April 29, 2019
It may not be raining all over the world, but it seems like it. We started out this morning with an Irving Berlin sky and by 11 o’clock, we had donned ponchos and it rained right straight through until 4. Most of the time it was a light to medium drizzle, but for about an hour it came down pretty good.
We walked down Via Cavour to reach the Forum and stand in line for an hour to get tickets. The walk took us only 30 minutes. While we were standing there, Bonnie said, looking up at the darkening sky, “I didn’t bring the ponchos. Do you think we will need them?” Not being a weather prognosticator, but watching the clouds get heavier and darker I said, “I could walk back up the apartment and be back before you get to the front of the line, but no, I think we’ll be all right.” Like I said, meteorology is not my thing.
There are peddlers all over the city, most of them seeming to be of Indian descent. Not Apache or Sioux of Comanche, but “Oh my goodness. Would you like to buy a Bible? How about a cherry squeegie?” Yesterday they were selling selfie sticks and rechargeable batteries for cell phones. Today those quickly went by the way side and the offerings were ponchos and umbrellas (two sizes). We bought a green one and a yellow one. Ponchos. Green for her. Yellow for me. He wanted 6 euros. I offered 5 for two and he accepted. I should have held out for two each. We slipped them on just as the drizzle started, and were glad we made the purchase.
Finally at the front of the line, I told the lady, “Two old people’s tickets, please.” We wanted to see the Forum, the Palatine Hills, and the Coliseum. Regular price 14 euros each. We got them for 12 euros each. Good for two days. We understood that the Coliseum was one entry, but thought the Forum was double entry. After we got it figured out we had our tickets changed and went to the Coliseum. We ducked inside the metro stop and waited for about an hour while the rain poured down, then went over and got in another line to go through security. The rain had slowed down, mostly.
We wandered around inside for about two hours, and headed back to the apartment, stopping in a grocery store for snacks and another bottle of water. Then supper. The place we ate at last time we stayed out here was slack. We walked in, and no one greeted us. We stood around, and no one greeted us. We walked outside and said to three men standing and sitting and smoking if you could get served inside. One said, “Sure, sure,” and waved us in. We were seated and ignored. We left and went down the street where we were instantly greeted, seated, and served. Greek salad and margarita pizza. Then a McSulry for dessert because Mom wanted one.
Now I am trying to stay awake, at least until the sun goes down. I slept 12 hours yesterday and barely rolled over.
Well, that’s my turn. Now here’s my cruise buddy.
TTFN
Did he say rain!!! The walk down to the Forum was nice. Not to cold and some sun. It took about 30-40 minutes. The line at the forum was all the way back to the road. Really long and slow moving. As we stood there the clouds rolled in over us. Dark, ugly storm clouds. We were almost to the front of the line about an hour after arriving there and the rain began. Not to hard at first but it got worse. The lady did not explain that if we into the forum today at 11:30 we had to be at the coliseum in line by 1 pm. (Okay your father said he had just taken his warmed socks off the small heater and put them on his ears!!!!) That meant we only had about an hour at the forum. So we went back and got them to fix the tickets so we could come to the forum tomorrow and go to the Coliseum at 1:35. So we headed to the Coliseum. It was just 2 blocks or so from the Forum. The farther we walked, the harder it rained. So we went into the metro building along with a lot of other people trying to escape the rain or get on to the metro. We found a spot to stand against a gelato and coffee stand. The dudes selling the ponchos and umbrellas followed all the people into the metro station touting their wares. Pretty soon two army guys carrying machine guns over their shoulders came to run the peddlers out. Whenever the armed men walked away the peddlers came back. Then, the armed dudes came back. Back and forth this went for the hour we stood inside the metro station. It was crazy in there.
Finally the rain was a little less and at about 12:20 we headed to the Coliseum to get in another line!!! We were out in the rain again and in line for at least 30 minutes. There were 3 lines: a line for tour groups, the middle line, where we were, for people who had tickets and the third line to buy tickets. Every line went through a metal detector and had to have put your stuff in through a scanner. There were about 4 scanners. After the line and the scanner we got to show our tickets and get into the Forum. First stop was the potties! And guess what another line!! About 10 minutes to get through this one. Very small, narrow portal type potties. Then, we walked outside, in the rain to look around the first level. You couldn’t go into the lowest level unless you paid for a tour guide to take you. So we did the first level and then because the steps were very long and very high steps we took the elevators that were for handicapped. On the upper level we again walked out in the rain and walked all the way around stopping at the bookstore/ souvenir store to have a look. Then, back down on the elevator and out by way of the entrance because I had my cane. Otherwise you had to go out the back and walk all the way around the outside to get back where you started.
The rain had lessened considerable, but my feet were soaked and so was my hat. The poncho had kept my clothes pretty much dry but you felt damp. So we decided to head back to home base. It was mostly a walk up hill going back. We did stop at a market to get a few snacks for the evening. We made it back to the room about 3:30. Dropped off the stuff and headed out to eat. The first place we tried was not much interested in us but they had some private party going on. The second place was nice. The pizza and the Greek salad were very good. The tax on the meal was 15% and then we also did a gratuity. We had breakfast at McDonalds in the morning and they had a snickers flurry advertised and we decided to try that for dessert. It was just okay.
Well, we are back in the room and trying to get our clothes try for tomorrow. The weather app says it is to be sunny tomorrow. We shall see. Even though it was wet we had a good time. One more day of sightseeing and then Wednesday at 8:15 it is off to the airport and our 11 hour flight home.
Love you all. Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Monday, April 29, 2019
Sunday, April 28, 2019
IN ROME
April 28, 2019
We got off the Veendam about 30 minutes earlier than had been announced, always a good thing, except when your car and driver won't be there for 90 minutes. I called and told them we were off early and the car arrived in about 15 minutes. The driver said we would make it to Rome in an hour and 20 minutes. He beat that by at least 10 minutes. East bounder down, loaded up and trucking.
The room wasn't ready, but Stefano met us outside and brought our luggage in, took our payment, gave us the keys and said within an hour it would be ready. We got back about 5 hours and 6 miles later. We walked to the Church of the Holy Bones (a good story that I'm too tired to go into tonight, but you can get a start at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capuchin_Crypt ). Then to the Trevi Fountain and found it without all of the round about we went through the last time. Final sight seeing place of the day was the Spanish Steps.
Then we stopped at an outdoor restaurant. I had spaghetti carbonara and she had penne pasta with spicy tomato sauce. We both had salads, mine was isalata mista (lettuce and stuff), hers was tomato. We had still water and I had an espresso.
After walking back via Robin Hood's Barn, we got gelato and a couple of drinks (water and a diet coke) and are in for the night. More exploring tomorrow and more detail about our doings.
TTFN
We got off the Veendam about 30 minutes earlier than had been announced, always a good thing, except when your car and driver won't be there for 90 minutes. I called and told them we were off early and the car arrived in about 15 minutes. The driver said we would make it to Rome in an hour and 20 minutes. He beat that by at least 10 minutes. East bounder down, loaded up and trucking.
The room wasn't ready, but Stefano met us outside and brought our luggage in, took our payment, gave us the keys and said within an hour it would be ready. We got back about 5 hours and 6 miles later. We walked to the Church of the Holy Bones (a good story that I'm too tired to go into tonight, but you can get a start at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capuchin_Crypt ). Then to the Trevi Fountain and found it without all of the round about we went through the last time. Final sight seeing place of the day was the Spanish Steps.
Then we stopped at an outdoor restaurant. I had spaghetti carbonara and she had penne pasta with spicy tomato sauce. We both had salads, mine was isalata mista (lettuce and stuff), hers was tomato. We had still water and I had an espresso.
After walking back via Robin Hood's Barn, we got gelato and a couple of drinks (water and a diet coke) and are in for the night. More exploring tomorrow and more detail about our doings.
TTFN
Friday, April 26, 2019
ORANGE YOU GLAD
April 26, 2019
We decided that the Alcazaba we had previously visited was indeed the one we visited yesterday in Malaga. One thing that convinced us is the fact that there is no Alcazaba in Cartagena, as we were thinking. It may take us a while, but we usually figure things out. We did some shopping in Cartagena today, but I will let Mom tell it since she bought it all.
One thing about shopping in the Big C today we did not do the last time was spill a coke on the checkout counter at Teddi’s department store. I don’t know why, but checking out the last time we were here – I guess I was thirsty – I opened it as I was paying and spilled it over their counter. I took out my hanky and began cleaning and they came with paper towels. They did not remember us and therefore we were not banned from their store.
Tomorrow is the King of the Netherlands birthday, and as the royal family are members of the House of Orange, and as Holland America Line has its roots there, tonight was not only Gala Night (the tux was out for the last time on this cruise) it was also Orange Night. There is an Orange Party up on Deck 8 tonight and tomorrow there is a King’s Day Street Market and a King’s Day Afternoon Tea. I may make the tea. Not sure about the street market. As to our orange today, well as I said, Bonnie will tell you.
Tomorrow my talk, “Alexander Selkirk: The Real Robinson Crusoe,” is the opening act for “Ask the Captain.” Captain Steve will take center stage with a microphone and field questions from the audience. On a lot of cruises, other officers will join him – hotel, environmental, safety, etc. But the program for tomorrow just has our Captain. I met him today in the lunch line at the Lido. Tall, handsome fellow, about the age of Michael and Matthew – see guys if you’d’ve gone to sea you could be Captain of a cruise ship and we could all sail for free! Nice fellow Captain Steve (as well as Mike and Matt).
My counterpart in the lecture department, Robin Ross, is a former DJ and a current artist. As part of his schtick, he hides some of the screen prints he has produced every Friday in a gig called “Free Art Friday.” He prints fewer than 10 of each of his pieces, and today I found one (didn’t see a thing last Friday). I hope someday he makes it big because then my piece #2 out of 7 screens may be worth a fortune. Think Picasso. But with pieces you can recognize.
Well, I’m wrapping up my part for this evening. Here’s Bonnie!
