Sixteenth Post - Nov 12 to 17th
Winding down on this trip - - -
Nov 12th - Another beautiful day this time in Kauai, Hawaii
Kauai is very beautiful - green and lush. We had an early breakfast and an early tour. We took a boat ride along the Wauila River to the Fern Grotto. The trip was lovely, we had Hawaiian singers and hula dancers on board who entertained us along the way. We passed canoes, water boarders and kayaks and all people on the water waved and said hello!
We had wonderful people on the bus and the boat ride, and passed some of the most beautiful scenery we have seen on this trip. I was a little concerned about a warning about slippery rocks at the Grotto, but there were none. Walkway was clear and dry and shaded by huge trees (bamboo) of all shapes and sizes.
The ride back to the dock was filled with interesting information about the area. The bus ride to the Waterfalls was very short, and the falls themselves were beautiful. We were told these falls were used in the opening scenes on "Fantasy Island" - then had to listen to all the men try to imitate the phrase "The Plane, The Plane' - very funny.
This island is also where Elvis Presley filmed "Blue Hawaii". We saw the Coco Palms, a resort where they filmed most of the movie and the area where his bungalow is. The property has fallen into great disrepair, the bungalows were all dismantled and put in storage and there are now 2 young men who are trying to restore it to former glory. I can see why they filmed so much on this island - it really is quite beautiful.
Went back to the ship, had delicious lunch and decided not to do more shopping at our last stop before heading home.
We called Courtney and sang "Happy Anniversary" to them and planned to come up for a visit at Christmas. Not sure of the dates yet, but it is definite that we will drive up for a while.
Dan went to get ice cream and disappeared again. I took a nap and then tried to organize all the "stuff" we bought. Too Daunting. Dan finally reappeared - met Russel and Norma and stopped to "chat".
Had a nice dinner with Danette and Lloyd - and I went to bed. Dan went to a country music show and then to a deck party by the pool. He had a good time, but I have no idea what time he got home.
Nov 13th - Cloudy and cool - 75* - seas are not calm, but not too rough either
Had breakfast late - 9:15 am - then went back to cabin to pack all the souvenirs . They barely fit in the new 28" suitcase we bought in Honolulu. It weighs 48 lbs - just under the 50 lbs we are allowed. whew!
Also packed some clothes in 3 suitcases, made a list of all that needs to be packed by Saturday. Went to lunch and then to try the internet which has been the biggest disappointment and the most frustrating aspect of this entire trip. Tried to log onto Facebook and Comcast e-mails for over 40 minutes - NO LUCK. The internet agent said they have problems with both of those companies being very slow to respond. Sounds like more BS to me.
Gave up on the internet and went to shoot baskets to work off some of this angst. I was pretty good today, made at least half or more of the shots I took and enjoyed the banter with my two BB buddies. Tex is outstanding - it was beautiful to watch him shoot. He is a 65 year old man from, you guessed it -TEXAS. He got 8 out of 10 foul shots and went "Around the World" in about 3 turns. Unbeatable. Skyler and I just stood and watched in amazement. I don't mind when a 21 year old and a 65 year old beat me, the Old Lady - I love to shoot baskets with them, and sometimes even keep up with them! ha ha
Had an ice cream on the way back to cabin where Dan was sound asleep. I wrote in my journal and got ready for dinner.
Forgot to mention, Dan cashed in all the foreign currency we had left over and got $52.00 back. Who says I shop too much?????? Okay, we also looked at our cabin account today, and MAYBE I shop a LITTLE too much - ha ha ha
Went to show - Broadway star Josh Young singing Broadway songs and Andrew Lloyd Webber tunes. It was great.
Nov 14th - Beautiful day with calm sea that did get a little bit rougher later in the day - 81* but very windy.
Had a late breakfast, went to the internet Cafe where I spent one hour not being able to connect to ANYTHING! Satellite problems again. An engineer is expected to board in LA to try to improve the connection, but that won't do any of us much good.
Went back to the cabin and stood on the windy balcony just watching the sea. We saw a brown bird flying along with us, at the same speed - just flying along half way between Hawaii and California. WTH?? Several of our friends also saw it and wondered the same thing.
Had pizza for lunch at Sabatini's It was very fresh crust and cheese, but nothing special.
Walked the deck after lunch, sat in a deck chair and talked to Russell - he saw the bird too!
FORMAL NIGHT! It turned out to be "Black and White" night with 80% and most of the staff dressed in formal black, with a little white. I wore black chiffon pants with my new black chiffon over blouse with open sleeves and seed pearls sewn on the front. Had on my old pearl necklace, my new pearl earrings and my new black jade bracelet. Dan, of course, was in his tux. We both looked so nice (if I must say so myself!).Can't wait to be able to publish pictures.
