San Francisco

Thursday 28 January:

There has been a lot of water passed under the keel since we last wrote. After we left Mexico to sail farther north it began to get colder. We sailed through the outer fringe of a storm which made the cruising a bit rough for a day or so. As a result of that we have not been sitting outside very much. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent at sea, sailing at full speed for San Francisco, thus we have not done any blog updates.

Thursday morning we got up early because we wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge from the sea. We sailed under the bridge at 6:45 and it was too dark for us to see much. The bridge was lighted and we could see the traffic going across on it. It was cold so we watched the bridge from inside. We were at the pier in San Francisco about 7:30 but had to wait until after 11:30 before we could go ashore because everyone had to clear immigration before anyone could get off the ship. There were a couple of stragglers who did not go to immigration right away and had to be called several times so we had to wait until they cleared, thus delaying everyone. We only had about an hour to take in Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39 because we had to be back at the ship before 1:00 to catch our tour bus. We went to nearby Muir Woods, dedicated to a man who came from Dunbar, Scotland, to see the giant redwoods. Along the way we had to drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and saw some very beautiful scenery. We had a good tour director who gave us lots of local stories and this made it very interesting for us. We drove through some countryside that Morag thought reminded her of the Scottish landscape, lots of rolling hills with short valleys in between. The giant redwoods were magnificent. It was so quiet as we walked through the forest. We had to stick to the path and were not allowed to get off so we would not damage the ecology. It was one of the most awe inspiring things we had ever seen. The guide said it was the only living National Monument and was the third most popular National Monument in number of visitors: the first is the Statue of Liberty and the second is Mount Rushmore. It was very cold and damp, much like Scotland in January but it didn't rain on us and the guide said it was the first day without rain in San Francisco in two and a half weeks. There was an amazing amount of flowers in the gardens and even some wild flowers int he fields. It must be the right climate for this kind of plant life. We even saw some purple heather on the sides of the hills.

After the Muir Woods we drove to Sausalito, an artist colony and a very popular tidal basin for yachts. We thought it was a charming little town and we would have liked to spend more time there. We only had about an hour. As we drove through San Francisco our guide pointed out some very interesting places and we found the city to be very clean. We would like to return some day and spend some time just enjoying the city. The architecture of the city is a real mixture of art deco, victorian, and modern and rather unique.

So back to the ship where it was nice and warm and now we're sailing in a southwesterly direction towards Hawaii. If anybody reading this would like to send us an email we would like to hear from you. Please email to Mel's verizon address, mmsurguine@verizon.net.

Today we went to three lectures on the ship. The first was on Hawaiian history especially explaining how Hawaii became a state. The lecturer was very knowledgeable and interesting. We learned a lot about the history of the island group which actually reaches as far west as Midway. The second lecture was by a journalist from Britain who told us how the press and politics interacted and influenced each other. He was a good lecture and kept us interested. The third was by the oceanography professor and was about whales. He had recordings of sounds made by whales and dolphins. We have enjoyed his lectures as we go along.

That just about brings everybody up to date. We have just finished listening to a classical concert in the Queens Room. So we continue on our journey, enjoying the activities, the food, and the people we meet.

Acapulco

Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 January:

We had been cruising for three days before we arrived in Acapulco. It took two days hard steaming (they don't really steam any more but steaming sounds better than dieseling) from the Panama canal to Acapulco. It was very pleasant on the ship and we enjoyed just relaxing, reading and watching the wildlife that we saw in the water. There were some interesting birds, rust in color but with white and black breasts.They followed the ship for a long time. When the bridge would spot wildlife they would alert the passengers and we did get to see some small dolphins and the occasional sailfish as well as the birds. There reports of a whale but we did not see it.

Saturday morning we arrived in the Acapulco harbor about an hour late. Since there were already three other cruise ships in the harbor we did not have a berth so we had to go onshore by tender. Acapulco was not as nice as Cartagena but we still enjoyed the day. We had booked a tour called Amazing Acapulco which included a tour of the sights around the city and a visit to the famous cliffs where the divers would jump into the water from high up the cliffs, up to 1156 feet. The city was in a beautiful setting with a natural harbor and surrounded by mountains. Our drive took us up one side of the city where our tour guide showed us where the rich and famous live. Funny, it was the same names that we heard in Grand Cayman, i.e. Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, Sylvester Stallone and lots of older luminaries like Bogard, Hedy Lamar, etc. We went to the famous Black Lagoon where a lot of water scenes were filmed especially in the older Tarzan movies with Johnny Weismuller. Our tour guide was humorous and very good. He told us many interesting stories of how Acapulco became famous as a vacation area for the Hollywood and political crowds.

The last stop on our tour was to view the cliff divers. The youngest of the divers was seven years old and they dove from different ranges of heights, the highest was from 115 feet. They dive from greater heights as they get more experience and lose their fright of the heights. The water is from 12 to 16 feet deep and they had to judge the waves so they would land when the small basin was fullest. The divers all belong to one family and there are several groups of them so some would see different divers. In the group we saw there was one girl who is a young teenager. After the divers there was a small show with locals dressed in native costumes and doing a local dance. When we left the area the divers were lined up with a plastic bag for tips. They seemed to do quite well.

