StLouisCruisers

Good morning friends! It's only 37F this morning but clear. The remainder of the day will be partly cloudy and a high temp of 65. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for posting the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps for Rich @richwmn. I think Charlie the Tuna Day and Hostess Twinkie Day are rather frivolous but Drowsy Driver Awareness Day is important to shed light on the dangers of driving while drowsy. So dangerous! The quote to me is forgettable but who names their child Jerome K. Jerome? The meal suggestion should be popular with air fryer owners. No thanks to the drink or the wine. It was a big deal when flexible rolled film was invented and sold and it was in use exclusively for many years. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for their very important F&B reports. Prayers for all our Daily members on our Care list (and even if you're not). Special thoughts for Tana and Terry's @smitty34877 household. I hope the aide showed up last night. Also for my DB, great nephew Alex's twin boys, my friends Scott, Susan and Sandy, the people of Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held, and our troops on bases and at sea in the region. 🙏 Congrats to those celebrating special events and enjoying cruises! 🎉 Best of luck to those preparing to cruise and traveling to one. 🚢 Welcome home @Cruising-along, @durangoscots, @cruising sister and @Cruisercl! Thanks go to Vanessa @JazzyV for her list keeping abilities. Hoping and praying for you Vanessa each and every day! The port of the day is Niigata, Japan, which is a new port for us. Rich @richwmn went all out finding some new ports for us this year. I have not been to Niigata before but if you have please show us your pictures! Hoping you all have a great day! Please stay safe and keep well!

Bon Voyage!

Tina @0106 your post about Kristiansand reminded me we are going back there May 27, but I have nothing planned again. When there before we wandered around the town and like Lenda said it is a walkable town. I think if I have a map of the town we could find the market, and some of the churches to visit this time. I just hope it's not pouring rain that day. Last time we got a little wet and as soon as we got back on the ship it was a downpour. Everything is always so much better on a sunny day.🌞 Thanks Vanessa. He may have eaten a walnut before but we're not sure. So awful! I hope you make it to see the solar eclipse Monday. I haven't heard if my twin will try to head south to see it. I think they should take a chance even if there is a lot of traffic. And a picnic lunch would be a good way to go if there are crowds everywhere. This would be in a very small town. There are probably only 2000 people in the entire area and few restaurants. Lord knows the cemetery should be quiet! Thanks Graham! I hope he's okay too. Thank you Terry. I would be interested in hearing if he feels like normal today or still has some after effects. The three guys were driving home to Cincinnati from Virginia today. He will need to recover before back to school on Monday after their spring break adventure. I really hope tonight's aide makes it there. Everyone needs a good night's sleep. I have not so favorable views of Times Square too. In 1996 I was supposed to receive a custom made ring from DH for Christmas. The diamond was very expensive and was sent to a jewelry designer in New York to place it in the setting. When it was ready it was shipped by UPS back to our jeweler in Richmond, Virginia. It had special handling which apparently jewelers know all about, everything locked up and signed in and out. But the ring only made it to the Times Square UPS facility and was supposed to be safely locked up in a safe. However it somehow "disappeared" from the safe. All I know is what they told us when they called to tell us our ring was gone. We had to start all over again picking out diamonds. The one we picked had to be sent over from Hong Kong, but it eventually made its way to the setting designer and into our hands, but it was February before I got it. So someone somewhere has a ring exactly like mine, supposedly. I never wanted to go to Times Square after that.😢 Maureen, we have an earthquake story too. In fall of 1979 we moved to Northern California for DH's job. Our new home was complete around Christmas so we moved in immediately afterward. I was doing window treatments and in January 1980 was standing on a ladder in the dining room hanging drapes on the windows when suddenly I saw the chandelier lighting reflections on the walls moving back and forth. Turned around to see the chandelier swinging back and forth. When searching for the name of the quake it comes up there was a Livermore Earthquake that month - 5.8 at the source. That's the only time I remember feeling an earthquake though we've probably had several in our lives. Missouri is sitting on the New Madrid fault which is a major one. Thankfully we've made it through with no damage to property. I'm glad your SIL is doing a little better. You just never know!

Nancy, Austin has never had a reaction to anything before but he probably never ate a walnut or perhaps even a pecan before. He is definitely going to be tested for allergies to tree nuts once he sees his PCP. We've had pecan pies at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners with them and he prefers other types of pies. I hope your case of red wine shows up soon! You are absolutely correct, the church name should have read St. John not James. Too bad I can't edit it now. I'll probably forget the next time Bergen comes up on our list, too. Sorry for the error. We went to the grocery this morning and as soon as I turned on the TV they started talking about the earthquake. I'm glad everybody seems to be okay. It's definitely an interesting place to visit. We've done a lot of walking up in the hills and walking back down from the funicular is a good way to get exercise without wearing you out. Thanks Melanie, I think the tests will come up with something he's allergic to. Austin eats like his Dad, very healthy and he's not prone to trying new things. Therefore he'd probably never had a walnut or pecan before. Love the fogbow!! Your photos are very nice. It was a good idea to send out the texts not to call 911. They must have been quite overloaded with calls and needed to keep the lines available for true emergencies. That was a cool lake you found on your walk in Bergen. It's an absolutely stunning city to visit. I hope the draining of your stye is complete soon. It wouldn't be a good idea for anyone to get into a pool with that type of infection. Someone likely did and you pay the price. Beautiful photo!