TTFN
Well, since we were in the Mediterranean Sea last night, the seas were much calmer. I slept okay but was awake every couple hours. We were to be in port at 7 but after rising at 6:30 and going to breakfast about 7:30 and no announcement we figured because it was so early they just let people off without the announcement. And they had. They don’t make announcements until after 8. That was okay because we were not in a big hurry. Most stores don’t open till 10. However, all aboard was 12:30. At breakfast this morning the mustard dispenser attacked me again. Every time I try to put some in the little cups they put out for it, the mustard sprays everywhere but in the cup. For the second time this week it was all over my hand and in my rings. YUCK! I cleaned up the mess and went on and made my bacon sandwich.
We made it off about 9:30. It is a short walk to the main street which is for pedestrians. We headed up the long line of shops with a lot of little side streets and several churches on the way. We visited a couple of souvenir shops as we walked. I wanted to find something orange to wear to dinner tonight since it was “orange day”.
In the first shop I didn’t find anything but did find a present for a grand kid, not telling which one. We stopped at a couple of farmacias looking for something we needed, finally found it in the second one. The guy googled what your Dad wanted because he didn’t know what it was. Funny. He didn’t speak hardly any English. Well, the second shop I looked in for something orange I found a nice shirt that is kind of orange, it is coral, close enough. It was only 10.99 euros. Well we had been walking about an hour and if you walk out an hour it takes an hour to get back. So we turned around and stopped at the TEDI shop on the way out. I bought one skein of yarn and a stocking stuffer for a different grand kid. Then, it was on back to the ship. But we spied a news stand and I got a Daily Mail from England that is printed in English in Spain. Yeah!! 2.40 euros and I will have a paper to read on the rest of our trip. It is a big paper and has a lot to read. Plus it has puzzle pages and comics. It may even have stories about the new royal baby that is coming soon, just for you Amy.
Well, when we got to the entrance to the dock, the policia were there and waiting for you ship card and id. Well, I don’t know why but they wanted to put my back pack through a portable scanner they had set up in their van. They took our ship cards, wrote our names and then put my bag through the machine. They didn’t do it to everybody but they did do it to us. Go figure. Well, when we got on the ship our stuff got scanned again. I didn’t set off the machine but your Dad did. This is the second day in a row and we think it is his belt. Oh well, what can you do.
We went to our room, put our stuff up and headed to the lido. We had a can of coke in the room that your Dad was not going to drink so I took it to pour over a glass of ice and have with my lunch. I got a salad and my glass of ice, actually 2 glasses of ice, and poured my coke over the ice in one of the glasses. We were both reading the ships newspapers while we ate and I was really not listening when one of the nice young ladies walked up and said “would like to have some more tea” and before I knew what she said or was getting ready to do she started to pour tea in on top of my coke. I quickly said no it’s coke but before I could say anything I had some tea in my glass. She is a very sweet waitress and was all upset but we said it was fine I can’t taste anyway. She said she would go get me a coke and we both said no, it was fine. She would have to pay for it to get one. We convinced her it was okay. But about 5 minutes later her she came with a fresh glass of coke. That was so nice. But all the young people in the lido are super nice.
It was 12:30 by the time we finished lunch. He wanted to go to the computer class but I had already been to this class earlier in the week. So I went to the room and got my bag and went out on deck 6 to watch sail away. We should have already been getting ready but there was a guest who was late. He finally showed about 15 minutes late. At 12:50 pm they announced for a member of the housekeeping service to call the supervisor. OOPS! That means he is not on board. And he was not. At about 1:10 we haul up the ropes and back away from the pier. We get about a couple of hundred feet out and here comes the crew member. His boss is standing just down the deck from me and holds up his hands as if saving “where have you been?” The ship is moving away from the dock, looks like he is left or will have to swim for it. But the ship stops moving. It just sits. It seems it is up to port authority and the captain if they go back in to dock and let him on. After about 10 minutes I guess everybody agreed because we went back and put the ship next to the dock, put out a little gangway and he got on. Oh I bet he is in serious trouble. All his friends had come up on deck and passengers were watching all this and we all applauded when the ship went back and let him get on.
Well, I watched us leave the port and pass the end of the shore and then headed to the room for a nap. I didn’t get much but he got about an hour. We then dressed in our best duds, he in his tux and me in my new “orange shirt” and headed off for filet mignon and lobster tails. I ate the filet and gave him my lobster. Nice table in the side window tonight with one couple from a couple of nights before and a new couple. Very enjoyable evening except for the table of 8 very LOUD people right beside us!!. They didn’t know what an inside voice is. I think a couple of them had a few before they got there. There talk was a little coarse besides loud.
The show was the singers and dancers. It was okay tonight but way to loud.
Well, I have said enough so I will say good night. Mac I hope you are doing better.
Tate, or should I say Amy and Jack, hang in there this too shall pass.
Congratulations Maggie all your hard work at tumbling has paid off!!!
Love you all Mom, Granny and Bonnie
We decided that the Alcazaba we had previously visited was indeed the one we visited yesterday in Malaga. One thing that convinced us is the fact that there is no Alcazaba in Cartagena, as we were thinking. It may take us a while, but we usually figure things out. We did some shopping in Cartagena today, but I will let Mom tell it since she bought it all.
One thing about shopping in the Big C today we did not do the last time was spill a coke on the checkout counter at Teddi’s department store. I don’t know why, but checking out the last time we were here – I guess I was thirsty – I opened it as I was paying and spilled it over their counter. I took out my hanky and began cleaning and they came with paper towels. They did not remember us and therefore we were not banned from their store.
Tomorrow is the King of the Netherlands birthday, and as the royal family are members of the House of Orange, and as Holland America Line has its roots there, tonight was not only Gala Night (the tux was out for the last time on this cruise) it was also Orange Night. There is an Orange Party up on Deck 8 tonight and tomorrow there is a King’s Day Street Market and a King’s Day Afternoon Tea. I may make the tea. Not sure about the street market. As to our orange today, well as I said, Bonnie will tell you.
Tomorrow my talk, “Alexander Selkirk: The Real Robinson Crusoe,” is the opening act for “Ask the Captain.” Captain Steve will take center stage with a microphone and field questions from the audience. On a lot of cruises, other officers will join him – hotel, environmental, safety, etc. But the program for tomorrow just has our Captain. I met him today in the lunch line at the Lido. Tall, handsome fellow, about the age of Michael and Matthew – see guys if you’d’ve gone to sea you could be Captain of a cruise ship and we could all sail for free! Nice fellow Captain Steve (as well as Mike and Matt).
My counterpart in the lecture department, Robin Ross, is a former DJ and a current artist. As part of his schtick, he hides some of the screen prints he has produced every Friday in a gig called “Free Art Friday.” He prints fewer than 10 of each of his pieces, and today I found one (didn’t see a thing last Friday). I hope someday he makes it big because then my piece #2 out of 7 screens may be worth a fortune. Think Picasso. But with pieces you can recognize.
Well, I’m wrapping up my part for this evening. Here’s Bonnie!
TTFN
Well, since we were in the Mediterranean Sea last night, the seas were much calmer. I slept okay but was awake every couple hours. We were to be in port at 7 but after rising at 6:30 and going to breakfast about 7:30 and no announcement we figured because it was so early they just let people off without the announcement. And they had. They don’t make announcements until after 8. That was okay because we were not in a big hurry. Most stores don’t open till 10. However, all aboard was 12:30. At breakfast this morning the mustard dispenser attacked me again. Every time I try to put some in the little cups they put out for it, the mustard sprays everywhere but in the cup. For the second time this week it was all over my hand and in my rings. YUCK! I cleaned up the mess and went on and made my bacon sandwich.
We made it off about 9:30. It is a short walk to the main street which is for pedestrians. We headed up the long line of shops with a lot of little side streets and several churches on the way. We visited a couple of souvenir shops as we walked. I wanted to find something orange to wear to dinner tonight since it was “orange day”.
In the first shop I didn’t find anything but did find a present for a grand kid, not telling which one. We stopped at a couple of farmacias looking for something we needed, finally found it in the second one. The guy googled what your Dad wanted because he didn’t know what it was. Funny. He didn’t speak hardly any English. Well, the second shop I looked in for something orange I found a nice shirt that is kind of orange, it is coral, close enough. It was only 10.99 euros. Well we had been walking about an hour and if you walk out an hour it takes an hour to get back. So we turned around and stopped at the TEDI shop on the way out. I bought one skein of yarn and a stocking stuffer for a different grand kid. Then, it was on back to the ship. But we spied a news stand and I got a Daily Mail from England that is printed in English in Spain. Yeah!! 2.40 euros and I will have a paper to read on the rest of our trip. It is a big paper and has a lot to read. Plus it has puzzle pages and comics. It may even have stories about the new royal baby that is coming soon, just for you Amy.
Well, when we got to the entrance to the dock, the policia were there and waiting for you ship card and id. Well, I don’t know why but they wanted to put my back pack through a portable scanner they had set up in their van. They took our ship cards, wrote our names and then put my bag through the machine. They didn’t do it to everybody but they did do it to us. Go figure. Well, when we got on the ship our stuff got scanned again. I didn’t set off the machine but your Dad did. This is the second day in a row and we think it is his belt. Oh well, what can you do.
We went to our room, put our stuff up and headed to the lido. We had a can of coke in the room that your Dad was not going to drink so I took it to pour over a glass of ice and have with my lunch. I got a salad and my glass of ice, actually 2 glasses of ice, and poured my coke over the ice in one of the glasses. We were both reading the ships newspapers while we ate and I was really not listening when one of the nice young ladies walked up and said “would like to have some more tea” and before I knew what she said or was getting ready to do she started to pour tea in on top of my coke. I quickly said no it’s coke but before I could say anything I had some tea in my glass. She is a very sweet waitress and was all upset but we said it was fine I can’t taste anyway. She said she would go get me a coke and we both said no, it was fine. She would have to pay for it to get one. We convinced her it was okay. But about 5 minutes later her she came with a fresh glass of coke. That was so nice. But all the young people in the lido are super nice.
It was 12:30 by the time we finished lunch. He wanted to go to the computer class but I had already been to this class earlier in the week. So I went to the room and got my bag and went out on deck 6 to watch sail away. We should have already been getting ready but there was a guest who was late. He finally showed about 15 minutes late. At 12:50 pm they announced for a member of the housekeeping service to call the supervisor. OOPS! That means he is not on board. And he was not. At about 1:10 we haul up the ropes and back away from the pier. We get about a couple of hundred feet out and here comes the crew member. His boss is standing just down the deck from me and holds up his hands as if saving “where have you been?” The ship is moving away from the dock, looks like he is left or will have to swim for it. But the ship stops moving. It just sits. It seems it is up to port authority and the captain if they go back in to dock and let him on. After about 10 minutes I guess everybody agreed because we went back and put the ship next to the dock, put out a little gangway and he got on. Oh I bet he is in serious trouble. All his friends had come up on deck and passengers were watching all this and we all applauded when the ship went back and let him get on.
