete and will finish up this evening.
The bus ride into KL took about one hour because we did not hit a "jam", as they refer to traffic jams here. Don and Myrna have been here before and decided not to go into KL. We had planned with a couple from Australia to share cabs in the city and tour together. The bus dropped us off at the KLCC, a large shopping mall next to the Patronas Towers. They were at one time the tallest building in the world, but have been surpassed by the Sear's Tower in Chicago and now by the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. The Towers do remain the tallest twin (they are attached to each other by a sky bridge) towers in the world. You may remember a Sean Connery, Katherine Zeda Jones , movie Entrapment that highlighted the towers.
We went in the mall to exchange money and use the bathroom. Exchanging money was easier than the first bathroom I visited. I opened the door to the stall and all I saw was a white enamel fitted hole in the ground. I just didn't feel I had the necessary skills to use this facility, so I found another bathroom with more familiar hardware. Evelyn had routinely found then throughout our trip as an option to the more conventional western facilities.
After that Evelyn made her first purchase of the day, a Starbucks mug that said Malaysia. We want to get out of the mall for more local shopping and were advised to visit the City Market and Chinatown. Our taxi driver suggested we do City Market first because most of the stalls in Chinatown didn't open until noon.
We found a lot of souvenirs and everyone was willing to bargain. We spent a good deal of time here. We had heard stories concerning the conditions in KL, but we found a relatively clean city. There was some trash, but nothing like we saw in India. The area around the Patronas Towers is pristine and I understand since the towers were build there has been a lot of development in the area. You still see active cranes and large construction projects around the city.
We walked over to Chinatown and also had success in the stalls there. In most cases we payed half the starting price. In some stalls there was a sign that said fixed price, but then you found the price to be low. By now most of the overcast has burned off and the temperature is probably at least in the high 80's with the humidity above that. It is ok in the shade however in the full sun it's a bit daunting.
Let me explain. Had I wanted Gap, H&M, Chanel, Gucci, or any other recognizable designer or label or retailer any of the large malls have all of them and some have two of each. Marks and Spencer even has a number of locations and even a small Harrods if you need a British fix.
We were getting hungry, but I just didn't trust eating in any of the local street restaurants around Chinatown, so we stopped at McDonalds. It was full of school kids doing their homework, but we managed to get a table. We found the food to be just like home. Evelyn is still giving me a hard time saying the Bao Buns looked great.
We decided to return to the City Market to pickup a few more souvenirs. After that we took a taxi back to the KLCC mall to catch the bus back to the ship. We had a little time to kill so we sat at Starbucks and used their free Wifi. Evelyn was able to get another mug with the name Kuala Lumpur. We got back to the ship at about 5 pm.
Since I screwed up the first rule of shopping already ( I know you know this isn't Hal now) by passing up a Starbucks mug in Egypt because I thought the proprietor was not willing to price it correctly, and of course I never saw it again. The rule is " If you see it and you want it and the price is even remotely reasonable.. Get it because you will never see it again" Lesson learned again...
We needed to finish packing and missed cocktails with D/M and the last entertainment show. We did manage to buy a nice picture of us and then have a drink before dinner. The ship is taking pictures every time you get on or off, on formal nights, and had all kinds of opportunities. We hadn't taken a formal shot of the two of us in a couple of years and I didn't like most of the backgrounds so when there wad a plain background I nagged Hal into s taking one. Th photographer took 6 or 8 shots. You are under no obligation, so we actually liked one and did purchase it. For a small fee ($25.) you can have an 8 x10 glossy I can copy on my computer.
We had our last dinner on the ship and then put our bags out so they could be taken off the ship tomorrow in Singapore.
Sent from my iPad
Hal
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Nov 7 - at sea
Nov 7 - at sea
We were very tired and went to bed right after dinner. Also we continue to lose hours as we move west. We are now 15 hours ahead of Los Angeles.
I took this morning to write up my notes on the trip. The bus ride was so bumpy that I was unable to use my I-pad. Evelyn did go to the bridge lesson and then we met for a lecture on the World War II and the battle for the Salomon Islands and New Guinea. The lecturer is a retired US Naval officer. The lecture was well attended and he made a very good presentation.
After lunch we played bridge and that evening attended the show which was a Scottish lady singer and flute player. She was very entertaining.
Evelyn and I had dinner in the Steakhouse. I had the rack of lamb which was good and Evelyn had the ribeye which was much better then our last visit. We also ate less which is becoming are approach to food. I'm sure I put on a few pounds and I want to limit how much I gain, because I know how hard it will be to take it off with the holidays coming up. I could always say the salt air shrinks my clothes or it was the ships laundry, but let's get serious. It's the humidity... Evelyn is already saying it's going to be Nutra Systems until Easter...
Nov 8 - at se
This morning Don and I attended the lecture on the Battle of Midway and then played trivia. This morning our team was just the four of us and we did well, we had 15 right and the winning team had 17.
After lunch we played bridge and we think we played well.
We are getting antsy and thinking about getting off the ship and coming home.
We have one more port, Kuala Lumpur (KL) and then Singapore.
After dinner we played a little party bridge until we got too tired. I think we are cocktailed out, entertainment out and getting a little traveled out. I don't know how some of the folks we have met that are going on to Australia ( another 20 days or even to Tahiti another 28 for a total of a additional 48) can do it.
Since we left Cochin the weather has continued to be on the hot side, partly cloudy and the seas mostly calm. We did have a little rain in the evening when we sailed from Cochin and the next evening Evelyn and I watched a lighting storm while we we having dinner in the Steakhouse. We have seen dolphins and reports of whales. From trivia I now know that both a group of whales and dolphins are pods, and the "B" in scrabble is worth 3 points.
Nov 9 - at sea
We slept in this morning, had breakfast, and attended the last lecture on WW II on the decision to use the atomic bomb. Very interesting. In general the lectures at sea are good and generally better that the port talks.. They are now provided by the same person and here on the Ocean Princess there have been a number of different lecture series.
After that I talked to the tour office about the KL on your own tour. We had been wait listed and I wanted to know my options. The downtown area of KL is about a 90 minute ride and the cost of a taxi is $100 from the port town. There is a shuttle bus from the ship to a local mall, but Evelyn and I really want to get into the city. Don and Myrna have been here before and didn't want to do the on your own bus. If we can't get the ship's tour we will have to use the shuttle to the mall.
We played trivia and did respectively well, but this time the losing team got the prize.
We are eating light for lunch because tonight we are all having dinner in Sabatini's the other specialty restaurant. The cover charge is $20, but we all have a comp from our travel agency.
When we got back to our cabin after lunch we found that we did get on the "on your own" tour, so that solves our problem.
We need to start packing, as we have only one more day at sea and then KL and the next day we dock and leave the ship in Singapore.
We played bridge, maybe for the last time, this afternoon and found out that we came in second (E/W) yesterday.
Finally victory at trivia, Evelyn and I played with a couple from Australia and we got 18 out of 20. For our victory we each received two of the ugliest hurricane glasses the color of hot pink that you have ever seen. They of course have the Princess name and logo..
Nov 10 - at sea
Dinner at Sabatini's last night was outstanding, we have eaten at this restaurant on two other Princess ships and this was the best. I had a veal chop that was the biggest I have ever seen and it was cooked perfectly. It was an enjoyable meal. Evelyn had lobster 3 ways ( tail, lobster risotto and a lobster bisque reduction as a sauce). Very rich.
