StLouisCruisers

Good morning friends! Today is a warm one at 68 but will reach 84 this afternoon. Clouds giving way to sun this afternoon but a slight chance of rain here and there. I see yesterday's Daily has been locked before 4 a.m. which is mighty early. I read Jacqui's @kazu post from last night just now and want to wish her a good day traveling and hope she will let everyone help move her long distances today so that foot can rest. I'm very happy the cruise is ON! Thanks Roy @rafinmd for the fleet location maps. Days to recognize include congenital diaphragmatic hernia action day which we could all learn something about. John Parker Day takes us back to the Revolutionary War in the U.S. Garlic Day - well I like a little in my food but can't overdo it. What a quote by Stephen King! I'd rather pass on the salmon and couscous. Anything coffee is not on my radar, and prefer other white wines to Chardonnay. What an exciting find by Capt. James Cook. Thanks Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for the reports each day on food and beverages. Prayers this morning for our Care list group, DB, twin Linda, friends Scott, Susan and Sandy, the people in Israel and Ukraine, hostages still held, and troops in the region in harm's way. Praying for Tana, Vanessa @JazzyV, Jacqui @kazu, Annie @marshhawk, Jane @lazey1 and all the others in pain, recovering from procedures and surgeries, the loss of loved ones, worry and stress. Congrats to those traveling and heading to their cruises especially Jacqui @kazu. Also to all our birthdays and celebrations. 🎂🎉 And thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the list keeping for us. Hoping you had a good night and not much pain, as always. The port today is Porto Malai, Langkawi, Malaysia. When I looked it up for prior dates I found Pulau Langkawi Island, Malaysia Kedah on July 23, 2023. Further research showed Porto Malai is the cruise port on Langkawi Island so I will post the links for you from July 23, 2023 in case you posted photos there. I have not been to this port before. I am wishing you all a safe and well day, and safe travels to you all!

Today is Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Action Day, John Parker Day, and National Garlic Day Get busy living or get busy dying.--Stephen King, Different Seasons Meal Suggestion for today - One-Skillet Salmon with Fennel & Sun-Dried Tomato Couscous Drink of the Day - Coffee Sambuca Wine of the Day - Keswick Vineyards 2021 Chardonnay (Monticello) Destination of the Day - Porto Malai, Langkawi, Malaysia Today in History: 1770 British explorer Captain James Cook first sights Australia. Writes in his log book that “what we have as yet seen of this land appears rather low, and not very hilly, the face of the Country green and Woody, but the Sea shore is all a white Sand.” Ship Locations Eurodam Puntarenas, Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica 08:00 - 16:00 Koningsdam Honolulu, Oahu Island Hawaii - 18:00 Nieuw Amsterdam Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico Riviera 13:00 - 23:00 Nieuw Statendam Le Havre-Paris, France 07:00 - 19:00 Oosterdam Barcelona, Spain 07:00 - 16:00 Rotterdam At Sea Destination Ponta Delgada, Sao Miguel Island Azores Portugal eta 04-20 Volendam At Sea Destination Half Moon Cay, Bahamas Carnival private island eta 04-20 Zaandam At Sea Destination San Diego, California eta 04-20 Zuiderdam Cape Town, South Africa - 23:00 Eastern Hemisphere Noordam Honolulu, Oahu Island Hawaii 07:00 - 21 Apr 23:00 Westerdam Sokcho, South Korea

I agree about it being around 30 minutes walk from the cruise terminal to Nidaros Cathedral. I've done that twice myself. But don't miss seeing the Old Town Bridge (Gamle Bybro) and once across it walk one or two blocks to the bicycle lift, only one in the world. It's the second largest attraction in Trondheim. Here's a look at it on YouTube.

Thanks to all for the lovely birthday wishes for DN Lisa! She is such a sweetheart, and told me she is on her way to the park to play with Elliott Rose and momma Jordan today. What could be better? Roy @rafinmd thanks so much for posting your photos of unusual spots in Sydney. The Opera House, theaters and the camping. We need to see more of your photos of port of the day. Dixie @summer slope don't worry about it the drink. We're fine with both drinks! Are you and George almost packed for your Disney cruise? Terri @Cruzin Terri thanks for posting the whole poem by Longsworth about Paul Revere. I don't think I've ever read the whole thing before. Pretty impressive! Edited to say: Should have mentioned, DS Linda is doing okay. Had more pain last night than the night before but got some sleep. She agrees she has a high tolerance for pain. She says it usually gets worse before it gets better. She is doing absolutely nothing today which sounds good to me.

Jacqui @kazu I'm thrilled you have the go ahead for your cruise. Good luck getting everything ready today and give Ivan a treat from all of us for being a good boy for you! Hope your foot continues to improve and I'm sure you will take it easy so it will.

Wow, how frustrating not having internet working. I've had that problem for brief periods and hated it! Good luck getting service back to where it should be. Please tell Jim happy birthday from me! A good day for a birthday, it seems. I saw we had Long Island instead of Long Beach Iced Tea but since I don't drink cocktails normally went with it. From what I saw online and corroborated by Tina @0106, the difference is the cranberry juice instead of Coke. If you like strong cocktails, give one a try!