Well, I watched us leave the port and pass the end of the shore and then headed to the room for a nap. I didn’t get much but he got about an hour. We then dressed in our best duds, he in his tux and me in my new “orange shirt” and headed off for filet mignon and lobster tails. I ate the filet and gave him my lobster. Nice table in the side window tonight with one couple from a couple of nights before and a new couple. Very enjoyable evening except for the table of 8 very LOUD people right beside us!!. They didn’t know what an inside voice is. I think a couple of them had a few before they got there. There talk was a little coarse besides loud.
The show was the singers and dancers. It was okay tonight but way to loud.
Well, I have said enough so I will say good night. Mac I hope you are doing better.
Tate, or should I say Amy and Jack, hang in there this too shall pass.
Congratulations Maggie all your hard work at tumbling has paid off!!!
Love you all Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Thursday, April 25, 2019
NO NAPTIME FOR YOU
April 25, 2019
We had a fun time ashore today in Malaga, wandering around, looking in shops, getting some gelato and going to the Alcazaba (pronounced like the C is a K). We can’t decide if we’ve visited the Alcazaba or not. There is one at Cartagena, so maybe that was it. It is a palace-fortress built when the Moslems ruled the city. There are several walled precincts and the building winds up the side of the hill which overlooks the harbor. The steps in some places are long and sloping and in others are very steep and narrow. And there are no handrails. So we were very careful. It is neat wandering around in a building that was built in 1050 A.D.
When we got back we went up to the Lido. We’d already had tapas ashore – small Spanish menu items. Mine was Russian Salad (tasting just like the ones we had in Samara, but needing just a little more smetana). Hers was spicy potatoes, and I tried one – they were spicy. We shared a Coke, then bought a couple more Cokes to bring back. Up on the Lido I had a cup of coffee and Mom had a glass of ice for her Coke. She likes the ice – it is like the ice at Zaxbys. I did a couple of Sudokus and she read the Lying New York Times and did a crossword puzzle.
Back in the room it was naptime. Yours truly being very tired, I hopped onto the bed while she was still folding the ponchos (it rained a little ashore today – the Captain said it rained 50 days a year in Malaga, and today would be one of the 50. It was). About 15 minutes into the nap the ship’s alarm sounded with a real emergency. The Captain came on to tell us smoke had been seen in the aft section of the Lido and teams had been dispatched. Back to napping, and 5 minutes later the Captain came back on to tell us there was a belt on an elevator that was slipping and all was well. It had been repaired. Back to napping and 15 minutes later the laundry called to tell us our bag full which we sent out this morning said there was one undershirt in the bag, but they found no undershirt. I told them to clean what they had and gave up the nap. No naptime for you!
We were back at Table 129 tonight, the third or fourth time we’ve been there (anytime dining means any table) and folks we’ve eaten with before and enjoyed – Bob and Judy, and Buddy and Mary – joined us. We were thinking we would be alone at a table for 6 tonight because folks were slow coming into the dining room. I don’t often share my meals with you, but tonight was Chicken Marsella with mushroom cream sauce. Excellent.
This is the day for emergency response teams. The fire department was called out for smoke on the Lido, and the medical response team was just sent to Deck 10 Cabin 020, Port Side. Hopefully it is not serious, but then the medical response team was called, so it has every possibility of being so.
Tonight’s entertainment in the Showroom at Sea was Trovatori, an acoustic opera duo. It was neat hearing classical songs, and some standards we knew, accompanied by excellent guitar work. And beautiful, trained voices. They met on the set of the James Bond film “Quantum of Solace,” and they told us the scene where Bond climbs over the stage at the opera is where they were performing.
Okay. Time for Bonnie to blog.
TTFN
Yes, it rains only 50 days a year in Malaga and today was one of the fifty. It was not a
poring rain but light showering. So it was put on the poncho, take it off, put it on and take it off. Fortunately after removing it the second time I did not have to put it back on again. We didn’t hurry getting up because we were in Malaga till 4:30. So we slept in till the cruise director announced we could go ashore at 7:50. We showered , etc then we had a leisurely breakfast, returned to the cabin and gathered our stuff to go exploring. The walk into the town is a rather long hike so we took the 5 euro shuttle. Arriving in the town near the large Ferris wheel , like the London eye, we headed off toward the cathedral which we have visited before. It is huge and beautiful and always amazing to see. It is a mere 5.50 euros for old folks. After that we found a nice gelato place and I had chocolate and cherry in a cup. Very nice. Then, we walked by the Picasso museum, which we have visited before. The line ran down a very long winding staircase and out into the street for a long way. It was a nice place to visit but we didn’t want to go there again. You have to get there early to not have to wait. We had bought tickets on line when we went and didn’t have to wait in the line.
Then, we went to the Roman theater which was free and then up to the Alcazaba, cost 1.50 euros each for old folks. It was very many steps and most were up rocky narrow steps and paths. But we managed and it gave you amazing views of the city. We could even see the ship. We didn’t take a tour to the Alhambra, which is supposed to be awesome. It is a long bus ride and the cost is $180 each. Maybe next time. That tour sold out fast and there are not a lot of tickets. You have to have an appointment to visit and it isn’t easy to go on your own.
The Tapas were okay. We had a coke in a glass bottle that was smaller than an 8 ounce bottle in the US. We shared it because it was over 3 euros. We bought a couple of little things. Nothing much. We did stop at a very nice candy store where they were giving out free samples in the open doorway. We both tried one called creme brulee and he tried another flavor. I wound up buying some sugar free milk chocolate and he got a package of the creme brulee. Amy, maybe he will let you have a piece. He will share I am sure. They put it in a very fancy bag to carry home. I will have to bring the bag home.
After our trip to the Lido, the small fire in a belt on the Lido, and the laundry call and the failed nap we got dressed and went to supper. By this time everyone was on board and we were sailing towards Cartagena.
Supper tonight was a fantastic shrimp taco, Caesar salad, and vegetarian chow mein with egg noodles and nutella cheesecake. All, very good. Then, off to the theater for the show. It was okay but most of the songs were words I don’t know. I appreciate there voices and talent with the guitars. It was an enjoyable show.
Tomorrow is a short stop only till 12:30. It is gala night and the show is the singers and dancers, followed by an “orange party”. I didn’t bring orange but maybe we can find something ashore tomorrow. I do have an orange outfit at home and I shall bring it for our October trip as they always have an orange party and I forgot this time.
Well, it is time for pills and nightly stuff. Love you all. Only 3 more days and we will be off to Rome for 3 days and then flying 11 hours home. Well, at least on the flight we are in a row of two seats only, ours, a window seat and an aisle.
Mom, Granny and Bonnie
We had a fun time ashore today in Malaga, wandering around, looking in shops, getting some gelato and going to the Alcazaba (pronounced like the C is a K). We can’t decide if we’ve visited the Alcazaba or not. There is one at Cartagena, so maybe that was it. It is a palace-fortress built when the Moslems ruled the city. There are several walled precincts and the building winds up the side of the hill which overlooks the harbor. The steps in some places are long and sloping and in others are very steep and narrow. And there are no handrails. So we were very careful. It is neat wandering around in a building that was built in 1050 A.D.
When we got back we went up to the Lido. We’d already had tapas ashore – small Spanish menu items. Mine was Russian Salad (tasting just like the ones we had in Samara, but needing just a little more smetana). Hers was spicy potatoes, and I tried one – they were spicy. We shared a Coke, then bought a couple more Cokes to bring back. Up on the Lido I had a cup of coffee and Mom had a glass of ice for her Coke. She likes the ice – it is like the ice at Zaxbys. I did a couple of Sudokus and she read the Lying New York Times and did a crossword puzzle.
Back in the room it was naptime. Yours truly being very tired, I hopped onto the bed while she was still folding the ponchos (it rained a little ashore today – the Captain said it rained 50 days a year in Malaga, and today would be one of the 50. It was). About 15 minutes into the nap the ship’s alarm sounded with a real emergency. The Captain came on to tell us smoke had been seen in the aft section of the Lido and teams had been dispatched. Back to napping, and 5 minutes later the Captain came back on to tell us there was a belt on an elevator that was slipping and all was well. It had been repaired. Back to napping and 15 minutes later the laundry called to tell us our bag full which we sent out this morning said there was one undershirt in the bag, but they found no undershirt. I told them to clean what they had and gave up the nap. No naptime for you!
We were back at Table 129 tonight, the third or fourth time we’ve been there (anytime dining means any table) and folks we’ve eaten with before and enjoyed – Bob and Judy, and Buddy and Mary – joined us. We were thinking we would be alone at a table for 6 tonight because folks were slow coming into the dining room. I don’t often share my meals with you, but tonight was Chicken Marsella with mushroom cream sauce. Excellent.
This is the day for emergency response teams. The fire department was called out for smoke on the Lido, and the medical response team was just sent to Deck 10 Cabin 020, Port Side. Hopefully it is not serious, but then the medical response team was called, so it has every possibility of being so.
Tonight’s entertainment in the Showroom at Sea was Trovatori, an acoustic opera duo. It was neat hearing classical songs, and some standards we knew, accompanied by excellent guitar work. And beautiful, trained voices. They met on the set of the James Bond film “Quantum of Solace,” and they told us the scene where Bond climbs over the stage at the opera is where they were performing.
Okay. Time for Bonnie to blog.
TTFN
Yes, it rains only 50 days a year in Malaga and today was one of the fifty. It was not a
poring rain but light showering. So it was put on the poncho, take it off, put it on and take it off. Fortunately after removing it the second time I did not have to put it back on again. We didn’t hurry getting up because we were in Malaga till 4:30. So we slept in till the cruise director announced we could go ashore at 7:50. We showered , etc then we had a leisurely breakfast, returned to the cabin and gathered our stuff to go exploring. The walk into the town is a rather long hike so we took the 5 euro shuttle. Arriving in the town near the large Ferris wheel , like the London eye, we headed off toward the cathedral which we have visited before. It is huge and beautiful and always amazing to see. It is a mere 5.50 euros for old folks. After that we found a nice gelato place and I had chocolate and cherry in a cup. Very nice. Then, we walked by the Picasso museum, which we have visited before. The line ran down a very long winding staircase and out into the street for a long way. It was a nice place to visit but we didn’t want to go there again. You have to get there early to not have to wait. We had bought tickets on line when we went and didn’t have to wait in the line.