When we returned to the cabin and found our disembarkation documents and found out we will have to pay duty to Singapore customs on what we have purchased on the trip. There is an exemption of around $500 US and then you pay 5% on the rest. The ship has not said anything about this, except to provide the Singapore customs information. I ask the desk staff and all they could say was to declare what you have and hope they don't charge the duty because we are in transit. I'm not taking any chances in Singapore with the authorities. One of the banned item is chewing gum. I told Evelyn to make sure she gets rid of her supply of gum before we get off the ship.
We are going to start packing this afternoon because tomorrow we will be in KL most of the day. Our bags have to be outside our cabin by 10 am on Friday night. We are getting off the ship a little after 9 am on saturday. We will take a taxi to the Crown Plaza hotel which is at the airport.
It's now 3 p.m. As we lost another hour last night and are now 16 hours, I think of Los Angeles. We will cross the international date line on the way home so we leave the morning of the 13th and arrive a little later in the morning on the 13th. Evelyn plans on going into her office on the 14th. We'll see what shape she s in.
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Hal
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Nov 6 - Delhi to Cochin, India
Nov 6 - Delhi to Cochin, India
We awoke at 3:30 am, there were two wake-up calls just to make sure everyone was up. We had the buffet breakfast and were loaded on the bus at 4:45am for the drive to the airport. Our flight to Mumbai is scheduled for 7:20 am where we will catch a flight to Cochin at 10:20 am. We only have 55 minutes between flights and we told we would have to go thru the security screening in both Delphi and again in Mumbai.
Our flight on Kingfisher Air left on time and we had bulkhead seats in the front of the plane which provided a little more leg room. We were served breakfast which was some form of Indian pancake, different, but tasty. We arrived in Mumbai about 10 minutes early and were held on the plane while there was a discussion on how we could avoid going thru the security check. Again I am sure Hal and all the Gents on board appreciated the stewardess's, very attractive and the service though not the coffee was great.
In the end we left the plane by way of the jetway stairs and were put on buses, driven in a circle, had our boarding passes looked at and the re-boarded the same plane. I think the reason they just didn't let us stay on the plane was that everyone's seat was changed. We still had bulkhead seats, but on the other side of the aisle. Anyway it all worked out and we left on schedule. We were serviced a snack which was some type of chicken and noodles, very hot (spicy), made my lips tingle.
We arrived in Cochin at noon. Cochin is in southern India and it is very tropical. Lots of water and palm trees. When taxiing down the runway the view from the window was reminiscent of Mexico or Hawaii. Our buses were waiting when we left the terminal, and would you believe our bus was the twin of our last bus, the little bus that could. We were scheduled to have a tour of Cochin but because we would be required to go thru immigrations again Princess felt there may not be enough time so the city tour of Cochin was scrubbed.
As we drove to the port area our guide, a school teacher and part-time guide, conducted a class room session on the history of Cochin area, the cast system, and arranged marriages, of which his was. More information then most of us wanted to know. He was very clear to say that the area had no beggars and a very high standard of living. RIGHT!
We reached the port area and found the immigration office ( which was stucco one story building left by the British and now looking more like an abandoned shack), and found that we were, as usual the last bus to arrive and the wait would be about an hour. This did not sit well, but some how our wait was shorted to about 30 minutes. The security measures are very tight since the bombing and attack on Taj Mahal hotel and other places in Mumbai.
Prior to getting to the port our guide gave each of a gift from the tour company. The gift was a model of a snake boat, which is like a dragon boat.
We arrived at the ship around 2:30 pm and again had to go thru security.
After we dropped off our bags and washed our faces we went to the buffet for a beer. We found Don and Myrna, who had just finished there tour, and it was nice to be back with friends again.
The tour was well worth the time and effort. We talked to a couple of people who did it on their own without any problems at I'm sure a cheaper price, but we felt more comfortable having Princess responsible for making sure we got back to the ship on time. Whether we would come back to India is a question better left to a later time. I'm sure there are many places that would be nice to visit if the occasion should arise.
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Hal
Nov 5 - Agra to Delhi, India
Nov 5 - Agra to Delhi, India
We awoke at 4:45 am to board our bus at 5:40 am to drive to the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal was built in the 1600's by Emperor Shah Jahan for his favorite Queen Mumtaz Mahal. She was wife number 2 of 3, however according to all accounts his true love. It is one of the seven man made wonders of the world.
We had a short drive to a lot where we boarded battery powered buses that drove us to the entrance to the Taj. I'm not sure if that was an attempt to control polution or what? We had to wait in line for the gate to open. There are four lines: high-value tickets men, women and Indian men and women. Our guide did well in getting us there early, we were the first bus to arrive and we were very close to the front of each of our resepective male and female lines. The gates were to open at 6am, but didn't open to 6:30am. They are supposed to open with the sun rise. After clearing security we entered though the gate and had our first look at the Taj Mahal. The sun had just risen, and in the distances there was the Taj.
The area around Agra is primarily agriculture and after the harvest they burn their fields, combined that with the large amount of vehicles, and the dung pies still used for fuel in out lying homes, there is a lot of pollution. We could just make out the Taj in the distance which was about three football fields from us.
The "gate" we entered is part of a three sided walled fort like perimeter that encloses the Taj. The remaining side is the rear and open to the river. The entrance gate and the walls are red sand stone and beautifully carved.
Our guide took this time to give us the history of the Taj and then let us towards it, where we took a group photo, which was included in our tour. The photographer also took individual photos which we could purchase and we did. He was a "authorized" photographer. His assistant took our camera and started to take photos of us and he posed us in different locations on our way towards the Taj and the reflecting pool that you can get both the Taj and it's reflection in one picture, if done right. He probably took about 20 different shots mostly with us in them and a few without. We asked him to stop a few times however he kept leading us to a better or different photo opportunity until finally we got our camera back after a $20 tip... Or was it ransom for our camera?
Even in the poor air quality the Taj is amazing. It's white marble and inlay work is supperior to most craftsmanship today. The architecture has such balance that from all views it appears semetic. We approached the platform which is as high as a palm tree. We had been provided with shoe covers, so we didn't need to remove our shoes, so we could go on the platform and enter the Taj. The entire complex consists of the Taj, a Mosque, and a building identical to the Mosque which was intended to be a guest house for visiting royalty is all built upon a platform. There are gardens and a large reflection pool that reflects the image of the Taj. Up close you can really see the artistic work that it has. As we entered the first thing you see is the "tomb" of the Queen, which is not the real one which is located deep within the Taj. We walked though the various rooms, which are bare of any item and then exited. The Taj Mahal has four minarets, one at each corner that are angled out so if there was an earthquake the minarets would not fall on the Taj. We walked around the platform and saw how close the river is to the Taj at the rear. When the Taj was built the river was much wider and of greater volume.
The river and water table are causing some erosion of the supports and will require work to get the Taj from falling down. There are two other structures on either side of the Taj and we walked back to the enterance though the gardens which were watered from the river by under ground ducts. While the gardens have chanced much since they were first designed you get a good idea of what they would have looked like. Overall we spent about one hour and fifteen minutes inside.
Outside the enterance we rode back to the bus on a cycle rickshaw, which was good because the walk would have been uphill. I tried to have our driver take our picture, but I don't think he had seen a camera and we never got the shot. All during our time at the Taj we were besieged by vendors selling books, magnets, postcards and glass snow globes with the Taj Mahal inside. Hindsight saids we should have taken the time to buy some of the souvenirs, because we never had time for shopping.
We returned to the hotel where breakfast was waiting for us, after we finished eating we got our bags and boarded our bus to visit the Red Fort, which contained the palaces of the royalty, the harem, and other high position residents. Originally it had a moat and was basically a walled city. This is where the royals held court and conducted business.