Happy Birthday to Martha, DW of Tony @sailingdutchy! It is also the birthday of my goddaughter and DN Lisa, who is the grandma of Elliott Rose and the new twin boys expected to be born July 25. Happy birthday Lisa! Lots of April birthdays in my family. Enjoy your birthdays! Best of luck today to Vanessa's @JazzyV BFF at his second MOHS surgery! Hopeful it will be finished in one pass, and heal quickly! Thanks for your photos Bruce @aliaschief. Enjoy some relaxation time now.

We were lucky enough to see Sydney quite a few times on our trips down under. In 2013 twice and four times in 2017 on our B2B2B2B cruises. It's one of my favorite places on the planet to visit. Here's an overview of our stops there. Nov. 11, 2017. Turnaround day so we were exploring. That is not our ship (which was the Sun Princess). We were docked at Darling Harbor and took a ferry over. I believe the ship in the photo was a Carnival ship. Here is a photo of us leaving Darling Harbor to sail under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, same day. Then the Sydney Opera House. A ship at Circular Quay, downtown and the Opera House. People climbing the Sydney Harbour bridge. The ferry docks This photo was taken Dec. 3, 2013 while there on Diamond Princess. Taken from a pylon on the Harbour Bridge. The pedestrian walk on the Harbour Bridge. Looks like if you take this tour you might get wet! We ran into our friend Marion from Brisbane (CC friend) while walking towards the Opera House. Several of my CC friends met us the day before when we got off the ship, to have a drink at a nearby cafe. A closer view of the Opera House roof. I hope to see Sydney again in 2026. Now off to work out on the treadmill so I can sit and stitch most of the day.

Good morning friends! Weather today is 60 with mostly cloudy skies. High today will be 86 hot degrees with sunny skies. Thanks Roy @rafinmd for the fleet location maps. They really help to picture how far apart the ships are spread out. Great days to recognize today, even the animal crackers one, and a funny quote. The grilled cheese sandwich sounds like it would have some zip. What is a Long Beach Iced Tea? I guess I'll pass on the wine. What a great day in history! The St. Peter's Basilica is so gorgeous. Thanks Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for the reports each day on food and beverages. Prayers today for Jacqui @kazu who has a very important doctor appointment today. Hoping and praying that she gets the approval to travel and especially that the pain is being relieved with the new medication. Also for Tana for a good night and an equally good day, fewer pains for Annie @marshhawk after her fall, plus more sleep and less aches and pains for her today. Vanessa @JazzyV good luck to your BFF at his second MOHS surgery. Also for DB, twin Linda, great nephew Alex's baby boys, and friends Scott, Susan and Sandy. And big prayers for Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held and our men and women in uniform in the region. Congrats to the celebrants of birthdays and anniversaries and the lucky cruisers out there. And thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the lists you provide each day! The port today is Sydney, Australia, the fourth time here for it, but it’s such a popular port. Previous sightings were on Sept. 27, 2021, Dec. 20, 2022 and Dec. 16, 2023. Here are the links for your convenience in locating your photos. I hope all have a great day and that Jacqui @kazu gets the good news we are all hoping for. Stay safe and keep well!

Today is International Day for Monuments and Sites, Nabisco Animal Cracker Day, and National Lineman Appreciation Day It all started when my dog began getting free roll over minutes. - Jay London Meal Suggestion for today - Spinach-&-Artichoke-Dip Grilled Cheese Drink of the Day - Long Beach Iced Tea Wine of the Day - D'Arenberg Grenache Custodian 2011 Destination of the Day - Sydney, Australia Today in History: 1506 The cornerstone of the current St. Peter's Basilica is laid in the Vatican by Pope Julius II Ship Locations Eurodam At Sea Destination Puntarenas, Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica eta 04-19 Koningsdam Honolulu, Oahu Island Hawaii 07:00 - Nieuw Amsterdam At Sea Destination Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico Riviera eta 04-19 Nieuw Statendam Guernsey Island, St Peter Port, Channel Islands UK 08:00 - 17:00 Oosterdam Alicante, Spain 07:00 - 16:00 Rotterdam At Sea Destination Ponta Delgada, Sao Miguel Island Azores Portugal eta 04-20 Volendam At Sea Destination Half Moon Cay, Bahamas Carnival private island eta 04-20 Zaandam Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 0700-1500 Zuiderdam Cape Town, South Africa Overnight Eastern Hemisphere Noordam At Sea Destination Honolulu, Oahu Island Hawaii eta 04-20 Westerdam At Sea Destination Kanazawa, Japan Ishikawa eta 04-20

That was really nice! A beautiful bride. I noticed the door opened a small portion with the arched top and not the entire door. Never would have thought to look for that when I was there. It's not really that funny but didn't like it or want to thank you for it. We need more choices! Hope the pork chops made it still warm. We had pork chops too.