Then, we went to the Roman theater which was free and then up to the Alcazaba, cost 1.50 euros each for old folks. It was very many steps and most were up rocky narrow steps and paths. But we managed and it gave you amazing views of the city. We could even see the ship. We didn’t take a tour to the Alhambra, which is supposed to be awesome. It is a long bus ride and the cost is $180 each. Maybe next time. That tour sold out fast and there are not a lot of tickets. You have to have an appointment to visit and it isn’t easy to go on your own.
The Tapas were okay. We had a coke in a glass bottle that was smaller than an 8 ounce bottle in the US. We shared it because it was over 3 euros. We bought a couple of little things. Nothing much. We did stop at a very nice candy store where they were giving out free samples in the open doorway. We both tried one called creme brulee and he tried another flavor. I wound up buying some sugar free milk chocolate and he got a package of the creme brulee. Amy, maybe he will let you have a piece. He will share I am sure. They put it in a very fancy bag to carry home. I will have to bring the bag home.
After our trip to the Lido, the small fire in a belt on the Lido, and the laundry call and the failed nap we got dressed and went to supper. By this time everyone was on board and we were sailing towards Cartagena.
Supper tonight was a fantastic shrimp taco, Caesar salad, and vegetarian chow mein with egg noodles and nutella cheesecake. All, very good. Then, off to the theater for the show. It was okay but most of the songs were words I don’t know. I appreciate there voices and talent with the guitars. It was an enjoyable show.
Tomorrow is a short stop only till 12:30. It is gala night and the show is the singers and dancers, followed by an “orange party”. I didn’t bring orange but maybe we can find something ashore tomorrow. I do have an orange outfit at home and I shall bring it for our October trip as they always have an orange party and I forgot this time.
Well, it is time for pills and nightly stuff. Love you all. Only 3 more days and we will be off to Rome for 3 days and then flying 11 hours home. Well, at least on the flight we are in a row of two seats only, ours, a window seat and an aisle.
Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Monday, April 22, 2019
THE FIRST WHALE OF THE EVENING
April 22, 2019
We have sailed away from the Azores on our way to the Straits of Gibraltar and Malaga. The Captain came on just before sail away and told us that the storm that he has been outrunning by increasing speed and changing our route has stalled in front of us and there will be no avoiding it for the next day or two. Mom and I just got back to the room and there was a “thump”. On a cruise a while back the cruise director said that was the sound of the ship hitting a whale. So, we’ve gotten our first whale of the evening. Well, in the last 3.5 hours, the sea has picked up. We will be rocked to sleep tonight.
Tonight we set our clocks ahead one hour, so tomorrow we will be 5 hours ahead of you with one more hour to go before Rome. Each time change so far I have had the 10 a.m. talk, which means when we get up at 6:30 (so we can shower, do breakfast and I can rehearse) we’ve lost an hour. Back in the room tonight we checked the daily program, the “When and Where,” and the times of our talks have been switched. Robin will be talking about Lisbon Off the Beaten Track at 10 and I’ll be searching for El Dorado at 2. It’s about time (pun intended) because turn about is fair play.
There was no show in the theater tonight because the entertainer who was to fly in (we call them “fly ins”) did not fly in because of health reasons. So they put a movie up in the theater called “Green Book.” It won the Academy Award for best picture and when it was announced yesterday a bunch of folks oooed and ahhhhed like it was something great. We decided to go to the computer class instead and learned how to make 3D postcards. Oh the tricks you can do with Windows 10.
I said above the ship was rolling a bit. There is a drawer under my side of the bed that is sliding in and out in and out as the ship moves. I’ll have to put something in it or under it to stop it so I don’t trip over it in the night and Bonnie has to call for a tow truck.
We had a good day ashore today. I’m sure my cruise buddy will give you more details, but my version is, we walked for 4 hours in the sunshine and into the shadow, in and out of souvenir stands (I bought a refrigerator magnet for Tate to move around – I don’t think Mayleigh plays with them much anymore), into one old church, and into one yarn shop.
Yes, indeedy-do! We found a yarn shop on Ponta del Gotta (and we know where there is one in Funchal, Madeira, and I think in Malaga, too). Following in Skinny Granny’s footsteps, she said, “I don’t need this, do I darling?” And bought five skeins of yarn for a project to be announced. We added 14 euros to the economy of the town. It was a fun stroll. A different view of the city this time – last time it was later in the year and there were beautiful flower beds and all the trees in leaves. Today, some pansies on their last legs and a tree bud here and there.
Oh, I forgot to tell you – when were eating last night with the LDSs she asked what I had done before retiring and I said I was a United Methodist pastor. She said, “I thought it was something like that. Your voice is so soothing. Like Mr. Rogers.” I said, “Thank you” (although I don’t detect any similarity in our voices, Fred Rogers was a tremendous minister, and that was a neat compliment).
Now that I’ve patted myself on the back, with no injury, I shall turn this over to (Mary Booth this is for you) She Who Must Be Obeyed.
TTFN
Okay, here we go again. If I am going to walk like this, I am going to start to drink. I already look like I have had to much.
The walk today was very nice after getting up at about 7:15 and getting ready and going to breakfast, we headed to our room to collect our stuff and head out. As we were coming into port the cruise director said it had been raining and there was a rainbow over the sky as we came into dock. So cool. I t was misting as we were getting ready to go off so we took our ponchos and an umbrella in the backpack. But as we left the terminal out onto the sidewalk the rain had stopped. Yeah! As we walked up the steps to the street above the port and headed up the street, the sun came out and was out for the rest of the day. Before we got off the ship I went back to the room and added a layer by putting my sweater on under my jacket. Glad I did because though the sun was shining there was a breeze and it was chilly especially in the shade. Of course as we got off we stopped for the camera people to take our picture. It was really cold where they were standing and we know they have a quota of pictures to take. We don’t ever buy. We walked along the main drag and passed a few shops stopping to browse as we went. One was a small market where we spied cokes for .65 euros. We would come back for those when on our way back to the ship.
Most of the shops we visited we had visited the last time we were here. The big church was open and we visited it again. It was still decorated with many beautiful Easter flowers. We walked up and down small narrow streets with sidewalks for just one or two to walk and with cars speeding along side usually in only one direction. We found the exit door for a supermarket and wanted to go into it. But we had to walk all the way around a whole block and back before we could find the entrance. It was through another store. Strange.
The yarn shop was fabulous. They had thousands of skeins of yarn. I bought some that was, of course, on sale! The store was called Libola, and is on R.A.J. Almeida (editor’s note: across the bay, in Almeida?) street. They gave me one of their cards. The back of the card has a map of the streets to show where it is. How cool. They have an email and a facebook page.
After walking for about 4 hours and heading back to the ship we stopped and picked up our cokes and headed on board. Going through security we went up the stairs from deck 3 to 4 and to our room. The room beside ours where a lady had her TV loud last night until after midnight while I was trying to sleep had out a do not disturb sign. UGH! Oh well. We headed to the Lido and we had spaghetti with marinara sauce. He had meat balls, I did not. It was very good. Then it was off to the cabin and naptime. I slept till about quarter to 4. All aboard was 4:30 so I quietly dressed for supper (he was still asleep) and went to deck 6 on the port side to watch. The wind was blowing really hard and the sun was on the other side of the ship so it was quite chilly. But I stayed for about 20 minutes to watch. I saw a sailboat, about 60 or 70 feet long and with a mast that was about a hundred feet tall . It was something to see it sail away from the port. It wasn’t using sails. We had seen it earlier when we got off the ship. Neat to watch it sail out into the ocean. Right across the water from the dock where our ship was there is a local swimming area. Now remember the temperature is about 60 degrees and the wind is blowing. There were a group and adults and children in bathing suits sun bathing and swimming. Yes swimming. The kids probably about Mac’s age were running and jumping in the water swimming around then getting out and jumping back into the water. I got cold just watching. But they were having a great time. We saw people there last year when the temperature was much warmer.
Well, after I got cold I headed to the room to crochet till he was ready to go to dinner. There was almost no one in the dining room. But we had a table with 5 at it. A lady we had eaten with before and a new couple from Austen Texas. Nice couple. You won’t believe this but I got the haddock for supper. It would probably have been good if it had been warmer but I ate some of it. There was sugar free cheesecake for dessert. Where we were sitting I could see out the windows on the side of the ship and the back of the ship. The Captain said it was going to get rough and as we ate I watched the waves and rolls of waves get bigger and bigger. By the time we finished eating it was pretty rocky and right now we are rocking back and forth pretty big. It will be good sleeping.
He went to the computer class with me and there were only 5 people who came. We had a good time and I enjoyed the class. We asked what kind of lap tops they were using and she said it was a “surface laptop II”. Really cool computer. It is about a fourth of an inch thick and weighs about 2 pounds. Really neat. Probably costs a lot.
Well, I am in my night clothes, have had my snack, thanks Herringtons, and will take my pills soon. Since we don’t have to get up early I can play some more games and read before bedtime.
Mac Granny will be praying for you tomorrow. We left you a present for after the surgery. Love you very much!!! I pray it doesn’t hurt. You definitely deserve a Polar Pop tomorrow!!
Love you all. Mom, Granny and Bonnie
We have sailed away from the Azores on our way to the Straits of Gibraltar and Malaga. The Captain came on just before sail away and told us that the storm that he has been outrunning by increasing speed and changing our route has stalled in front of us and there will be no avoiding it for the next day or two. Mom and I just got back to the room and there was a “thump”. On a cruise a while back the cruise director said that was the sound of the ship hitting a whale. So, we’ve gotten our first whale of the evening. Well, in the last 3.5 hours, the sea has picked up. We will be rocked to sleep tonight.