The show was a production number by the Princess singers and dancers. It was called "What the World Needs Now" and was full of old standard songs, energy and entertainment.
Busy day - nite-nite!
Nov 15th - 3rd beautiful day at sea - but getting cooler each day. Wind is still a problem, but the sea is pretty calm.
Dan did all of our laundry and I did lots and lots of packing. We seemed to eat, pack, eat, pack and eat again. Nothing special about today except it felt like a lot of work was done.
Nov 16th - 4th of 5th day at sea - wonderful weather continues, with cooler air . About 72* this morning.
Finished all the packing except for the clothes we need today and tomorrow. Lunch had a "Dessert Extravaganza" feature today and it was extravagant! Tables and tables of fabulous pies, cakes, cupcakes, puddings, etc. etc. and this was after having a great lunch of shrimp salad and quiche. Life is still good.
Spent time writing thank you notes and recommendations to the staff and figuring out how much cash we had left (more than I thought!! Yea), and how much we had spent (More than I thought - Boo).
Dinner was a lot of fun - everyone is in a festive mood and looking forward to going home. Not me - I could stay on another month! Spoiled rotten!
We went to a Ventriloquist show with Danette and Lloyd - very funny. and then to another show of Broadway songs from the Rock songs era of Broadway. It was good, but not my type of show tunes!.
Nov 17th - Saturday - Our last day on board - Bittersweet - calm, smooth as glass waters.
Packing is complete, luggage tags for disembarkation are all set and today is one of good-byes and exchanging names and addresses. I am not looking forward to getting all the luggage off the pier and then to the airport and then the 2 long flights home.
We went to the dining room for breakfast this morning and sat with 2 interesting couples, one of which lives on the road with 4 suitcases and nothing else. I could not do that. but they had some good stories. The other couple is from Napa Valley, CA and a lot of fun to talk to. Michael was our waiter!
So, I think I will have more to say after I am home and able to digest all that has happened on this wonderful Fabulous and exciting trip of a lifetime. I hope you got a glimpse of what life on a ship for 2 months is like - a lot of repetitive activities, but each different in its own way. And tons of new experiences.
Thanks for being interested - and my apologies for not being able to e-mail or Facebook updates due to slow internet service.
Until next time.
Nov 12th - Another beautiful day this time in Kauai, Hawaii
Kauai is very beautiful - green and lush. We had an early breakfast and an early tour. We took a boat ride along the Wauila River to the Fern Grotto. The trip was lovely, we had Hawaiian singers and hula dancers on board who entertained us along the way. We passed canoes, water boarders and kayaks and all people on the water waved and said hello!
We had wonderful people on the bus and the boat ride, and passed some of the most beautiful scenery we have seen on this trip. I was a little concerned about a warning about slippery rocks at the Grotto, but there were none. Walkway was clear and dry and shaded by huge trees (bamboo) of all shapes and sizes.
The ride back to the dock was filled with interesting information about the area. The bus ride to the Waterfalls was very short, and the falls themselves were beautiful. We were told these falls were used in the opening scenes on "Fantasy Island" - then had to listen to all the men try to imitate the phrase "The Plane, The Plane' - very funny.
This island is also where Elvis Presley filmed "Blue Hawaii". We saw the Coco Palms, a resort where they filmed most of the movie and the area where his bungalow is. The property has fallen into great disrepair, the bungalows were all dismantled and put in storage and there are now 2 young men who are trying to restore it to former glory. I can see why they filmed so much on this island - it really is quite beautiful.
Went back to the ship, had delicious lunch and decided not to do more shopping at our last stop before heading home.
We called Courtney and sang "Happy Anniversary" to them and planned to come up for a visit at Christmas. Not sure of the dates yet, but it is definite that we will drive up for a while.
Dan went to get ice cream and disappeared again. I took a nap and then tried to organize all the "stuff" we bought. Too Daunting. Dan finally reappeared - met Russel and Norma and stopped to "chat".
Had a nice dinner with Danette and Lloyd - and I went to bed. Dan went to a country music show and then to a deck party by the pool. He had a good time, but I have no idea what time he got home.
Nov 13th - Cloudy and cool - 75* - seas are not calm, but not too rough either
Had breakfast late - 9:15 am - then went back to cabin to pack all the souvenirs . They barely fit in the new 28" suitcase we bought in Honolulu. It weighs 48 lbs - just under the 50 lbs we are allowed. whew!