Debbie @dfish when you mentioned the pool I wondered if you might have gotten the stye from the pool. I read before that is possible. Good idea to stay out of it while healing from it. Terri @Cruzin Terri I'm glad to hear you are feeling better, that DH is doing okay, and that the cleaning lady is back on the job. Have a great time on your trip to Italy!

Melanie, I checked and we were there on Sept. 7, 2015 on Caribbean Princess. Did you have nice weather? We got a phone call a short time ago from DD on her way to school. Her DH and son Austin were away this week on a road trip with our DSIL's Dad. They've been in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Last night Austin's grandpa insisted he try some fudge he bought. Suddenly he began to feel unwell. When they texted our DD she immediately thought of nuts, specifically tree nuts. She is trained to be aware of problems like this with students and how to use epi-pens. They took Austin to the ER and they made him stay until 2:30 this morning to watch him. He was experiencing all kinds of symptoms including his throat feeling closed up, heart rate rising and setting off alarms, throwing up, skin redness. Austin never had a problem with peanuts but is possibly allergic to walnuts or pecans. They're going to bring back some fudge packaging. Austin has to see his doctor and then get testing to determine what specially he's allergic to. He was sent home with 4 prescriptions including epi-pens. Hopefully this will be the last time he has an allergic reaction like this. I'm sure many of you here have allergies to food and had some frightening experiences along the way. Knock on wood, that hasn't happened to me before and hopefully won't.

We went to Bergen on 4 of our cruises, and it seems to be a popular stop for most Norway cruises. We do love Norway! I've heard it rains there a lot but we've managed to see it in sunshine a few times. I think that if you are there for the first time, go up Mt. Floyen on the funicular (called Floibanen) and see the fish market right there on the waterfront. You don't have to take a ship's tour, just head for the hillside. This is what the building looks like where you get your tickets and go up in the funicular. The wait for the car to take you up. A different view from the top. We enjoy walking around that little park and lake shown in the picture. There's really a lot to see in Bergen besides the funicular and fish market. Our first trip to Bergen was on Crown Princess in 2013. The second time was in 2015 on Caribbean Princess and that is when these photos were taken. I saw a Holland America ship while up on the mountainside and zoomed in to take this photo of the Ryndam. We had just taken our first HAL cruise in October 2014 and loved it enough to start booking HAL cruises. We had already fully booked 2015 on Princess so our second cruise on HAL was in 2016 but you can tell I was interested enough to take a photo of a HAL ship this day. Our relationship with Holland America has worked out well for us because we enjoy the many interesting ports of call they go to. Princess usually isn't as adventurous. Our third and fourth time in Bergen was on Prinsendam in 2016 and 2017. On our first visit to Norway in 2013 we along with friends on the ship took a walk through some beautiful park-like areas on the slopes of the hills above Bergen. A closer view of the harbor from our hike. Did any of you notice this stairway to the Christmas Shop located on the Bryggen side of the harbor? Makes me dizzy to even look at it. Also a lot of people enjoy the sunshine (when they can get it) at these cafes lining the harbor. One time we hiked up a hill of steps to an interesting church so these photos are for fans of churches like @HAL4NOW. If you turn your back on the funicular and fish market you may notice a huge church up on a hillside. Like this: You can start to see the steps. Turn around. This is where you started at, down at the bottom of this hill. Name of the church - Johanneskirken or St. James Church I thought the ceiling was unique and very Norwegian. Hoping to go back to Norway sometime soon.🤞