Tonight we set our clocks ahead one hour, so tomorrow we will be 5 hours ahead of you with one more hour to go before Rome. Each time change so far I have had the 10 a.m. talk, which means when we get up at 6:30 (so we can shower, do breakfast and I can rehearse) we’ve lost an hour. Back in the room tonight we checked the daily program, the “When and Where,” and the times of our talks have been switched. Robin will be talking about Lisbon Off the Beaten Track at 10 and I’ll be searching for El Dorado at 2. It’s about time (pun intended) because turn about is fair play.
There was no show in the theater tonight because the entertainer who was to fly in (we call them “fly ins”) did not fly in because of health reasons. So they put a movie up in the theater called “Green Book.” It won the Academy Award for best picture and when it was announced yesterday a bunch of folks oooed and ahhhhed like it was something great. We decided to go to the computer class instead and learned how to make 3D postcards. Oh the tricks you can do with Windows 10.
I said above the ship was rolling a bit. There is a drawer under my side of the bed that is sliding in and out in and out as the ship moves. I’ll have to put something in it or under it to stop it so I don’t trip over it in the night and Bonnie has to call for a tow truck.
We had a good day ashore today. I’m sure my cruise buddy will give you more details, but my version is, we walked for 4 hours in the sunshine and into the shadow, in and out of souvenir stands (I bought a refrigerator magnet for Tate to move around – I don’t think Mayleigh plays with them much anymore), into one old church, and into one yarn shop.
Yes, indeedy-do! We found a yarn shop on Ponta del Gotta (and we know where there is one in Funchal, Madeira, and I think in Malaga, too). Following in Skinny Granny’s footsteps, she said, “I don’t need this, do I darling?” And bought five skeins of yarn for a project to be announced. We added 14 euros to the economy of the town. It was a fun stroll. A different view of the city this time – last time it was later in the year and there were beautiful flower beds and all the trees in leaves. Today, some pansies on their last legs and a tree bud here and there.
Oh, I forgot to tell you – when were eating last night with the LDSs she asked what I had done before retiring and I said I was a United Methodist pastor. She said, “I thought it was something like that. Your voice is so soothing. Like Mr. Rogers.” I said, “Thank you” (although I don’t detect any similarity in our voices, Fred Rogers was a tremendous minister, and that was a neat compliment).
Now that I’ve patted myself on the back, with no injury, I shall turn this over to (Mary Booth this is for you) She Who Must Be Obeyed.
TTFN
Okay, here we go again. If I am going to walk like this, I am going to start to drink. I already look like I have had to much.
The walk today was very nice after getting up at about 7:15 and getting ready and going to breakfast, we headed to our room to collect our stuff and head out. As we were coming into port the cruise director said it had been raining and there was a rainbow over the sky as we came into dock. So cool. I t was misting as we were getting ready to go off so we took our ponchos and an umbrella in the backpack. But as we left the terminal out onto the sidewalk the rain had stopped. Yeah! As we walked up the steps to the street above the port and headed up the street, the sun came out and was out for the rest of the day. Before we got off the ship I went back to the room and added a layer by putting my sweater on under my jacket. Glad I did because though the sun was shining there was a breeze and it was chilly especially in the shade. Of course as we got off we stopped for the camera people to take our picture. It was really cold where they were standing and we know they have a quota of pictures to take. We don’t ever buy. We walked along the main drag and passed a few shops stopping to browse as we went. One was a small market where we spied cokes for .65 euros. We would come back for those when on our way back to the ship.
Most of the shops we visited we had visited the last time we were here. The big church was open and we visited it again. It was still decorated with many beautiful Easter flowers. We walked up and down small narrow streets with sidewalks for just one or two to walk and with cars speeding along side usually in only one direction. We found the exit door for a supermarket and wanted to go into it. But we had to walk all the way around a whole block and back before we could find the entrance. It was through another store. Strange.
The yarn shop was fabulous. They had thousands of skeins of yarn. I bought some that was, of course, on sale! The store was called Libola, and is on R.A.J. Almeida (editor’s note: across the bay, in Almeida?) street. They gave me one of their cards. The back of the card has a map of the streets to show where it is. How cool. They have an email and a facebook page.
After walking for about 4 hours and heading back to the ship we stopped and picked up our cokes and headed on board. Going through security we went up the stairs from deck 3 to 4 and to our room. The room beside ours where a lady had her TV loud last night until after midnight while I was trying to sleep had out a do not disturb sign. UGH! Oh well. We headed to the Lido and we had spaghetti with marinara sauce. He had meat balls, I did not. It was very good. Then it was off to the cabin and naptime. I slept till about quarter to 4. All aboard was 4:30 so I quietly dressed for supper (he was still asleep) and went to deck 6 on the port side to watch. The wind was blowing really hard and the sun was on the other side of the ship so it was quite chilly. But I stayed for about 20 minutes to watch. I saw a sailboat, about 60 or 70 feet long and with a mast that was about a hundred feet tall . It was something to see it sail away from the port. It wasn’t using sails. We had seen it earlier when we got off the ship. Neat to watch it sail out into the ocean. Right across the water from the dock where our ship was there is a local swimming area. Now remember the temperature is about 60 degrees and the wind is blowing. There were a group and adults and children in bathing suits sun bathing and swimming. Yes swimming. The kids probably about Mac’s age were running and jumping in the water swimming around then getting out and jumping back into the water. I got cold just watching. But they were having a great time. We saw people there last year when the temperature was much warmer.
Well, after I got cold I headed to the room to crochet till he was ready to go to dinner. There was almost no one in the dining room. But we had a table with 5 at it. A lady we had eaten with before and a new couple from Austen Texas. Nice couple. You won’t believe this but I got the haddock for supper. It would probably have been good if it had been warmer but I ate some of it. There was sugar free cheesecake for dessert. Where we were sitting I could see out the windows on the side of the ship and the back of the ship. The Captain said it was going to get rough and as we ate I watched the waves and rolls of waves get bigger and bigger. By the time we finished eating it was pretty rocky and right now we are rocking back and forth pretty big. It will be good sleeping.
He went to the computer class with me and there were only 5 people who came. We had a good time and I enjoyed the class. We asked what kind of lap tops they were using and she said it was a “surface laptop II”. Really cool computer. It is about a fourth of an inch thick and weighs about 2 pounds. Really neat. Probably costs a lot.
Well, I am in my night clothes, have had my snack, thanks Herringtons, and will take my pills soon. Since we don’t have to get up early I can play some more games and read before bedtime.
Mac Granny will be praying for you tomorrow. We left you a present for after the surgery. Love you very much!!! I pray it doesn’t hurt. You definitely deserve a Polar Pop tomorrow!!
Love you all. Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Sunday, April 21, 2019
THIS REALLY IS THE 21ST
April 21, 2019
My phone has been screwy with date changes this time. I told you earlier that a blog from a certain date was not that date and I reset my phone. Last night I realized that the blog was not from the date announced and I reset my phone. Tonight it is the right date.
At lunch (we had pizza and Mom also had a salad) we sat with a couple from Florida, Joe and Rebecca. We exchanged names, places of residence, sizes of family, etc. We talked about the lack of Easter services on board, and then Rebecca went into some detail about their family. They have 8 grandchildren, one who is in heaven. She was born with a severe heart defect and they enjoyed her for two and a half months. Then she got choked up and apologized. I told her not to apologize, we understand, and I told her Thomas was with us for 9 precious days. And then I got choked up. When I could talk again I said, “That is why this day is so important. Because of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ we will see those grand babies again, and all who have died in the Lord.” And I got choked up again. Not the Easter celebration I may have had in mind, but a powerful one full of meaning.
Tomorrow we are ashore in Ponta del Gotta, a Portugese island which we have visited before. The town with all of the shops, restaurants, and churches is close, and we will go exploring. One time we were here we took a trip to the outskirts where we saw a volcanic caldron and some beautiful mountain lakes. Tomorrow we will wander, looking for Gellato!
After tomorrow we have two more days at sea and then two Spanish cities we’ve visited before, Malaga and Cartagena, cities we enjoy exploring. Then another day at sea and then Civitavecchia. So three more talks wrapped around three sea days before we go to Rome.
Well, I am rambling so I will turn the keyboard over to Bonnie, and read while she types.
TTFN
Well, while waiting for him to finish his rambling , I finished crochet project #3. I am working on things to take to the May Market on May 4 at the church. This will be the first time I have ever attempted to sell my ware. It will be a strange collection of things I have been collecting over the last few years. The sale is from 10 am to 2 pm, you are all welcome to come.
Today started at 6:30 am, after having gone to bed at 12:30 am. Needless to say I was tired most of the day so much that I take a 2 hour nap. After getting ready we proceeded to Lido for breakfast. Today would not have been a good day for a sunrise service because we had only clouds and no sun. After breakfast and my newspaper I headed to the computer classroom for a class at 10. I arrived at about 8. I decided to take a walk on deck 8 before class. I walked a couple of times around. I shall really enjoy being outside in the air tomorrow even though the high is just to be 61 degrees. I shall wear my jacket. After walking a bit I sat down to crochet as I waited for the class. The class was part 2 of making videos. It was interesting but I still doubt I will be able to do any of this. But we shall see.
After the class I headed to the theater for the EXC guys talk on Ponto Delgada. Not much. He talked about a lot of stuff but had no pictures to show you. Other EXC people I have heard have shown a lot more pictures. He has been doing these cruises for 13 years and I would have though he would have taken some pictures. He could have at least found some from the internet.
After the talk we went to the room to put our stuff up and headed to the Lido for lunch. My Asian salad was again good today. The pizza was passable. Nothing extra but it did have a good thin crust.
When I left the lido I headed for the room. I was going to start my nap. He was headed to the theater to hear Robin’s talk. He returned after the talk and joined me in napping. He got up before me and about 5 we headed for the dining room. The maitre’d knows us now and we don’t even have to tell him our room number. He has been very nice and we are getting tables in the back in the windows. That is great because I can watch the waves. One of the couples we had eaten with the first night and the second couple was from Utah. They had a son and a daughter who had both lived and worked in Russia. Very interesting. They told us that there was a brand new LDS cathedral opening just outside of Rome and since it hasn’t been dedicated yet we should try and visit while we are there. Don’t know if that will happen.