I'll take a plate of the fish and chips (with garden peas preferably). I hope Pauline is feeling a little better emotionally and Sarah is feeling better physically. I'm very sorry to hear about your high school friends passing recently. I have one I'm a bit worried about and wish I could see her soon. She lives in Texas. She was my very best friend. Nice to hear you talk about enjoying the little ones. I miss that age - ours are just so grown up! Thanks for that explanation. Glad it finally got done! I hope you continue feeling better after that horrible fall last night. Our older bodies just don't flex the way they used to. 😬 Just take it easy and hopefully ibuprofen helps. Are you still icing? It's so nice when you can meet up with old friends like this! Thanks for sharing the photos with us. I'm so sorry to hear of Amber's stroke. Prayers for her family and I really hope this turns out better than expected. Vanessa @JazzyV I am praying the tornado watch turns into nothing for you. Take care!

Eva, it makes more sense to me trying to take control of your own Constitution but surprising it took so long to get there! Congratulations to the family on the new addition, Laine Alanna! I hope she will be home from the hospital very soon, along with her Mom. What a nice photo of you with the '69 Mustang convertible. I may be a Camaro girl but my twin did have a '65 Mustang for her first car as I mentioned the other day. In those days you either liked Fords or Chevys and never switched sides. 🚗 Nancy I love the photo of your DD with his siblings and Mother!!

Sorry, I've been stitching and didn't get my Taormina photos posted earlier. Here they are. I checked my Cruising Profile and it said we had been to Taormina on the Prinsendam Holy Land cruise we took in Oct. 2014. But when I looked at my Shutterfly book of that cruise it turns out we were unable to go there and they substituted Messina instead. Knowing I'd seen Taormina on a tour once I was able to determine we'd been there in October 2016 on Emerald Princess. The port was Messina and the tour was to Mt. Etna and Taormina. October 5, 2016 on our tour of Taormina. It's a charming town and very scenic but can be a problem to negotiate when crowds are large. It would be nice here off season, whenever that is! The Duomo and the funky fountain in front of it. A small walkway. I love those lanterns hanging from the building. A shopper's delight... A dining/drinking delight... The view from an overlook A closer look at that ship in case you'd like to identify it...might be a Windstar The Church of St. Joseph (or the Chiesa San Giuseppe) In front of the church Lots of people! Enough for today.

Good morning friends! It's 61 this morning so a little warm in the house. The high today will be 83 with more clouds than sun. We had our main floor and lower level air conditioning units serviced yesterday so I suppose we're ready for this hot spell Unfortunately I found an email this morning from our Pod captain who reported that one of our neighbors on the next street has passed away and asking for prayers for her. I thought she lived with her adult disabled son but know virtually nothing about her since she kept very much to herself these past 10 or more years. Our Pod captain noticed mail piling up and contacted close neighbors but they hadn't seen her recently. Someone called the Sheriff who sent three (!) deputies over for a wellness check and they found her. I'm assuming her son no longer lives with her but what a sad situation. Something none of us would want happening to our family member. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for posting the Daily and Fleet Report and the fleet location maps for us each day. I remember celebrating Blah, Blah, Blah day before but can't remember what I did for it. I can support Ellis Island Family History day, and Ford Mustangs are cool but like @MISTER 67 I was a Camaro girl. I can't see me trying the cream pie recipes or the cocktail, and I'd bet the wine is red. Correct me if I'm wrong Ann @cat shepard! Looks like Christopher Columbus was making a deal on this date in 1492. I didn't know Canada was getting a new Constitution in 1982. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for posting F&B reports today. Prayers for all here on the Daily with pain and suffering and it seems top of the list today will be Jacqui @kazu who is having such an awful time with foot pain. Jacqui, I hope something can be done to help you so that you can go on this much needed cruise! Also for Tana, Vanessa @JazzyV, and Annie @marshhawk who I just read had a fall and injured her leg and ankle. Many more of you have medical issues and family/friends in the hospital or hospice care. Several have lost family and friends this week, too. Prayers for all of you!!🙏 I also want to include prayers for DB, twin Linda after surgery, great nephew Alex's twin boys, friends Scott, Susan and Sandy. Not to forget Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held and our military in the region. 🙏 Three cheers to all the cruisers, and those of you planning on cruising very soon. Also to those with birthdays and anniversaries to celebrate! Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for continuing to supply us with updated lists each day through all your pain and fatigue. The port today, Taormina Italy, may be new to some of you but the Daily has provided photos of it four times already. Sept. 14, 2021, May 15, 2022, Sept. 17, 2023 and February 11, 2024! I'll give out all the links for your convenience in grabbing your photos. If you're sick of seeing mine, just pass on by! LOL! Last night DS Linda said she wasn't having too much pain but was exhausted and going to bed early. I hope she has a quick recovery and think I'll send her a cute get well card today. Well, I hope for better news for everyone especially Jacqui. Please stay safe and keep well!