That being our last stop we were dropped off at the quay to catch our tender back to the ship. The quay had several shops where you could buy local crafts, etc. We got back to the ship about 3:00 in the afternoon, had a lunch and rested the rest of the day.

Today is Sunday and we went to church. The service is led by the captain and is a generic service. Our usual routine on days when we are not in port is we walk around the promenade deck for about 45 minutes. Today is a very blustery day and was quite windy so we did not sit out on deck for very long. Now we are in our cabin getting ready to go down for dinner.

We hope you all had a nice Sunday and we sail on. Next stop, San Francisco.

Panama Canal report:

Yesterday, January 20th we spent transiting the Panama canal. It was very hot and humid so we chose to view the crossing from an air-conditioned glassed-in lounge rather than on deck. We were sitting right in front so we had a good view. For the transit the ship opened some deck area that is normally only accessible to the crew. Actually there were so many people looking out you would think the ship would have tipped over. We had to be up really early so we could see the entrance into the canal. We arrived at the first lock about 0630 but didn't enter until about 0800. In front of us was the Norwegian Star so we got a picture of what we must have looked like entering the canal. There was about two feet clearance on each side of the ship but it looked to us like we were scraping the sides. It was amazing and also amazing to see locks fill up and raise the ship. There were three chambers together on the Atlantic side and then one chamber on the Pacific at first and then later two more. We saw the mules and how they guided the ship through the locks. The ship moved under her own propulsion: the mules were just there to make sure the ship did not scrape the sides and bump the end of the chamber. There were steel cables attached to the mules and the ship to keep us straight and from going too far to either side. It is a tremendous feat of engineering and we were amazed at how the workers were able to survive under those conditions of high heat and humidity. We were also unaware that the Panama Canal is actually slightly east of Florida and runs north to south instead of east to west. It was a beautiful sail because we got to see some of the rain forest and little islands in the canal lakes. It was basically a very nice day but it took us almost twelve hours to get through the canal. We are now in the Pacific Ocean west of Costa Rica. We don't remember the exact amount but it cost over 390 thousand dollars in toll to transit the canal.

While sitting up in the lounge there were lots of people and we got to talk to each other. It was a very pleasant day. We will be at sea until Saturday, so we will write another blog after we have been to Acapulco.

CARTAGENA

Tuesday 19 January

To start with, here is a photo from Cartagena, Colombia.

I expect this will be one of the biggest surprises to us on our trip. We signed up for a walking tour of the old city of Cartagena. Cartagena is in Colombia, South America, and it was our first time to be on this continent. I think we expected to see a city filled with slums and dirty but it was the opposite. The city was founded in 1533 and because of many pirate attacks they used slave labor to fortify it by building a wall around it. This fortification is the largest in all South America with a wall that is six to fifty feet thick.

Anyway, back to us being surprised. Inside these walls was a beautiful old preserved city with lovely painted buildings. It had many trees so it was shaded and had wonderful bright flowers. The national flower is the orchid. We absolutely loved the city. Everything was very colorful; the flowers, the trees, the buildings and the people, especially the women in their native costumes. It just made you feel good because everyone seemed to be so cheerful and happy.

Colombia has the biggest emerald mines in the world but we didn't buy any emeralds, just like we didn't buy any diamonds in the Cayman Islands. It was very hot and after two hours of walking we were quite tired. When we came back to the ship we took a little walk around the docks then came back on board. That about concludes our first visit to South America.

Here are a few statistics about the ship that we think you might enjoy. During this 15-day segment, New York to San Francisco, the Queen victoria will consume 70 tons of fruit and vegetables; 18 tons of meat; 12 tons of poultry; 20 tons of fish and seafood; 20 tons of cheese and dairy; 67,850 pints of milk; 4,666 dozen eggs; 8 tons of flour; 3 tons of rice; 1,680 pizzas; 11,200 scones; 70,000 cups of tea; 4,000 pints of beer; 8,750 bottles of beer/cider; 1,400 bottles of wine; 530 bottles of champagne.

Another day on a grueling cruise.

Sunday 20 and Monday 21 January:

Sunday morning we anchored offshore at Grand Cayman and took a tender to the harbor. it was only about a five-minute ride. They have that down pat. It went very smoothly. Standing at the harbor were people offering tours of the island and we took one of them. It was a bit of a bust because there is not really a whole lot to see on the island. it's really geared for snorkeling and swimming with the stingrays.

We did get to see where the rich and famous live, such as Oprah, Tom Cruise, Chuck Norris, Brad Pitt, etc. It's a little out of our price range. We saw some beaches but it was no great shakes. Anyway, the most interesting thing for Morag was that the tour lady was in her fifties and looked like she had been round the block a few times. She said we would have to stop and pick up her husband. In the car jumps this 24-year old, long ponytailed, suntanned young man. Yeah, Husband!