It is constructed of red lime stone, henace the name. The detail in the stone is still in very good condition for the most part and although it does not rival the Taj the craftsmanship is note worthy. After fighting our way though the vendors we entered the fort. Over the years part of it has become a military installation, first by the British and currently by the Indian army. About half the fort is military and the rest contains the various palaces. We stayed over an hour and then boarded the bus to drive to the "shopping" stop. It was a government run co-operative which has cashmere rugs, we had to sit though another demonstration of rug making like the one we saw in Turkey. After that we looked though the rest of the "store", but we just couldn't see paying a price for things that we could determine the value or even liked. For most of us the stop was a waste of time and would have been better spent either driving back to Delhi or a least stopping for souvernirs.
We left Agra at noon for our 5 1/2 hour ride back to Delhi. We finally reached our hotel at 7:30 pm. The ride back to Delhi seemed to have less traffic, but the scerenry was the same. By the time we reached Delhi it was dark and we all would have liked to go to the hotel, but our tour included a drive around Delhi to see some of the sights supposedly on the way to the hotel. In any event we finally reached the Le Meridien Hotel a definite five-star hotel. I know it was five-star because it had a 45 inch flat-panel tv on the wall in the room. We had time to get our room and freshen up before our buffet dinner. Our wake call for the morning was 3:30am so we didn't have much time to enjoy the amenities of our room or the hotel. Just a note, that the parts of Delhi that we saw, even in the dark, looked more like a first world country then what we had seen elsewhere. The British built buildings are still beautiful and most still in reasonable repair. The British built beautiful boulevards with gardens and traffic circles.
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Hal
Monday, November 7, 2011
Nov 4 - Mumbai, India to Delhi to Agra
Nov 4 - Mumbai, India to Delhi to Agra
This morning we had to pass though immigrations before we could leave the ship on our tour to the Taj Mahal. Our group was scheduled for 6:45 AM and we followed the instructions, but the Indian officials didn't quite make it until an hour later (not surprising as we are anticipating running on Indian time). We had 140 unhappy passengers waiting in a very hot line in the passage way and stairway. Once we made it though that process we had to wait until our bus group checked in before we could leave. There are two groups divided into five buses. The only reason for two groups was that on our return flights they couldn't get everyone on the same plane.
The drive to the Mumbai Domestic Airport took about an hour as we drove though the center of Mumbai. Mostly old English buildings, a few modern ones and lots of slums. If you have seen an Indian movie you have some idea of the slums. What they don't tell you in the movies is that Mumbai has the largest slum in India. And the tour manages to circumvent most of the slum. We haven't seen many cows or beggars yet.
The security at the port and the airport is heavy. At the airport there are separate security lines for men and women. Everyone is scanned with a wand. Women get wanded in a private enclosure. So basically you get wand and groped in private instead of publicly.
Our flight to Delhi is on Kingfisher Air. They use Airbuse 300's and this plane was pretty new. We were late leaving the gate but made up most of the time in the air. We had a meal of chicken and rice, which was spicy and good. the service was excellent and I am sure Hal appreciated how attractive the stewardess's were.
Most of us are carrying are bags and so we headed out of the airport to wait for our bus. We met our guide who said to call him Taj which was easy to remember. We are on the number 4 bus. Of the five buses ours is the runt of the litter. It is a few years older then the others, has noisy brakes, rattles a lot and won't go over 40mph, but it has good A/C and the driver is good. We have 27 passengers, a guide, a driver, and his assistant on the bus. It seems everyone has a job, one of the jobs of the assistant driver was to be sure we had plenty of cold bottled water. He also helps you out of the bus as the last step is a doozy. You could have easily solved the problem with a small step stool, but then half of his job would be eliminated to progress. I have no idea of how long he has to do that before he gets to drive.
The drive from Delhi to Agra was advertised at 5 1/2 hours with a stop for a snack and restrooms at 2 1/2 hours. We left the Delhi airport about 12:30 pm and we didn't get to Agra until 8:30 pm. The distance from Delhi to Agra is just over 200km, about 120 miles. The road is mostly two lanes in each direction and in India they drive on the left side of the road, just like in Great Britain. There are 1.2 billion people in India, in a space half the size of the USA. I think most of them live between Delhi and Agra. The drive was like going from Las Vegas to Los Angeles on a holiday weekend plus. There were few traffic lights, so crossing an intersection was a game of chicken. We had to pass though a number of towns and then there would be long areas of farm land. The towns all looked the same, most of the businesses were small buildings with a roll up door that looked like once they were built they were never touched again. No sidewalks and very little landscape. The only buildings that looked maintained were schools and car dealers. They don't have running water in the rural areas and I saw people using hand pumps. There doesn't seem to be many toilets as as we saw most people relieving themselves along the road (men!). There are cattle everywhere, cows are sacred animals, they just wander around. We also saw: sheep, goats, a few horses, many dogs and cats, and even a camel or two. The dogs seem to sleep anywhere and everywhere. If they go home at night is a mystery although we didn't see many at night.
At our halfway point we stopped at a hotel and restaurant called the Country Inn for a bathroom break and a snack. The restaurant was called The Munch!! The bathrooms were clean and nice, we didn't eat the snack, because on the bus we each received a snack with two bananas, a orange, a bag of potato chips, a chocolate bar(Cadbury) and a bottle of water, shortly after we boarded. On the bus we had as much bottled water and cokes as we wanted. In fact during the tour we always had bottle water available either on the bus, in our hotel room and during meals.
We reached Agra in the early evening and it took almost an hour to reach our hotel. Agra has over a million people and there was a lot of traffic. I must say that India looks a lot better at night, most everyone has lights strung on their buildings, and it quite pretty. The lights are different colors and shapes and are in strings like you purchase at Target.
We reached our hotel, Jaypee Palace, about 8:30 PM an hour and a half late. We received our room keys and then went straight to dinner. It was a very good buffet, Indian food, and during dinner we had an Kathak Dance performance, a traditional Indian dance. Our room was very nice, at least a good four and half star hotel. We took showers and went to bed as we had a 4:30 am wake up call in the morning.
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Hal
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Nov 2 - at sea
Nov 2 - at sea
Last night the entertainment was Brett Cave, a very talented pianist. We really enjoyed his act.
After dinner we played bridge and then took a look at the Arabian Night party on the pool deck. At least a quarter of the passengers bought some type of Arab clothing to wear. There were men and women in full regalia and some in partial outfits. It is hard to understand where they will wear these items on there return home. When we were in Egypt in 1993 I bought an outfit and only worn it one time, the halloween the year my granddaughter Maddie was born and I have a picture of me holding her in my outfit.
After trivia this morning, where we placed high, we had lunch in the dinning room.
We played duplicate bridge this afternoon and after starting out strong, we quickly burnt out like a shooting star.
Tonight is a formal night and there is a cocktail party for Captain Circle passengers. The Captain Circle is for passengers who have sailed with Princess more then once. The more days you have sailed the better the benefits.
The party was fun, the Captain is English and has a good sense of humor. The passengers with the most sea days on the Princess was introduced - they have over 800 days sailing with Princess.
The show was production with the singers and dancers. They continue to put on great performances.
Nov 3 - at sea
This is our last day before we leave the ship for our side tour to the Taj Mahal. We have to pack a small carry-on bag each. We leave tomorrow at 8am for a flight to Delhi. We then have a five and half hour bus ride to Agar. We spent the night and get up early to see the Taj at sunrise, after a visit to the Red Fort we do the bus ride back to Delhi. Then there is the plane ride to Cochin, which is where we will pick up the ship on Nov 6.
