Day 14-15 I don’t think I was prepared for the entry into Rio harbor. It is as if the mountains are meeting the sea, or perhaps as if the sea has risen to the mountain tops. We always hear of Sugar Loaf Mountain, but it is just one of many mountain peaks that the sea […]
Read moreDay 12-13 Two more peaceful, restful days at sea, preparing for Rio. When we planned this trip I made two promises to Sally (among many): One that I would go dancing with her. Many of you know that I do not dance and other than some feeble attempts when we were dating (probably alcohol assisted) […]
Read moreDay 11 We docked at Recife, Brazil at 7:30 this morning (4:30 Texas time). Many of the ports where we normally dock on cruises have a cruise terminal because of the large number of regular cruise ship visits. The terminal usually has an abundance of goods and services aimed at travelers (souvenirs, convenience store items, […]
Read moreDay 9 & 10 Our cabin. You may be curious as to our luxurious quarters on the ship. Sally and I long ago began booking interior cabins on our cruises. Not only are they cheaper, but we have come to prefer them, and even turned down the offered upgrade on this cruise. Interior cabins have […]
Read moreDay 8 Sailing 80 miles up the wide (3 or 4 miles across) Amazon, we arrived at the docking area about 15 miles from Belem, anchored, and tendered in on these boats. Some ports we use the life boats as tenders, some we use these commercial tenders, and most we dock at a pier Waiting […]
Read moreDay 6-7 The lectures have continued to be entertaining and informative. In addition to some very informative discussions on our upcoming Brazilian stops, we have enjoyed a discussion of hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons, and their relation to weather and wind movements around the earth. Fortunately, none are in our path on this voyage, at this […]
Read moreDay 5 Barbados, like Dominica, is a former British colony. The island nation has about 270,000 citizens, 70,000 of whom live in the capital Bridgetown, which was named for the two bridges which cross a small man-made waterway which was created to float ships in, tilt them on their side and scrape the hulls. Unlike […]
Read moreDay 4 Arrival at Roseau, Dominica This small island nation was governed by Great Britain for 200 years and became an independent country in 1978. Its 70,000 citizens seemed an extremely friendly and well educated bunch and their .065% crime rate is to be envied world wide. Cricket is their main sport. The island […]
Read moreDay 3 To the fitness center then breakfast on the Lido deck. This sea day routine is becoming very comfortable, very quickly. We attended a lecture by an oceanographer on “Waves” – fascinating subject and a good teacher. He is a professor at the University of Maryland and a former Navy meteorologist. Lectures on varied […]
Read moreDay 2 Just down the hall and out the door and we are on the promenade which goes all the way around the ship and is the preferred morning exercise path – 3.5 laps per mile, and we are going to try to do two miles every morning. Then off to breakfast and a talk […]
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