Also packed some clothes in 3 suitcases, made a list of all that needs to be packed by Saturday. Went to lunch and then to try the internet which has been the biggest disappointment and the most frustrating aspect of this entire trip. Tried to log onto Facebook and Comcast e-mails for over 40 minutes - NO LUCK. The internet agent said they have problems with both of those companies being very slow to respond. Sounds like more BS to me.
Gave up on the internet and went to shoot baskets to work off some of this angst. I was pretty good today, made at least half or more of the shots I took and enjoyed the banter with my two BB buddies. Tex is outstanding - it was beautiful to watch him shoot. He is a 65 year old man from, you guessed it -TEXAS. He got 8 out of 10 foul shots and went "Around the World" in about 3 turns. Unbeatable. Skyler and I just stood and watched in amazement. I don't mind when a 21 year old and a 65 year old beat me, the Old Lady - I love to shoot baskets with them, and sometimes even keep up with them! ha ha
Had an ice cream on the way back to cabin where Dan was sound asleep. I wrote in my journal and got ready for dinner.
Forgot to mention, Dan cashed in all the foreign currency we had left over and got $52.00 back. Who says I shop too much?????? Okay, we also looked at our cabin account today, and MAYBE I shop a LITTLE too much - ha ha ha
Went to show - Broadway star Josh Young singing Broadway songs and Andrew Lloyd Webber tunes. It was great.
Nov 14th - Beautiful day with calm sea that did get a little bit rougher later in the day - 81* but very windy.
Had a late breakfast, went to the internet Cafe where I spent one hour not being able to connect to ANYTHING! Satellite problems again. An engineer is expected to board in LA to try to improve the connection, but that won't do any of us much good.
Went back to the cabin and stood on the windy balcony just watching the sea. We saw a brown bird flying along with us, at the same speed - just flying along half way between Hawaii and California. WTH?? Several of our friends also saw it and wondered the same thing.
Had pizza for lunch at Sabatini's It was very fresh crust and cheese, but nothing special.
Walked the deck after lunch, sat in a deck chair and talked to Russell - he saw the bird too!
FORMAL NIGHT! It turned out to be "Black and White" night with 80% and most of the staff dressed in formal black, with a little white. I wore black chiffon pants with my new black chiffon over blouse with open sleeves and seed pearls sewn on the front. Had on my old pearl necklace, my new pearl earrings and my new black jade bracelet. Dan, of course, was in his tux. We both looked so nice (if I must say so myself!).Can't wait to be able to publish pictures.
The show was a production number by the Princess singers and dancers. It was called "What the World Needs Now" and was full of old standard songs, energy and entertainment.
Busy day - nite-nite!
Nov 15th - 3rd beautiful day at sea - but getting cooler each day. Wind is still a problem, but the sea is pretty calm.
Dan did all of our laundry and I did lots and lots of packing. We seemed to eat, pack, eat, pack and eat again. Nothing special about today except it felt like a lot of work was done.
Nov 16th - 4th of 5th day at sea - wonderful weather continues, with cooler air . About 72* this morning.
Finished all the packing except for the clothes we need today and tomorrow. Lunch had a "Dessert Extravaganza" feature today and it was extravagant! Tables and tables of fabulous pies, cakes, cupcakes, puddings, etc. etc. and this was after having a great lunch of shrimp salad and quiche. Life is still good.
Spent time writing thank you notes and recommendations to the staff and figuring out how much cash we had left (more than I thought!! Yea), and how much we had spent (More than I thought - Boo).
Dinner was a lot of fun - everyone is in a festive mood and looking forward to going home. Not me - I could stay on another month! Spoiled rotten!
We went to a Ventriloquist show with Danette and Lloyd - very funny. and then to another show of Broadway songs from the Rock songs era of Broadway. It was good, but not my type of show tunes!.
Nov 17th - Saturday - Our last day on board - Bittersweet - calm, smooth as glass waters.
Packing is complete, luggage tags for disembarkation are all set and today is one of good-byes and exchanging names and addresses. I am not looking forward to getting all the luggage off the pier and then to the airport and then the 2 long flights home.
We went to the dining room for breakfast this morning and sat with 2 interesting couples, one of which lives on the road with 4 suitcases and nothing else. I could not do that. but they had some good stories. The other couple is from Napa Valley, CA and a lot of fun to talk to. Michael was our waiter!
So, I think I will have more to say after I am home and able to digest all that has happened on this wonderful Fabulous and exciting trip of a lifetime. I hope you got a glimpse of what life on a ship for 2 months is like - a lot of repetitive activities, but each different in its own way. And tons of new experiences.
Thanks for being interested - and my apologies for not being able to e-mail or Facebook updates due to slow internet service.
Until next time.
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