Yesterday at trivia the Cruise Director (Peter) was upset because a passenger had berated one of the staff over a question, so he asked the trivia players to write there own questions and he used them today. It was no fun, but I believe he made his point.
After lunch in the dinning room, we played our last session of duplicate bridge until we board the ship in Cochin.
This will be our last posting until Nov 6th.
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Hal
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Oct 31 - Dubai, UAE
Oct 31 - Dubai, UAE
Today we reach land after 6 days at sea. We arrived in the port of Dubai at about 7am it is the largest natural harbor along the Emirates' coast. You will find out later it is not the largest natural harbor in the region. More about that tomorrow.
The United Arab Emirates, formed in 1971, is made up of 7 Emirates of which Abu Dhabi and Dubai are the best known. Abu Dhabi is the capital.
Most of the building has been completed in the last 15 years. The skyline is a combination of tall buildings, each with a unique architecture. The tallest building in the world is here, the Burj Khalifa, over 800 meters tall. Our tour includes a visit to the tower and a trip to the 124th observation floor.
Our tour began with a drive from the port to the Mall of the Emirates, the largest shopping mall in the middle east. It has a ski slop inside ( Ski Dubai), with a chair lift, and there is a large play area for children, including a sled run. The temperature is kept at about 32 degrees and after paying an admission you get parkas and gloves along with what ever equipment you need for your chosen snow activity.
Our first stop was Starbucks so Evelyn could get a mug that has the name UAE to add to here collection. I missed getting one in Egypt by disobeying the first rule of vacation shopping. If you like it get it, because you won't see it again. If they won't bargain, buy the damn thing if you want it. I checked on eBay later and the mug I could have purchased for $25.00 ( which I thought was high), was $50.00 on eBay...
We then walked through part of the mall, to find Starbucks. We found one of the 3 and I purchased a mug. This mall HAS every store you would ever need or want, all of the best top end designers and shops, and all the chains like H&M and Forever 21. The food court and there were at least 2 had every American fast food provider and then some. Every one takes dollars with out a problem. The exchange rate is 3.65 AED to the $1.
After we left the mall are next stop was the Mall of Dubai, where the Burj Khalifa is located. It is the biggest mall in the world and it features an aquarium and all of the same stores of the Mall of the Emeritus and if you can imagine more.
The elevator ride to the observation floor of the Burj Khalifa took exactly 60 seconds. There was no sensation of speed, but your ear did pop. Half of the observation floor is outside and the view is of course outstanding. We stayed about 25 minutes and the took the ride back down. While we we waiting for our group I bought a "light" coke for 6 UAE. Which was not a surprise, but what was a surprise was the "pop top lid", haven't seen one of those in years. We had to wait a while for our bus due to a flat tire.
Our next stop was for pictures of the Burj Al Arab, the only 7-star hotel in the world, built on an artificial island, the hotel is built in the design of a sail of a boat. You can not go into the hotel unless you are a guest or have a reservation for lunch, dinner, or high tea. It has approximately 220 two story suites. Ranging from about 300 square feet to over 2000. Next time I will make reservations for high tea, at about $120.00 per person and get a better look. Nothing like keeping out the riffraff.
Our last stop was a Mosque that although closed to us did have a women's prayer room. It was one of the largest in the area.
Dubai is very interesting, oil rich, but trying to build an economy that will be able to maintain itself once the oil is depleted. Over 75% of the population is expats who are here on work visas. The locals are taken care of with free housing and medical and education. There is very little crime and the streets are very clean. Nothing is old, even the old souk is new.
Dubai has become a haven for the very wealthy as there is no income tax and no sales tax. However in order to do business you must have a 51 percent partner who is native born and there appear to be fees and licensing costs for just about every thing.
We got back to the ship around 2:30pm and stopped by the stores in the cruise terminal, I bought two keychains to get rid of my UAEs.l
We were hungry so we headed to the buffet, which means we won't be eating much for dinner.
After our naps we sat on the balcony as the ship set sailed for Oman. We saw the pilot get off which was interesting. The sun was setting and the reflexion of the sun on the buildings made the sky line look like a fairy tale city, which just maybe what Dubai is.
We played bridge until 9pm and then decided to go to the buffet for a snack. We found that the buffet was closed and the bistro was open. The problem was the menu was the same as are last visit (Don and Myrna's third time with same menu). It seems that they have three different menus which they rotate. We just haven't been with the right rotation.
Today is halloween and many of the passengers and crew were dressed in costumes, Evelyn worn her witches hat, which she never leaves home without.
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Hal
Nov 1 - Muccat, Oman
Nov 1 - Muccat, Oman
This morning we woke to rainy weather, which had been predicted. It seemed to be intermittent. Evelyn and I were at the gym working out for the first time since our colds. We both have recovered with out complication.
The rain has stopped and the sun is out. I'm waiting for trivia at 11am. We will have lunch and then at 1pm we can go ashore. We are taking the shuttle bus (free) to the souk, hopefully it will be open. The drees code in Oman is much stricter than Dubai, women must be covered up, no elbow or knees, and they would like a head scarf if possible. This will be interesting to see how our fellow passengers take to the dress code.
We are only here until 6pm and then we have two days at sea on the way to India. Evelyn and I will leave the ship for three days to take the Taj Mahal tour. It is expensive but it may be are only chance to see the Taj and we didn't want to miss the opportunity. There will be 140 passengers on the tour. More on this later.
We docked in Mina Qaboos, which is the port for Muscat. It is quite pretty as the ship sails in, high hills surround the port, with a fort. You may recall my comment yesterday about harbors. Well! Mina Qaboos is the largest natural deep water harbor in the entire region and has been a shipping hub for many centuries.
We decided to not take a tour, but just take the shuttle into then old town of the port. It was only a short way, but because of security we could not walk. There is another cruise ship in port from the MSC line (German) and for that reason most of the stores were open. This was the kind of shopping Evelyn was made for. She bargained for everything and made some good deals. The souk was very large and meandered like a maze. After a while you keep seeing the same things in every shop. We did find some fun souvenirs and no Starbucks in sight. In fact in comparison to Dubai, Muscat has NO franchised american fast food or stores. Most of the shop keepers we met were expats from India. The town was friendly and clean. We felt safe and enjoyed just people watching. A note about the tourists dress. No modesty there... Shorts, tank tops and everything else. luckily the locals did not seem to take offense. It is though inappropriate to take pictures especially of the women in any of these countries without their permission. Each of the Arab countries' women dress slightly differently but always with modesty in mind.
It was overcast and the temp was about 86 degrees and humid.
We walked around for about two hours and took the shuttle back to the ship. Don and Myrna had gone back sooner and we called them when we got back. We sat in the buffet and had a beer while we played a few hands of bridge.
It was a fun afternoon. The ship sailed at 6pm and we now have 2 days at sea on the way to India.
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Hal
Oct 30-at sea
Oct 30-at sea
This morning we both feel much better. The sun is shining and the sea is calm.
We are sailing in Gulf of Oman. It is not really a gulf, but a strait that connects the Arabian Sea with the Strait of Hormuz, which then runs into the Persian Gulf. We are passing Oman on the way to the UAE.
After breakfast I sat out on the Promemade deck and read until it was time for trivia and Evelyn found a mahjong group.
After trivia, where Myrna was a great help, we laid by the pool building up energy to eat lunch. Evelyn and I really haven't done much for the past three days while fighting our head colds, but we are recovering.