After supper it was to the theater for the variety show. The comedian and concert pianist were each doing a half hour performance. The comedian was first and he was absolutely hilarious!! The pianist was second. She is a lovely young lady, has extremely long fingers and plays beautifully. It just isn’t my style of music. Tomorrow night we were to have a new performer who was to get on but due illness he will not be joining the ship. So instead they are showing the academy winning movie for best picture “Green Book”. When the cruise director announced this the people behind us went all a ga-ga. I never heard of this movie but it is supposed to be something great. We shall see. You can look it up on google and see what you think. I can not. So I will have to wait.
Well, this morning we sent out our first load of laundry. Not a lot but some socks, underwear, night clothes and t shirts and pants. Well, as usual they bleached my white underwear and now it is all a lovely shade of gray! They did this the last time we were on Holland. Oh well, no one can see it but me. However it is the new stuff I just bought this summer. Such is life on the cruise ship.
Well, I have to finish reading my British newspaper ( Holland prints a Canadian, a British and sometimes an Australian newspaper every day along with the NY Times). That is one nice thing about the Holland line I get to get a paper every day!! He is not much impressed but they do usually have the Pirates scores.
Hope everyone likes their bunny and enjoys your treats. Thanks to the Jack, Amy, Luke, Mac and Tate family for the Easter card you hid in our suitcase. I shall enjoy my Hershey bar and I think your Dad has already consumed his Reeses egg. Love you and looking for to land tomorrow.
Mom, Granny and Bonnie
My phone has been screwy with date changes this time. I told you earlier that a blog from a certain date was not that date and I reset my phone. Last night I realized that the blog was not from the date announced and I reset my phone. Tonight it is the right date.
At lunch (we had pizza and Mom also had a salad) we sat with a couple from Florida, Joe and Rebecca. We exchanged names, places of residence, sizes of family, etc. We talked about the lack of Easter services on board, and then Rebecca went into some detail about their family. They have 8 grandchildren, one who is in heaven. She was born with a severe heart defect and they enjoyed her for two and a half months. Then she got choked up and apologized. I told her not to apologize, we understand, and I told her Thomas was with us for 9 precious days. And then I got choked up. When I could talk again I said, “That is why this day is so important. Because of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ we will see those grand babies again, and all who have died in the Lord.” And I got choked up again. Not the Easter celebration I may have had in mind, but a powerful one full of meaning.
Tomorrow we are ashore in Ponta del Gotta, a Portugese island which we have visited before. The town with all of the shops, restaurants, and churches is close, and we will go exploring. One time we were here we took a trip to the outskirts where we saw a volcanic caldron and some beautiful mountain lakes. Tomorrow we will wander, looking for Gellato!
After tomorrow we have two more days at sea and then two Spanish cities we’ve visited before, Malaga and Cartagena, cities we enjoy exploring. Then another day at sea and then Civitavecchia. So three more talks wrapped around three sea days before we go to Rome.
Well, I am rambling so I will turn the keyboard over to Bonnie, and read while she types.
TTFN
Well, while waiting for him to finish his rambling , I finished crochet project #3. I am working on things to take to the May Market on May 4 at the church. This will be the first time I have ever attempted to sell my ware. It will be a strange collection of things I have been collecting over the last few years. The sale is from 10 am to 2 pm, you are all welcome to come.
Today started at 6:30 am, after having gone to bed at 12:30 am. Needless to say I was tired most of the day so much that I take a 2 hour nap. After getting ready we proceeded to Lido for breakfast. Today would not have been a good day for a sunrise service because we had only clouds and no sun. After breakfast and my newspaper I headed to the computer classroom for a class at 10. I arrived at about 8. I decided to take a walk on deck 8 before class. I walked a couple of times around. I shall really enjoy being outside in the air tomorrow even though the high is just to be 61 degrees. I shall wear my jacket. After walking a bit I sat down to crochet as I waited for the class. The class was part 2 of making videos. It was interesting but I still doubt I will be able to do any of this. But we shall see.
After the class I headed to the theater for the EXC guys talk on Ponto Delgada. Not much. He talked about a lot of stuff but had no pictures to show you. Other EXC people I have heard have shown a lot more pictures. He has been doing these cruises for 13 years and I would have though he would have taken some pictures. He could have at least found some from the internet.
After the talk we went to the room to put our stuff up and headed to the Lido for lunch. My Asian salad was again good today. The pizza was passable. Nothing extra but it did have a good thin crust.
When I left the lido I headed for the room. I was going to start my nap. He was headed to the theater to hear Robin’s talk. He returned after the talk and joined me in napping. He got up before me and about 5 we headed for the dining room. The maitre’d knows us now and we don’t even have to tell him our room number. He has been very nice and we are getting tables in the back in the windows. That is great because I can watch the waves. One of the couples we had eaten with the first night and the second couple was from Utah. They had a son and a daughter who had both lived and worked in Russia. Very interesting. They told us that there was a brand new LDS cathedral opening just outside of Rome and since it hasn’t been dedicated yet we should try and visit while we are there. Don’t know if that will happen.
After supper it was to the theater for the variety show. The comedian and concert pianist were each doing a half hour performance. The comedian was first and he was absolutely hilarious!! The pianist was second. She is a lovely young lady, has extremely long fingers and plays beautifully. It just isn’t my style of music. Tomorrow night we were to have a new performer who was to get on but due illness he will not be joining the ship. So instead they are showing the academy winning movie for best picture “Green Book”. When the cruise director announced this the people behind us went all a ga-ga. I never heard of this movie but it is supposed to be something great. We shall see. You can look it up on google and see what you think. I can not. So I will have to wait.
Well, this morning we sent out our first load of laundry. Not a lot but some socks, underwear, night clothes and t shirts and pants. Well, as usual they bleached my white underwear and now it is all a lovely shade of gray! They did this the last time we were on Holland. Oh well, no one can see it but me. However it is the new stuff I just bought this summer. Such is life on the cruise ship.
Well, I have to finish reading my British newspaper ( Holland prints a Canadian, a British and sometimes an Australian newspaper every day along with the NY Times). That is one nice thing about the Holland line I get to get a paper every day!! He is not much impressed but they do usually have the Pirates scores.
Hope everyone likes their bunny and enjoys your treats. Thanks to the Jack, Amy, Luke, Mac and Tate family for the Easter card you hid in our suitcase. I shall enjoy my Hershey bar and I think your Dad has already consumed his Reeses egg. Love you and looking for to land tomorrow.
Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Saturday, April 20, 2019
TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE EASTER
April 20, 2019
And all through the land, despair was written on the hearts and faces of the ones who had believed. But in just a few hours, doubt would be forced to take the back seat and faith would ride rough-shod over the human heart. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
I slept until 8 o’clock again this morning when Mom poked me and said, “We need to get up so we can have breakfast and I can make my 10 o’clock computer class!” And so we did. I went to Robin’s talk about his travels in Cuba, and he has part two tomorrow when he talks about cars, the art, and a cemetery. Cuba has many old American cars, dating from the 50s and early 60s. I will have my eye out for a 1959 two door Chevrolet Brookwood Station Wagon. Preferably red in color. And costing $35.00
Speaking of cars, I told my Ferrari joke today. The one about the fellow who is looking for a car and sees a 2015 Ferrari Berlinetta F-12 advertised in the paper for $3450.00. He thinks it’s a misprint because that car should go for $345,000.00. But no, that’s the price, and after he buys it, he asks the woman why she sold it for so little. “Because,” she said, “my husband ran away to Fiji with his secretary and told me to sell the car and send him the money. So I did!”
And then I talked about The Pirate Republic: Democracy in the Bahamas. Only four more talks to go and we will be in Rome. Exciting but sad. Like Christmas, it takes so long to get here and then is past so quickly.
Well, I need to rehearse for tomorrow’s talk about Ferdinand Magellan, so I’ll turn the keyboard over to Bonnie for a more complete look at today.
TTFN
Well, he told me not to write War and Peace , so this will be short. The waves were really big last night. They settled down about 2 or 3 in the morning but it still is rocking so that you can’t go outside to walk. We did sleep to 8 but tomorrow we will be up at 6:30 before the sun rises, so maybe I can watch it rise and think of the Son of God who rose and made life worth living!!! If it were not for that day, Christmas and everything else would mean nothing.
Well, I didn’t take a bath this morning because I wanted to wash my hair today and I wanted to do it after his talk today. So we were off to breakfast after he got ready and then I headed to the computer class. Another one learning about things I have no clue about. But I am hoping I can do some of this stuff when I get home. I do have all the handouts from all the computer classes on my thumb drive that I bought. We shall see. I may have to get tech support, MICHAEL!!!
After the class I went back to the room and he studied and I finished my 2nd crochet project and I have started the third one. Then, it was off to lunch. A salad today with Asian dressing. Very tasty. Then off to the theater to wait for his talk. Good as always and well attended. Then, off to the room for a shower etc and a short nap. It was a struggle to shower because the Captain is traveling at 19 knots trying to get a head of another storm headed for us. He said he would slow down this evening. It is still pretty rocky.
Tonight was Gala attire night and we sat at a nice table with a mother and daughter from Oregon and a couple from Ohio now. Nice table and again we were seated in the very back in the window and I could watch the rolling waves! Supper was okay. Filet mignon, that was a little dry but there was a nice chocolate cheese cake for dessert. I splurged tonight.
The show was excellent. The singers and dancers did a show called “Dance” which featured the dancers with the singers. Hard to imagine how they could do all that stuff with the rocking and rolling of the ship.
We are now back in the room and he needs to study. I hope all of you–kids, grandkids and all enjoy the Easter treats. I love you all and miss you. Have a great day and remember it isn’t the Easter bunny that is important but the empty tomb!!
Love Mom, Granny and Bonnie
And all through the land, despair was written on the hearts and faces of the ones who had believed. But in just a few hours, doubt would be forced to take the back seat and faith would ride rough-shod over the human heart. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
I slept until 8 o’clock again this morning when Mom poked me and said, “We need to get up so we can have breakfast and I can make my 10 o’clock computer class!” And so we did. I went to Robin’s talk about his travels in Cuba, and he has part two tomorrow when he talks about cars, the art, and a cemetery. Cuba has many old American cars, dating from the 50s and early 60s. I will have my eye out for a 1959 two door Chevrolet Brookwood Station Wagon. Preferably red in color. And costing $35.00
Speaking of cars, I told my Ferrari joke today. The one about the fellow who is looking for a car and sees a 2015 Ferrari Berlinetta F-12 advertised in the paper for $3450.00. He thinks it’s a misprint because that car should go for $345,000.00. But no, that’s the price, and after he buys it, he asks the woman why she sold it for so little. “Because,” she said, “my husband ran away to Fiji with his secretary and told me to sell the car and send him the money. So I did!”