We shopped around at the stores but it was filled with jewelry stores selling diamonds and since we didn't need anything like that we came back to the ship and didn't spend a penny except the price of the tour. That was Grand Cayman. it was very hot so it was nice to come back to an air-conditioned ship.

About the virus: Two people at our table have been stricken with the virus and they told us that the doctor has to come to your cabin; they wash down the cabin with special people and special cleaners. The regular cleaners are not allowed in and people come in with HAZMAT gear to clean the place. They took the laundry and washed it in a special solution and then came in and fumigated the room after the patient had gotten better. The cleaners are constantly wiping down the banisters with antiviral cleaner and we saw people wiping down the sides of the ship with what we assumed was also antiviral cleaner. It would be nice to have this over with. It might make it a little easier for the ships crew if they didn't have this to contend with. They have to work so hard.

Actually these blogs are a bit tedious because there's nothing funny. We haven't run into any funny situations to write about so we'll have to make something up. I suppose we could describe the old women in their bikinis and the old men in the speedos. That ought to make your day if you can picture that. And so we sail on.

Another story for you

What we forgot to say:

Two of our table of eight have come down with the virus; the husband of one and the wife of another. This requires 48 hour quarantine after the virus is diagnosed. One of them will be off quarantine tomorrow (Sunday).

Our table was set up for eight and it will be the same eight until we reach San Francisco. It is comprised of a scientist and his wife, two lawyers who are married to each other (from New York) and another lawyer (Mark) from Bethesda and his wife. Mark's brother joined the cruise in Ft. Lauderdale and since our table is only for eight, Mark and his wife had to be moved to another table so he could be with his brother. His specialty was international law and he regaled us with great stories so we will miss him. His replacement came to the table last night. Of this couple, the man, Harry looks very old and by his side was this very attractive, very attentive young wife who was dressed in the latest fashions and wearing lots of jewelry; diamonds on the neck, the arms and the fingers. So, Morag thinks, "What a trophy wife he has." He has Parkinson's so the wife, Georgie, does the talking for him. She is very tall and slim and just looks like a model. The women at the table thought she looked in her forties: the men thought fifties, so we were all quite wary of this young, beautiful woman. They live in Canada, have a horse farm in Canada but he's a gentleman farmer; a condo in Florida, a place in Israel and travel for three months of the year. Anyway, to make this long story short and not so boring, during the course of the conversation over dinner with this couple, it turned out they have been married for 50 years; she is the mother of six children; and will be 70 in a few months. That surely stopped some of the racing thoughts of the women in the group. Maybe in our next blog we can send a photo. They weren't there this evening, so the rest of the table freely gave their thoughts and we all had had the same opinion. My were we shocked.

Friday and Saturday

Friday January 15 and Saturday 16th.

ON Friday we met up with Roger and Shirley Davis our old friends from Laurel, MD, on a bright, sunny Florida day. They met us at the terminal when we came off the ship. it was good to be with old friends and get caught up with each other. We spent the day together shopping, eating, talking, just enjoying being in Fort Lauderdale. There's something special about meeting up with old friends and sharing past experiences as well as getting caught up with things as they are now. The Davis's are very content with their decision to move to Florida eight years ago. They have good friends and are enjoying their retirement. The time passed too quickly for us and it was time to return to the ship.

Saturday was a leisurely day and it is getting warm now. It was lovely to sit out on the decks and read books and just relax. it seems like the Novovirus is abating somewhat because they have opened up the swimming pools and the buffet. Guests are still not allowed to help themselves to buffet food and are served by members of the staff. There was a surprise inspection yesterday by the Public Health Service and the ship got a perfect score. It will just take a while for the virus to run its course. The crew continue to wipe down everything with disinfectant after use and just a s a matter of routine. Tomorrow we are off to Grand Cayman for a few hours. This will be the first time there for us and we are quite excited about the upcoming adventure. A lot of the people are going snorkeling and swimming with the stingrays. You can imagine we will not be on that tour. We will just take a leisurely walk around the town. Everything seems to be within sight of the place where our tender will land.

Thursday 14 January

We spent the day on board ship. We went to two lectures this morning. The first was an oceanographer from University of MD who presented an interesting discourse on coral and other life found around coral reefs, especially in the Caribbean and in the Pacific along our projected route. The second lecture was on Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding area and we had a difficult time staying awake. The rest of the day was leisure, just hanging around the deck and reading. Sorry there's no more news.

The Journey Begins

It is Monday night or actually 1215 Tuesday morning on the day we are to start our journey. We leave our house about 0800 to go to New York's Manhattan Cruise Terminal to begin our 50th Anniversary Celebration World Cruise. We will be sending emails from time to time to tell you to check our blog. I hope this works out for everyone. Please do not reply to blogs until after we have returned because the internet connection from the ship is slow and expensive to use. See you all in May.