After lunch, I still didn't feel like bridge, my head just wasn't into it, so we picked a couple of deck chairs on the Promenade deck and fell a asleep, until we were awoken for afternoon tea and scones. Made me think of the Titanic. Very civilized ..
We are in a heavily traveled sea route and we can see ships around us. Tankers and container ships. The captain still says we are pirate territory, however I personally think we are too far north. Let's hope I'm right.
The show tonight was at 7pm and we went to the show room early to have a drink and snack on the cheese plate we received in our room. The performer was the English singer Chili Gold. A somewhat unusual name but a very good singer. This was her last performance and she leaves the ship in Dubai and new talent comes aboard.
After dinner we turned in early to rest up for our tour of Dubai.
Sea days give you an opportunity to get into a routine. If you like to keep busy the ship has all kinds of organized activities, from line dancing, back gammon, ceramic painting and other crafts to duplicate bridge and trivia. Trivia is very popular and has become very competitive. There appears to be one team that will need a suit case for all of the Princess logo prizes they have eon. How many key chains can one use. oh! I forgot it's for bragging rights... You can always just lay by the pool or read in the library or one of the other public rooms. You can do as much or as little as you want. And somewhere there is always food or some type of music.
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Hal
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Oct 28 - at sea
Oct 28 - at sea
This morning the wind is much lighter and the seas are calm. The temperature is in the low 80's and I'm by the pool. Evelyn took a yoga class and when she came by here she looks like she had a good work out. We have two more days at sea before we reach Dubai.
We are currently in the Gulf of Aden not yet quite out of pirate territory. Although it as been mentioned before, it bears repeating. The level of security on the ship makes obvious just how seriously this threat is taken. Crew patrol the exterior deck areas 24/7wearing vests that indicate security. Although, we have seen NO evidence to indicate their need, their presents is comforting.
At 11am Evelyn and I played trivia and we lucked out for we played on a team that was smart and we won. It was nice to finally claim victory.
After lunch Evelyn decided to take a nap and I'm by the pool waiting for afternoon trivia, now that I'm on a roll. The weather has turned overcast and the winds are now blowing at a good pace.
We decided to attend Friday Sabbath services, more to see what other passengers are Jewish. It was a nice service conducted by a man from Brentwood, who I met last week by the pool. The ship's bakery makes a pretty good challah.
We then stopped in for a drink at the Suite cocktail party with a couple who play bridge and also attended the service. They live in West Palm Beach, but are transplants from Chicago.
Evelyn and I and Myrna and Don decided to have dinner in the Bistro. The Bistro is the buffet turned into a sit down resturant on sea days for dinner. They have a basic menu and allows you to be a little flexible with timing on dinning. You can go anytime from 6 to 11 pm, it is a change from strict second seating. We were going to go to the show after dinner, but Evelyn and I both have head colds so we went back to the cabin. I think we caught the cold on the bus to Petra, but with so many people around you never know. Hopefully we will recover quickly. At least with both of us under the weather at the same he can't blame me for infecting him...
Oct 29 - at sea
There are white caps on the water and the ship is rocking a bit more then usual. Evelyn has gone to the bridge lesson and I'm in the Tahitian Lounge writing the blog and reading.
The process is that I write the basic information and the Evelyn fills in the color, so the interesting details are coming from Evelyn, as is the correction of my spelling.
For trivia we added a lady from Whitter and she was a good player, but we still came in in the middle. It amazing how much useless information there is especially when you add the trivia from other country's. Like where did word "tulip" originate? Answer tomorrow..
We had lunch in the British Pub, which is set up in the Steakhouse. We all had fish and chips. It was ok. Next time I want to try the steak and Kinney pie.
Don and Myrna played bridge, Evelyn took a nap and I attended the port talk on Oman. Not much to see and the souk ( which is the general term for market ) is closed from 1pm to 4pm. We dock at 1pm and have to be on board by 6:30pm. The ship has informed the souk that we will be in port and hope that some shoppes will open up. The tours aren't much, and there is a "free" shuttle bus to take us to the old town. I don't know why we can't dock early, Dubai is only a short distance from Muscat.
Our cruise is now half finished.
We had drinks in the casino bar and tonight was karaoke night. Some of the singers were pretty good.
After dinner Evelyn and I made it an early night.
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Hal
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
Oct 27 - at sea
Oct 27 - at sea
This morning we left the Red Sea and passed thru the straights that separates Eritrea and Yemen and entered the Gulf of Aden. We will turn east heading to Dubai, to the west of us is Somalia and the Horn of Africa. We now have a naval escort, a frigate from the Indian navy and it's supply ship. I'm not sure how long they will be with us.
Last evening Evelyn and I attended the Chef's Table. There were 11 passengers. We all met in the dinning room bar and were provide with white chef coats. We then entered the galley and were given specific instructions on washing our hands. We entered the galley on deck 5 where platting of the evenings offerings along with beverage service and room service are handled. Within a locked and barred office is the wine and spirits, along with the Head (Executive Chef) Chef's office.
All the menu's for both the passengers and crew are developed by Princess at their corporate office in Santa Clarita, Calif. This insures that the crew gets a balanced diet and the passengers get the best Princess has to offer and there is consistency between ships. Every Princess 7 day cruise for example has the same menu. This also enables better purchasing of provisions .
We were greeted by the Maitre'd Giuseppe Franchina and the Executive Chef Antonio Costantino. They explained how the food service functioned and we then toured the galley on deck 5 before going down a set of stairs within the galley to deck 4 where we had appetizers and champaign.
We then took the service elevator to deck 10 and the Steakhouse where on large oval table was set for us. The food was excellent as was the service and wine.
The menu consisted of 6 courses after the appetizers which were a shrimp with avocado and mango served in a martini glass, a Big Eye Tuna tartar served in a cone with red caviar and a mini cheese quiche with truffle oil and roasted tomato. The quiche was more like a soufflé with a roasted tomato center. The final appetizer was a potato crisp served with very nice caviar and sour cream. All were wonderful and accompanied a very nice Heidsieck & Co Monopole Blue Champagne. According to the Maitre'd it was the same champagne poured on the Titanic... Next, now seated were served a Porcini Risotto with Tiger Shrimp, followed by a Strawberry and Cracked Pepper Sorbet drizzles with some very good Vodka. Next was an entree of Lobster Thermidor and Roast Beef Tenderloin with all the trimmings, a warmed Brie served with a
Port reduction and Riesling soaked green Grapes completed the cheese course. Any description of the Amaretto Parfait served next would not do it justice. The parfait was now what Americans think of. More of a frozen desert somewhere between ice cream and mouse served with Vanilla soaked plumbs in the most delightful sugar moulded bowls worthy of a prize from the Food Channel. Finally coffee and truffles completed the meal.
The meal was paired with an Italian Pinot Griego, a California Merlot and a desert late harvest Riesling.
Each lady was give a rose, a princess cook book (we now have three) and a group picture. For myself I think I enjoyed the dinning experience more then on the Golden Princess which we took last year. The Chef's Table cost $95 per person and it last over three hours.
Today October 28th, the sun is shinning bright, but the is a steady breeze of about 15 knots and the ship is rocking a little.
Both of us worked out this morning. The gym is not crowded as most passengers seem to prefer walking the track above the pool. The wind is really blowing and they
have shut off deck 11 and one side of the promenade deck.
We played morning trivia and scored well, but I thought the questions were easy.
After lunch we played bridge and scored in the middle of the pack.
We had cocktails in our cabin, today we and D/M received two plate of appetizers and a big bowl of guacamole and chips. It is getting to be a bit much. After dinner we played name the face of a famous person and got a respectable 37 out of 50.