And then I talked about The Pirate Republic: Democracy in the Bahamas. Only four more talks to go and we will be in Rome. Exciting but sad. Like Christmas, it takes so long to get here and then is past so quickly.
Well, I need to rehearse for tomorrow’s talk about Ferdinand Magellan, so I’ll turn the keyboard over to Bonnie for a more complete look at today.
TTFN
Well, he told me not to write War and Peace , so this will be short. The waves were really big last night. They settled down about 2 or 3 in the morning but it still is rocking so that you can’t go outside to walk. We did sleep to 8 but tomorrow we will be up at 6:30 before the sun rises, so maybe I can watch it rise and think of the Son of God who rose and made life worth living!!! If it were not for that day, Christmas and everything else would mean nothing.
Well, I didn’t take a bath this morning because I wanted to wash my hair today and I wanted to do it after his talk today. So we were off to breakfast after he got ready and then I headed to the computer class. Another one learning about things I have no clue about. But I am hoping I can do some of this stuff when I get home. I do have all the handouts from all the computer classes on my thumb drive that I bought. We shall see. I may have to get tech support, MICHAEL!!!
After the class I went back to the room and he studied and I finished my 2nd crochet project and I have started the third one. Then, it was off to lunch. A salad today with Asian dressing. Very tasty. Then off to the theater to wait for his talk. Good as always and well attended. Then, off to the room for a shower etc and a short nap. It was a struggle to shower because the Captain is traveling at 19 knots trying to get a head of another storm headed for us. He said he would slow down this evening. It is still pretty rocky.
Tonight was Gala attire night and we sat at a nice table with a mother and daughter from Oregon and a couple from Ohio now. Nice table and again we were seated in the very back in the window and I could watch the rolling waves! Supper was okay. Filet mignon, that was a little dry but there was a nice chocolate cheese cake for dessert. I splurged tonight.
The show was excellent. The singers and dancers did a show called “Dance” which featured the dancers with the singers. Hard to imagine how they could do all that stuff with the rocking and rolling of the ship.
We are now back in the room and he needs to study. I hope all of you–kids, grandkids and all enjoy the Easter treats. I love you all and miss you. Have a great day and remember it isn’t the Easter bunny that is important but the empty tomb!!
Love Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Wednesday, April 17, 2019
GOLDILOCKS
April 18, 2019
We have been playing Goldilocks with the temperature of the water in our bathroom. The first day, the water was too cold. The second day it was too hot. Today it was just right. And the funny thing is, the position of the faucets, as we have turned them and twisted them have been the same all three days. Go figure.
We played our first trivia today. It was a music trivia. We were walking back from lunch, looking for a place to cop-a-squat and Ulia (Julie in English), who was born in Ukraine, speaks Russian, but not Ukraine, and lives sometimes in Virginia and sometimes in NYC, invited us in. I had gavarooed with her the first day on board, so we accepted her invitation. She played a few seconds of a piece of music – from two seconds to as long as 16 – and we were required to guess the name of the piece and the artist. She gave an extra point here and there if a piece was a theme song from a movie. There were 36 possible points, and your favorite cruisers, who last cruise won a trivia and brought home a Ship On A Stick, scored four points! That’s right! Four out of 36. I asked her if there was a prize for lowest score, but she said, “Nope.” We got “Hit the Road Jack,” “Walk Like A Man” by the Four Seasons, and “Hungry Eyes.” We have sworn off music trivia for the rest of the cruise.
Tonight we sat with normal people for supper and for the first time at any table on any cruise ship, we did not exchange names nor tell where we were from. And no one was a cruise show off. The waiters were great. The meal was good.
On the way back to our room after the show, which featured a bald, comedy magician, one of our room stewards was still out in the hall. He asked me if we had done an Atlantic crossing at this time of year before. I told him we did one last year about this same time. He asked how the weather was last year. I think the reason he asked is the Captain says we are going to hit some rougher weather tonight and tomorrow. There is a storm crossing towards Europe that he has been sailing around, but has had to turn north, so we are going to catch some of it. I was curious as to why Agus was asking, but he volunteered that when it gets bad, guests stay in their rooms and that makes their jobs more difficult. He and his co-worker, Aji, have 24 rooms that they service twice a day. I told him I hope it is good weather tomorrow because my talk is about a shipwreck.
Thank you to the two regular readers who sent me news items about the disastrous fire at Notre Dame. We were privileged to see it several years ago and the pictures seem to amplify the calamity. It looks like there is a lot of restoration work ahead. If it makes any difference, from what I’ve read this was an accident, not a terrorist attack. We’ve had way too many of those. No more, please!
Well, I’m going to rehearse “Tempest in the Atlantic” and turn the keyboard over to my traveling companion.
TTFN
Well, this afternoon I finished one of the several crochet projects that I bought with me. It was a Georgia Bulldog hot pad. Tomorrow I will start on a new project.
Nothing much exciting happened today. We were up at 6:30 and had an early breakfast. Today I opted for a bacon sandwich with mustard and tomato juice. I cut the crust off the bread because it was hard as usual. Then, it was off for my morning walk around the deck. There was no one out there but me. I wore my jacket because it was windy and cold. But I enjoyed my walk. Then, coming back to the room I picked up my crocheting and headed to the theater to wait for his talk. At 9:40 I thought maybe I was going to be the only one there. But by showtime he had a really nice crowd. The talk was one I had not heard for a while and one he had made a lot of changes to. It was good but would have been better if there system would have played two of the videos he had in the talk. Also, during his talk they decided they would run their 30 minute crew emergency drill including alarms that sounded over and over again during the 45 minutes accompanied by announcements for the crew and disclaimers for the guests that this was just a drill and the guests didn’t need to do anything!!!!! They interrupted the talk at least 10 times. Oh my!
Well, after the talk we came back to the room and then, proceeded to lunch. I wanted some soup and a sandwich. They had bacon with white cannolia beans soup. The beans were partially pureed. It was very tasty. I also had a roast beef on wheat with lettuce, mayo and pickles. Also very good. For dessert today it was a small coffee fudge sugar free ice cream cone. Yes, I said coffee and I don’t like coffee, but it was very good.
Then, after the trivia disaster we proceeded to the talk about the interviews with American singers. It was a little more interesting than yesterday. He interviewed Alice Cooper, Cher, and others. Then back to the room and a nap. Tonight we sat at a window table on the port side. Nice view. I had hazelnut crusted brie cheese, a salad, and weiner schnitzel and a sugar free mousse dessert.
The show tonight was a comedic magician who was bald. That was how he was advertised. He was okay. Mostly comedy and a little magic.
Well, we are back in our room. Our room does not have a refrigerator but for whatever reason they decided today to but in our room 6 cans of a variety of sodas and two bottles of evian water for our “mini bar”. They were sitting on the desk when we returned before naptime. The one liter bottles of water cost $5 each. Whoa!!
The sodas are 2.25 but we can get the cans cheaper if we buy them at a bar. He gets a discount. This price also has a 15% gratuity charge either from the minibar or the regular bar. Everything is charged a gratuity. Well, it is time for him to study and me to crochet or read, or play on the kindle. Not sure what I am going to do. The last advice the cruise director gave us at the end of the show tonight was to hold on to the rails tomorrow. It is going to get rough sometime in the night. The Captain told us in his noon report to secure anything that might go flying across our rooms. So hang on guys.
Love you all. Having a great time.
Mom, Granny, and Bonnie
We have been playing Goldilocks with the temperature of the water in our bathroom. The first day, the water was too cold. The second day it was too hot. Today it was just right. And the funny thing is, the position of the faucets, as we have turned them and twisted them have been the same all three days. Go figure.
We played our first trivia today. It was a music trivia. We were walking back from lunch, looking for a place to cop-a-squat and Ulia (Julie in English), who was born in Ukraine, speaks Russian, but not Ukraine, and lives sometimes in Virginia and sometimes in NYC, invited us in. I had gavarooed with her the first day on board, so we accepted her invitation. She played a few seconds of a piece of music – from two seconds to as long as 16 – and we were required to guess the name of the piece and the artist. She gave an extra point here and there if a piece was a theme song from a movie. There were 36 possible points, and your favorite cruisers, who last cruise won a trivia and brought home a Ship On A Stick, scored four points! That’s right! Four out of 36. I asked her if there was a prize for lowest score, but she said, “Nope.” We got “Hit the Road Jack,” “Walk Like A Man” by the Four Seasons, and “Hungry Eyes.” We have sworn off music trivia for the rest of the cruise.
Tonight we sat with normal people for supper and for the first time at any table on any cruise ship, we did not exchange names nor tell where we were from. And no one was a cruise show off. The waiters were great. The meal was good.
On the way back to our room after the show, which featured a bald, comedy magician, one of our room stewards was still out in the hall. He asked me if we had done an Atlantic crossing at this time of year before. I told him we did one last year about this same time. He asked how the weather was last year. I think the reason he asked is the Captain says we are going to hit some rougher weather tonight and tomorrow. There is a storm crossing towards Europe that he has been sailing around, but has had to turn north, so we are going to catch some of it. I was curious as to why Agus was asking, but he volunteered that when it gets bad, guests stay in their rooms and that makes their jobs more difficult. He and his co-worker, Aji, have 24 rooms that they service twice a day. I told him I hope it is good weather tomorrow because my talk is about a shipwreck.
Thank you to the two regular readers who sent me news items about the disastrous fire at Notre Dame. We were privileged to see it several years ago and the pictures seem to amplify the calamity. It looks like there is a lot of restoration work ahead. If it makes any difference, from what I’ve read this was an accident, not a terrorist attack. We’ve had way too many of those. No more, please!
Well, I’m going to rehearse “Tempest in the Atlantic” and turn the keyboard over to my traveling companion.
TTFN
Well, this afternoon I finished one of the several crochet projects that I bought with me. It was a Georgia Bulldog hot pad. Tomorrow I will start on a new project.