Both Evelyn and I are a little under the weather so tomorrow i' m going to just relax by the pool.
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Hal
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Oct 24 - Safaga, Egypt
Oct 24 - Safaga, Egypt
This port is considered the "gateway" from the Red Sea for ships with tourists going to Luxor, The Valley of the kings and Karnak all on or very near the Nile. The drive is three and half hours each way. The city itself is not a tourist destination.
There was no shuttle into the town of Safaga and we were warned that the taxis were a negotiating process. We heard so many interesting stories about the ride to town. Our Australian friends had the best experience, they walked to the port gate, got a taxi for $5 per person. He took them to a shopping area and then to the Holiday Inn for lunch. He picked them back up at the hotel and took them back to the port gate. They still had not given him any money! When he dropped them at the gate he only asked for his original fee, but our friend gave him $50 for the day.
We spent the day by the pool and played bridge with Don and Myrna. Let's not forget lunch.
After dinner we watched the local Folkloric show which was very good. We saw a whirling dervish, who whirled for at least 20 minutes without stopping. It was an unbelievable performance. The belly dancers were not bad also. For those of you who have no idea of what a "whirling Dervish" is, it is a dancer that spins with layers of circular skirts that spin like disks at the waist of the dancer. They can spin continuously and raise a layer above their heads and other variations. AMAZING...
Later we played trivia and our team came in second.
The next 6 days are at sea, so I will be combining some of the days.
Oct 25 - at sea
Evelyn and I walked for excise this morning and then had a light breakfast. All of us are starting to watch what we eat. I truly believe the salt air and or the ships laundry shrinks my clothes.
There was a qualifying trivia game this morning to selected two men and two women to play in a game to find the smartest trivia player. We did not place high enough, thou Evelyn did very well.
After lunch we played duplicate bridge and Evelyn and I came in tied for first place. This is a step up from are usual low placement.
Tonight is a formal night and our whole table is meeting for cocktails and we (H/E and D/M) are providing the appetizers - they just keep coming every night.
This afternoon the weather turned a little overcast, but it is still warm and muggy, the seas are calm.
We had a great time at the Casino bar before dinner. We are very lucky that we have such interesting and nice table mates, that doesn't happen very often.
The best entree tonight was lobster, it must have been because it was formal night. After dinner the show was a movie song review with the ship's dancers and singers. It must have been good, because I only nodded off a couple of times.
Oct 26 - at sea in the Red Sea
We both slept in till 8am this morning and it felt good. After breakfast I listened to the Port Lecturer talk about Dubai. Evelyn went to the bridge lesson. We are now waiting for trivia to start. Our team consists our all bridge players which means we will come in last. We finished in the middle of the pack.
We are now having a discussion on whether to take a ship tour or use the hop-on hop-off bus in Dubai. It now seems that we will take a ships tour. We want to go to the top of the tallest building and if we take the ship's tour we won't have to wait in line. The ship' s tour is more cost and time effective. A friend of mine (Evelyn's) lives in Abu Dabi and sent a detailed list of what to see and where to go. fYI Abu Dabi is the Capitol city of the UAE and is about 2 house by car from Dubai. I'm disappointed that I will be unable to see her. She is pregnant and her doctor has restricted her travel.
I complained to Princess about the Petra tour and yesterday I received a letter of apology and a 30% discount on the price of the tour.
Seeing that we did so well yesterday I have agreed to play bridge this afternoon.
This evening Evelyn and I will be doing the Chef's Table.
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Hal
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Oct 23 -Aqaba, Jordan
Oct 23 -Aqaba, Jordan
Last night's dinner in the Sterling Steakhouse was very good, except for the steak. The service, appetizer, soup and desert were great, the steak just wasn't cooked correctly and I should have sent it back. We had a good bottle of wine and they had a special cake for our anniversary. The wine list has a good selection of domestic (Californian) and wines form Chili and other countries at reasonable prices. The ship also allows you to bring on one bottle per person. You could probably bring on a bottle at every port if you wanted to.
They also put balloons and a sign on our cabin door for our anniversary.
I've picked on everyone so I need to tell a story on myself. Today we needed to get up early (6am) to go to Petra. The travel clock that we brought has two alarms, well the second alarm woke me a 1:00 am and I got dressed before I looked at the clock which read 1:18 am. Evelyn was not happy.
Of the 630 passengers on the ship about 400 took the tour to Petra. We left at 8am and arrived in Wai Moses round 10am. We didn't have a very good guide. He didn't have the English skills to communicate with us, so we didn't get a lot of information. We walked in and out about 4 1/2 miles. It was down hill going it, but up coming out. The options were a carriage pulled by a donkey, a horse ride or donkey ride, or last but not least a camel. The weather was good, not too hot and a nice breeze was blowing. Petra is very impressive, but I like Ephesus better.
Petra wad built somewhere around 400BC and you can also see evidence of Roman repairs from around 100AD. All of the buildings and tombs are carved into the very sheer canyon walls. The Treasury and the theater were the most impressive in addition to a system for providing gravity delivered water through a simple aqueduct system. It's a good walk and you can go at your own pace. Dusty it is.. Because of the height of the canyon walls and in some areas how narrow the passage is, it provides natural shade and even cool breezes. It is well worth seeing. It is one of the 7 wonders of the world along with the Taj Mahal, The Pyramids, The Great Wall and 3 others I will have to look up.
We had lunch a hotel which was excellent, they had a whole roasted baby lamb.
After lunch we did some shopping and returned to the ship around 6pm.
For the next two days the dinning room is open seating because of the length of the tours, but we ate in the buffet and it was good. They had roast duck as good as what I make.
The bus from Aqaba to Petra is about 2 hours each way. Although Jordan has brought up the educational level of it's citizens to a mandatory 10th grade education there is still considerable poverty and a small middle class.
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Hal
Monday, October 24, 2011
Oct 21 - Suez Canal Passage
Oct 21 - Suez Canal Passage
After dinner we saw the show which was Thom Peterson, The Amazing Guy, who is both a comedian and magician. He was very entertaining and both Myrna and Don were part of the show. Evelyn will no longer set in the front row anymore, so our stage days are done. It's a two way issue, remember you cannot leave early when you sit in the first row and you just never know.
This morning we a woke with the ship in the Canal. We began our passage at 2:30am. It takes about 16 hours to reach the end. We are in a convoy with 22 ship, of which we are number 21. It appears that a lot of the ships in the convoy are container ships. So far I have only seen one cruise ship and I'm not sure about that one.
We are now anchored in Bitter Lake, it is 10:30 am. This is where the northbound convoy passes and the southbound convoy waits. Once all the northbound convoy is anchored in the lake the southbound ships create a new convoy and proceed south. Now we are first continuing south. The Canal and the lake are saltwater and we have seen a number of local small fishing boats. Mostly the land along the Canal is sand, with a number of security buildings and a small number of houses. Mostly sand. In some areas back from the Canal the vegetation is green, but mostly no color at all.
The Suez has a very different feel from the Panama. You can occasionally see villages in the distance and palms and vegetation.
It is much warmer today, but not hot. They are some clouds, but mostly blue sky.
As i mentioned above we weighed anchor at 11:30am and we are now number one in the convoy and will clear the Canal at about 3:15 pm.
Lake Bitter seems to also be a resort area, some beaches and nice housing along the shore line.
Flies are beginning to be a problem and there is a smell in the air somewhat like a stockyard. Maybe the two go together. Thankfully the smell didn't last long. The flies on the other hand drove us from the deck to one on the interior lounges.