Nothing much exciting happened today. We were up at 6:30 and had an early breakfast. Today I opted for a bacon sandwich with mustard and tomato juice. I cut the crust off the bread because it was hard as usual. Then, it was off for my morning walk around the deck. There was no one out there but me. I wore my jacket because it was windy and cold. But I enjoyed my walk. Then, coming back to the room I picked up my crocheting and headed to the theater to wait for his talk. At 9:40 I thought maybe I was going to be the only one there. But by showtime he had a really nice crowd. The talk was one I had not heard for a while and one he had made a lot of changes to. It was good but would have been better if there system would have played two of the videos he had in the talk. Also, during his talk they decided they would run their 30 minute crew emergency drill including alarms that sounded over and over again during the 45 minutes accompanied by announcements for the crew and disclaimers for the guests that this was just a drill and the guests didn’t need to do anything!!!!! They interrupted the talk at least 10 times. Oh my!
Well, after the talk we came back to the room and then, proceeded to lunch. I wanted some soup and a sandwich. They had bacon with white cannolia beans soup. The beans were partially pureed. It was very tasty. I also had a roast beef on wheat with lettuce, mayo and pickles. Also very good. For dessert today it was a small coffee fudge sugar free ice cream cone. Yes, I said coffee and I don’t like coffee, but it was very good.
Then, after the trivia disaster we proceeded to the talk about the interviews with American singers. It was a little more interesting than yesterday. He interviewed Alice Cooper, Cher, and others. Then back to the room and a nap. Tonight we sat at a window table on the port side. Nice view. I had hazelnut crusted brie cheese, a salad, and weiner schnitzel and a sugar free mousse dessert.
The show tonight was a comedic magician who was bald. That was how he was advertised. He was okay. Mostly comedy and a little magic.
Well, we are back in our room. Our room does not have a refrigerator but for whatever reason they decided today to but in our room 6 cans of a variety of sodas and two bottles of evian water for our “mini bar”. They were sitting on the desk when we returned before naptime. The one liter bottles of water cost $5 each. Whoa!!
The sodas are 2.25 but we can get the cans cheaper if we buy them at a bar. He gets a discount. This price also has a 15% gratuity charge either from the minibar or the regular bar. Everything is charged a gratuity. Well, it is time for him to study and me to crochet or read, or play on the kindle. Not sure what I am going to do. The last advice the cruise director gave us at the end of the show tonight was to hold on to the rails tomorrow. It is going to get rough sometime in the night. The Captain told us in his noon report to secure anything that might go flying across our rooms. So hang on guys.
Love you all. Having a great time.
Mom, Granny, and Bonnie
Monday, April 15, 2019
SHE WAS COLD!
April 15, 2019
All of you who read this blog know that I am always cold, and she is always hot. Well, this afternoon I came back to the room following Robin Ross’s talk (he’s the other guest speaker on the cruise – a former DJ with lots of stories about famous people that he’s interviewed) and our cabin was like an ice cube! I voiced the same and was surprised – in fact, I had to hold onto the wall to keep from falling – to hear my wife of 50 years, the mother of my children, the granny of our 10 grands, exclaim, “Me, too!” Before she could change her mind (was there something wrong with the one she has) I got on the phone to Guest Services and asked for maintenance to come and do something so I could raise the temperature in here.
They sent a woman with a digital thermometer, which suggests to me that we are not the only ones to complain, if they have a special device on board to check. She assured us it was between 21.7 and 22.1 degrees Celsius. I don’t care – we were cold. A few minutes after she left the phone rang and a man said, “That’s as warm as it gets. Our system is not made to be any warmer. But we can send you a blanket.” I said, “Can you send ear muffs, a nose cozy, and gloves?” He said, “Sir, we don’t have any of those, but we’d be glad to send a blanket.” I replied, “No, I’ll just turn on the hair dryer and thaw my ears.” He replied, “Very good, sir. Let me know if there is anything else I can do.”
Well, most of that paragraph is true. Right down to the point where I asked for ear muffs, etc. So when we left for supper, I left all the lights on, figuring that would help. Even fluorescent lights put off some heat. Our cabin stewards do a turn down each evening and leave chocolates on the bed and turn off the lights. But we are convinced it is warmer in here tonight. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.
I did my first talk, “When Pirates Sailed the Atlantic,” this morning in the main theater. The bottom floor was full, and the top floor over half. A good crowd and a responsive crowd. They liked my pirate jokes, and gave a good applause when I told them one of the greatest pirates of all time came from Puerto Rico, showing them a photograph of Roberto Clemente.
All of you Star Trek fans out there know the line from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country: “I’d pay real money if he’d shut up!” We ate with those folks tonight. Lucille, from Connecticut has done everything everyone has done, more often and better. She breathed twice during the 100 minutes of supper, and the second time was when she choked on pepper corns. Her husband, Fred, finally got to say something, asking if she was all right. We have a regular time to eat, but we don’t have a regular table, so with luck we won’t sup with them again.
It is time for Bonnie to blog, and then I’ll post this, check email, and rehearse for tomorrow’s talk, “Are We There Yet?”
Oh, I forgot something. Last night we turned the clocks up an hour. Mom was asleep before I finished the blog and I rehearsed the talk. It was midnight new time when I finally swallowed my evening pills and went to bed. When I woke up at 8:15 this morning, I looked around and I could see perfectly. For just a second I thought that a miracle had occurred while I slept and then it dawned on me – I hadn’t taken my contacts out before I went to bed. I haven’t slept with my contacts in since taking the Tashkent train from Moscow to Samara, and that time I did it deliberately.
And now, TTFN
Well, I am still awake. Last night I was REALLY tired. I think I was asleep before he quit reading me his blog. Tonight I am a little better. After getting up we got ready and went to breakfast. He went back to the room to get ready for the 11 am talk. I headed to deck 6 the Lower Promenade and went walking while listening to my new Clive Cussler book. It is 4 laps around the deck for a mile. I lost count but I did at least 4 laps. I headed back to the room to change bags and get my daytime crochet bag with the crocheting projects for this trip, my puzzle book and other stuff. I wondered as I headed to the room if I would be able to get in as my key is still not working all the time. After 4 tries it turned the lock green and let me into the room. I changed my stuff and headed back out. At about 10:45 I headed to the showroom, which is what they call the theater, to wait for his talk. The EXC and tour person finished up at 10:55 and then they hooked David’s computer and the EXC guy came out and gave a nice intro. According to the letter he had received when we got on board he was supposed to stay for the talk and close out the show. He did not. Oh well. Most of the stuff he said in the letter he didn’t do. But they did do a new schedule and now the talks are at 10 and 2. The other speaker and David switch times each day. Tomorrow we are on at 2.
After his talk we went to Lido for lunch and then out on deck 2 to sit in the warm air. It was great not too cold or warm. There are some pretty big waves and a wind of about 30 knots. I thought it felt great. We had to search to find some deck chairs that were dry and not reserved. You see on deck 6 there are cabins that have sliding doors that open onto the deck. They don’t have a balcony but each room has 2 reserved deck chairs on the deck. But there are still other chairs for us peons who only have a port hole on the lower decks.
He went to Robins talk. I did not. I sat for a while more. Then, we met back at the cabin for a nap. After the nap it was dress and go to supper at 5:15. Definitely don’t want the same table companions. The one couple was okay but the other lady almost never took a breath.
Holland has changed their menus and tonight you ordered everything at the same time. No separate menu for dessert. I had a zucchini cream soup, rigatoni with sausage and tomato sauce and a raspberry and ricotta cheese torte. All was good. They have also changed the shape of the water glasses and the water pitchers. The waiters are not used to them yet and have difficulty filling your glass with water. I was sitting at the end of the table for 6 by the window and when the waiter went to fill my glass he poured water all over the table around my glass. At the time I did not realize he also pored water all over the crochet bag containing my kindle and his fire which was laying on the floor at the foot of the table. When we got to the theater I realized my bag was sopping wet, my kindle was wet but not his fire. Where is the bowl of rice. Fortunately it was mainly the case and my bag that got drenched and not the kindle itself. So now the bag is hanging in the shower. Hopefully it will be dry by tomorrow night.
Tomorrow is formal night and the first show by the ships singers and dancers. Always a good show. The comedian tonight was very funny. We laughed the whole time.
Well, now it is almost time for me to take my pills and floss and brush my teeth.
Miss you all but the water is great. It is rocky but I love it. This one of my favorite cruises across the ocean to Europe.
Well, grand kids it is off to school tomorrow. Love you. Have a great day.
Love Mom, Granny and Bonnie
Sunday, April 14, 2019
BACK AT SEA
April 14, 2019
When I just hit F3 to save this first blog, I noticed one of the folders was Zuiderdam 04-18. We were blessed to be doing a transatlantic last year at this time. Neat.
For those of you who haven’t heard, we got up at 2:30 this morning and at 3:30 we were loading our transport to be chauffeured by Ivy Uber to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. We sailed through security without a whimper by anyone in our party, went quickly to our gate and decided to go to Chick fil A for breakfast – before we remembered it was Sunday so we had something else. Good flight to Fort Lauderdale where a man was waiting just for us to take us to the ship.
As we unloaded our luggage, I told the porter I’d have to check the manifest because I didn’t know our stateroom number. The first glitch in the trip popped up when I found my name and the room number, but there was no companion’s name listed. I did not mention it to my cruise buddy, but once at the check-in counter there was no hiding it. One quick phone call and in less than 10 minutes we were on our way to board the Veendam. Our luggage showed up quickly, and we unpacked, having for the first time in all of our cruises, more hangers and more drawers than we need.
We were going to take a nap before the lifeboat drill – Bonnie did get a quick one – but I did not because the battery was running down in the smoke detector, and it was emitting a regular, piercing beep. If there is an unusual noise, I can’t sleep, so I left the room, went to Guest Relations where I got the computer set up for these blogs and emails.
We have Any Time dining and have set up a regular reservation for 5:15. Tonight we ate with a couple (mother and son) from Atlanta, and a married couple from Kentucky. Good dinner companions. I don’t know if we’ll have the same table tomorrow night or not. Stay tuned.
Well, as we are sailing east, we have to set our clocks ahead 6 hours by the time we get to Rome, and so we lose an hour of sleep tonight. That being the case, and in as much as I haven’t rehearsed for tomorrow, I shall close this rambling (Mom is already asleep).
TTFN
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