We have decided to try the dinning room for lunch. Everyone liked the food in the dinning room, but I'm sure they have the same items in the buffet.
Evelyn and I are relaxing by the pool, which is saltwater, while Don and Myrna are playing bridge. While enjoying bridge I also like to do other things. We can play bridge every other day while at sea.
This southern half of the Canal is much more populated with real cities along the shore. The Suez Canal is the longest saltwater canal at sea level without the use of locks. It's approximately 190 kilometers long.
We have reached the City of Suez, at the south end of the canal, in the recorded time of 12 hours. We are just passing a beautiful mosque along the port.
We are now sailing in the Gulf of Suez in the Red Sea. Tomorrow we dock in Sharem El-Sheikh which is at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula.
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Hal
Friday, October 21, 2011
Oct 20th - At sea
Oct 20th - At sea
Last night there were two entertainment choices. The "Showtime" presentation was a duet that did all of the standard dutes you are familiar with. We skipped it and instead wast to a late night comedy show
The late night entertainment was Tom Briscoe who put on an adult comedy show. It was billed as separate from the regular shows. He was very funny and the lounge was full. He did a lot of husband and wife humor and there was something funny for everyone.
After we left Kusadasi we turned west to sail back towards the Suez Canal. We gained back an hour on the clock. At some point we will turn south towards Egypt and the canal.
Today the sea is calm and the sky is blue. It is around 8am and it is warm outside. Evelyn and I are going to the gym for some excise, thou we have been doing a lot of walking on tours.
There are a number of lecturers on board and I will attend the lecture on the Suez Canal this morning. We will play bridge this afternoon.
At 4pm there is an Anti Piracy Drill. We have received a set of instruction on precautions that will be in effect while we are in a "high alert status". More later.
I finished my workout and stepped on the scale, so I'm eating fruit for breakfast this morning. With unlimited food available you need to be careful and selective. As Scarlet said "tomorrow is another day" and there will be more food. The last two dinner I didn't have desert.
I took a walk around the ship, which given it's size doesn't take too long. The Ocean Princess weights 30,000 tons, which is about 1/3 the size of Princess' other ship. It only carries 680 passengers and a crew of about 350. There is one dinning room, with two seatings, a buffet which is open for breakfast and lunch, the dinning room is also open for lunch as open seating. The buffet changes to the Bistro in the evening for causal dinning. There is a grill on the pool deck which makes hamburgers and hot dogs and a pizza station that is open until 11pm. The are two specialty resturant, a steakhouse and an Italian ( they seem to alternate days). There is a charge ($20 and $25) per person for the specialty resturants.
There is a large pool and two whirlpools, a gym, and a spa. A nice size library, a card room and an Internet area (wireless is available though out the ship) with 10 computer stations. There is a charge for using the Internet with a number of packages (based on the number of minutes you purchase) available. Because we have platinum status we get 500 minutes free each.
Our cabin is a mini-suite which is a lot wider then the regular balcony cabin. We have lots of storage space, a bigger than queen bed, a 6 foot sofa, with a small coffee table and two arm chairs. The balcony has two chairs, two lounges and a table. As Don and Myrna are next to us we will open the door between the two balconies at some point.
Evelyn is happy because there are two coffee stations, one at each end of the ship, on different decks, where she can get her specialty coffee drinks. She purchased a coffee card which provides a discount. You can always get free coffee and tea, both hot and cold for free, but not the fancy "Starbucks" drinks or even espresso. There are two lounges in the front of the ship, one on deck 5 which is used for the nightly entertainment and one on deck 9 which has different attractions daily. The one on deck 9 has a wonderful view from the front of the ship. We must remember that we eat in the back of the ship and are entertained in the front of the ship. Our cabins are right in the middle on deck 8. There are a total of 11 decks, of which deck 4 to 11 are for passengers.
There is lots to do during the day and in the evening, trivia, pool games and demonstrations by the cruise staff and each bar area has a singer or group, in addition to the main evening show. There are also lots of places to just sit and do nothing if you want.
The lecture on the Suez Canal was well attended. It will be interesting going thru. The canal is 190 km long. Traffic is one way at a time. There are two southbound convoys and one northbound convoy each day. Somewhere in the middle they pass each other.
After lunch (I tried the hot dog from the grill - a one-time event - not that good) we play bridge and did much better this session. We are still only good beginner in bridge.
As we were finishing up at bridge the Anti Piracy Drill began. We had to go to our cabins and leave the door open so they could be sure where everyone was. The Captain came over the speakers and explain that this was a simulation of an attack and what action the ship would take. The lasted about 20 minutes.
After we all decided (Myrna and Evelyn) that we should walk a mile around the track which is on deck 10, about the pool area.
We are getting ready for cocktails, we have continued to receive a large plate of appetizer each evening. Myrna tried to get them to stop, but must not have communicated well (Don is happy they are still being sent).
Sent from my iPad
Hal
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Oct 19th - Kusadasi, Turkey
Oct 19th - Kusadasi, Turkey
We docked in Kusadasi early and our tour began at 7:10am. Today we visit Ephesus, the ruins of the Roman provincial capital, the house of the Virgin Mary and then the Basilica of St. John. There were only 22 of us on the bus and we had a great guide. The best part of being on a small ship (600 passengers) is no large crowds. We started at Mary's house which the Vatican has recognized as the final resting place of the Virgin Mary. Ephesus was next and it was as impressive as the acropolis that we saw yesterday. This was a working city with shops, government offices, a 25,000 seat theater, a large library, common baths and a couple of the brothels. At the peak there were 250,000 souls residing in Ephesus. We then stopped at the Basilica of St. John which has the tomb of St. John the Apostle. In addition to writing the book of Revelations, John was also responsible for Mary during her time in Ephesus. It is believed he lived to be over one hundred.
Our last stop was a Turkish rug dealer, where we learned everything we ever wanted to know about Turkish rugs and we ended up buying a small rug to hang on the wall. We don't know if we got a good price but we bargained very hard. Traditional to shops of this kind, in this part of the world after the rug weaving demonstration you are served refreshments. Either chai, apple tea, Turkish coffee or local wine and a freshly baked soft roll filled with cheese. Delicious .....
Tomorrow is a sea day and we will get to sleep in which will be nice. We have late dinner seating at 8:15pm and the show at 10:15pm, so we are not getting to sleep very early and the getting up for the tours before dawn has taken some effort. We have thought about switching to early seating, but we are very happy with our table mates.
So far the service, in both the dinning room and our cabin has been very good. The food is ok, but nothing outstanding. Dinner take about 1 3/4 hours, but it seems the right pace.
The ship makes it easy now, you can order any wine by the bottle and have a glass or two and they keep it for you until the next night. The wine by the glass menu isn't inspiring.
It was cold this AM, but now it has warmed up to the high 60's. Evelyn went back to do more shopping ashore and I'm by the pool updating the blog and having a beer. Evelyn has returned and is having a snack. I had the pizza for lunch and it was very good. Well it's time to watch the crew cast off and sail out of the harbor of Kusadasi. More later...
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Hal
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Oct 18 - Athens
Oct 18 - Athens
We booked a "Athens on Your Own" with the ship, where the bus from the ship drops us near the Acropolis and picks us up about 6 hours later.
Our first stop was the new Archaeological Museum (5 euros) which is a good starting point for our visit to Parthenon. When we left the Museum, Don and Myrna went on their own as they were here 30 years ago. Quote of the day from Myrna "I'm not paying 12 euros to see a pile of rubble".
Evelyn and I paid the 12 euros each and climbed to the top. It was a beautiful day, clear skies, and in the high 60's, no rain in sight. The view is 360 degrees of the City of Athens and the surrounding area. The ruins are beyond words, there is restoration going at most of the sites. There are areas where marble and other carved stone sections are stored waiting for fitting back into one on the temples. Quite a puzzle.
Here we started to see dogs sleeping along the pathways and in general almost anywhere. These dogs were all over 50 lbs. Some had collars and later we found out they have radio transmitters in them. Athens seems to have the unique situation of having many thousand (one article on the internet reported 15,000 of them before the 2004 summer Olympics) dogs that appear to be in good health, feed and just about everywhere.
After our climb down we walked the short distance to the old town of Plaka, a 19th century shopping district. We had lunch a a small cafe and then walked the shopping area buying some souvenirs.
Our guide on the bus spoke about the ongoing demonstrations, but we didn't any. When we talked to D/M they did see some on the taxi ride back to the ship.
Tomorrow we are in Turkey.
For the pass two evenings we both have gotten large plate of small bites. We are not sure why. but they are great.
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Hal
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Oct 16 - Sorrento
Oct 16 - Sorrento
Our tour to Capri was scheduled for 7:45am, so we had to be in the tour lounge by 7am. We ordered breakfast for 6:30am. We got to the lounge on time, but the Italian authorities were late in clearing the ship so we started late. This port is the only one where we will be using tenders and with the wind blowing at 30 knots it made for a bumpy ride to the dock. We met our guide, who either looked like Ben Kingsly or Howie Mendel depending on who you asked, at dockside. We boarded a catamaran to take the 25 minute ride to Capri. Even in the choppy water the ride was almost smooth.
There are 24 people on our tour, which made it very crowded on the small bus that we took to the town of Anacapri, which is the high point of the island. We visited the Villa San Michelle and after a short shopping break we boarded the bus for the ride to the town of Capri. We visited the Garden of Augustus and then had lunch at the Hotel La Residenza, which was one of the better tour lunches we have had. More shopping time and then we took the cable car to the Marina to take the boat back to Sorrento, where we caught the last tender to the ship.
The ship sailed at about 4:30pm heading to Athens. Tomorrow is a sea day and Athens is the next day.
This trip we did not try to sneak booze on board, but bought it from the ship. More expensive, but easier. So last night we had cocktails in Don and Myrna's cabin before dinner.
At dinner the missing couple showed up. They are from New Hamshirer, the husband was born in Ireland and the wife from England. They fit well with our group.
We decided to see the show which was Dan Hagger (singer/jokester). We sat in the front row which I knew was a mistake when I became part of his act as a member of the Jordanairs who were Elvis's backup singers. I got very good reviews for my performance.
Oct 17th - At Sea
At about 4am the winds reach about 50 mph and the ship was like a cork in the ocean. At some point the Captain got on the public address to assure everyone it would not go on forever although all the doors on decks that have access to walking areas like the promenade deck were not accessible until about 1:00 in the afternoon...
Not many people showed up for breakfast. By early afternoon things had calmed down.
Bridge has started with a lesson this morning and we played duplicate this afternoon. Being the first time it was a little disorganized.
Tonight is formal.
After dinner we watched the show called Stardust, a singing and dancing performance of oldies, but goodies. The songs were from the 40's Through Elvis. It was fun.
Tomorrow is Athens.
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Hal
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Oct 15 - Heading to the ship
Oct 15 - Heading to the ship
We now know our phone is working. Last night we got a call from our alarm company saying there was a fault in the system (not alarm ringing), as we have not heard any more we are assuming there is no more problem.
We were picked up a little before 11am for the drive to Civitavecchia. We were told to allow 2+ hours and we were there in just over an hour. We were able to board immediately after checking in. The cabin is bigger then the suites on the larger Princess ships. Lots of space, queen bed, sofa, table and chairs, desk area and good closet space. The bathroom is ok with lots of storage and a tub/shower.
I don't think they were ready for new passengers yet. There were no robes and so of the information and normal first day items were missing. We were told they had stormy weather yesterday and were unable to complete some of these thing. The internet is unavailable at this time.
We had lunch with a couple from Austraila. We spent the afternoon unpacking. The good news was that all of the bags were delivered quickly. I feel a lot more organized. Basically we had everything we needed for Rome in one bag, so it's nice to be surprised by what you packed almost a week ago...
At 5pm will be the lifeboat drill and the we will go to the first cocktail party for the suite people.
Tomorrow is our first stop- Sorrento.
After the lifeboat drill we went to the Steakhouse where they have hors d'oeuvres for Elite, Platinum and Suite passengers. They have different theme each time with a special drink. It was a good place to watch the ship leave port.
We now have Internet service and good wireless in our cabin.
We have late seating for dinner (8:15pm) and are seating at a table of 8. One of our table mates is a couple from Canada, Don and Barbara. He had a large cattle ranch before retiring and she is a social worker who works with women. They seem like a nice couple. The other couple must have ate somewhere else.
We skipped the entertainment tonight. It is when they introduce the staff and officers and tell you what the entertainment is going to be during cruise. We will be surprised.
We have to up early tomorrow as we tender into Sorrento at 7am for our tour of Capri.
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Hal
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Oct 14 - Rome
Oct 14 - Rome
Last night we walked back to the Spanish Steps (20 minutes) for dinner at a resturant that was recommend to Myrna. The name is Number 34 and I think over all we enjoyed the food, the service was a little iffy, but a good experience. The place was very busy and the seemed reasonable. With tip it was 120 euros for the four of us.
We took a taxi back to the hotel, I wasn't about to climb those steps again. We took a little walk around the Via Veneto to settle dinner and the went to the roof bar of our hotel for a drink.
This morning it was hard to get up (7am) must still be a little jet lagged. We are taking a walking food tour and Don and Myrna are going to the Vatican.
We left the hotel about 9:15am and caught a taxi to Piazza Testaccio were we were to meet for our food tour (www.eatingitalyfoodtours.com) - $120 for the both of us. The taxi ride was about 12 euros. Our guide, Kenny, was from the USA, Philly to be exact,and has been living in Rome for about four years. We made seven stops and tasted fresh mozzarella de bufala, a tomato selection, culatello and pecorino with truffles, tiramisu, a sit down pasta tasting ( three pastas, with wine), a "suppli alla genovese" (like a croquette) and then finished off with really good old school gelato. We also visited the non-catholic cemetery, the first grave was in 14bc. Both Keats and Shelly are buried here, and the old slaughter house. This was a great tour.
Tonight we had dinner at Nino by the Spanish Steps. This Resturant came highly recommended. Much more expensive then last night. The food was ok, I didn't order right.
I had the bean soup, a specialty, which was good, and a lamb stew which while tasty wasn't for me. Everyone else enjoyed their meal, but we agreed that we would not return. The cost with wine and service was 154 euros, but no desert or coffee. Frankly it's interesting how you order, what you are familiar with and what you expect can influence you judgement about a meal.
This particular establishment was highly recommended and thinking about the meal and the food tour earlier in the day. I found the pasta that was part of the tour to be a small piece of heaven.
Next trip to Rome will include some of the food tours recommendations, they are local, long standing and off the tourist path.
We walked to get gelato on the Via Veneto.
Tomorrow we board our ship. We have a car picking us up at 11am to take us to Civitavecchia.
Haven't really done any shopping although we did pick up a couple of bottles of good Italian red's to take on the ship.
P.S. The weather reports are no more accurate than at home. Today was supposed to be cloudy with showers. It was beautiful, blue and in the mid seventies. Goes to show you.
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Hal
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