Good morning friends! It's a chilly 40F this A.M. but will rise to around 63 with sunshine all day. 🌞 Unfortunately more wind again today. You know when you can hear the wind that it is a very windy day and that is what we experienced yesterday. I'm not a fan! Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps today. I agree that Gold Star Spouses should be recognized. Going for broke and a day of conscience are good ones too. I think the quote is a humorous reflection. It should be interesting seeing the meal suggestion recipes. Where do they come up with these names on the cocktails? Looks like Ann @cat shepard will need that secret decoder ring to straighten out that wine's name. It's interesting someone thought to research which park was the "first civic public park". And apparently it's Birkenhead Park! Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for your excellent reporting every day!❤️ Prayers have been said this morning for DB, great nephew Alex's twin boys, my friends Scott, Susan and Sandy. Also all in Israel and Ukraine at war against their country's invaders, the hostages that remain held, innocent aid workers killed, and our nation's military in the region. And many prayers for our group here on the Care list and at the top of the list is dear Tana who is struggling. 🙏 The rest of you are just as important and we pray for improvement in your pain, and hope for quick recovery from your illnesses and surgeries. 🙏 Meanwhile, a salute to everyone cruising and celebrating happy events in their lives. 🎂🎉 Happy Birthday Edi @NextOne!! Bon Voyage @lobsternight Rob and Susan!! Enjoy your solar eclipse cruise! Welcome home Gary @GTVCRUISER!! It's hard to believe the Grand Australia cruise is almost over. I know everyone really enjoyed that journey. Welcome back to everyone, and for those still traveling on, congrats! Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the list update, and my very best wishes to you for a good day. Praying for you daily as you await surgery to relieve your pain, and finally some restful nights.🙏 The port today is lovely Bergen, Norway. This was the port before on July 9, 2021 and Sept. 28, 2023. Yes, we have been there and have some photos today for you. Here are the links for your convenience in obtaining your own photos if you previously posted them. Have a great Friday everyone, and please do your best to stay safe and keep well!

Good morning friends! It's a cool 43F this morning but we shall see sunny skies and a high of 63 today, though somewhat windy again. Apparently the weather was not good in Bradenton Florida yesterday for soccer tournament purposes and all matches were postponed until today. Winds earlier in the day were 30 mph with gusts of 50 mph, and then severe thunderstorms came through in the afternoon. That gave the teams two full days off of play. Thanks to Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps. A nice day to celebrate Jeep 4 x 4's, the Victims of Violence Wholly Day and vitamin C. Thanks Graham @grapau27 for the explanation of the second day and its correlation with MLK Jr.'s assassination on April 4, 1968. I love the leftovers as our menu suggestion because who hasn't had leftovers for dinner before? No idea what the drink or wine is so will pass. An interesting day in history concerning the U.S. Congress. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your reports, and it will be fun to see what Debbie makes of our menu suggestion. Prayers for the Care list people, DB and great nephew Alex's twins, friends Scott, Susan, and Sandy, the people at war in Ukraine and Israel, the hostages, and our military in the region. Congrats to the many cruising and preparing to cruise, and those celebrating special events! Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the list updates! The port of the day is Galway, Ireland, a first timer here so no links today. I was due to visit that port on a Prinsendam cruise but due to very bad weather in the area we were forced to adjust the itinerary and go elsewhere. I am always sad when that happens in Ireland because all of the ports are so beautiful and interesting in that area. I was very busy yesterday and didn't get back to the Daily early enough though I made sure to read all the posts before bedtime. So let me respond to a few of those posts. First, I am so saddened to hear that Tana is doing poorly and needing maximum oxygen. I'm glad she is still able to communicate her wishes, and grateful to hear there will be help during the night so the family can get some much needed rest. Prayers of course for her and the teenager, and the entire family who cares for Tana so well.🙏 Next, welcome home Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser. Glad you two made it safely to Texas. Jack @Heartgrove I'm sorry to hear of the MSC cancellations and hope you can un-arrange your plans and book something else. We are still booked on the Volendam cruise in November that you mentioned roundtrip FLL but haven't made a final decision on it. It's the one that stopped in Ashdod and Haifa originally, the reason we booked it. If we go I hope to see you there! Dixie @summer slope how are Mike and his wife Sue doing? Hope he is recovering from the double pneumonia. Debbie @dfish I'm sorry to hear about the stye but at least you have some meds and a course of action for that. Good to hear the nerve ablation procedure is on. It's good news to hear that Ray and Sara @USN59-79 and the DD of @Horizon chaser 1957 are safe in Taiwan. That was scary! Joy @Seasick Sailor prayers that Allen's biopsies come back negative! The same for Vanessa's @JazzyV BFF's biopsies. I also hope to hear the pain is not quite as bad each day while you wait for your surgery. Also a little more sleep would be welcome. Pennie @Nickelpenny congrats on make 4 Star mariner! Well, better go get busy. No plans except stay home and get things done. The little lamb I'm stitching is going quite slowly for some reason. Hope you all have a wonderful day. Stay safe and keep well!

Good morning friends! After lots of rain overnight (and apparently a tornado watch until 3 a.m.) it is 64 degrees and cloudy. We may rise to about 70F and see the sun out this afternoon, with some windy spells. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps. Interesting days to recognize, and I love the quote by Yogi Berra. The meal sounds pretty good, but I don't like martinis or red wine. I'm sure the first mobile phone call was exciting. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your reports. Prayers said for DB, great nephew Alex's twin boys, friends Scott, Susan and Sandy, those in Israel and Ukraine, the hostages still held, food workers killed in Gaza, our troops in the region and all our Daily friends on the Care list. 🙏 Praying for improvement for all! It was good to hear some good news yesterday health wise so we have those folks on the Celebration list along with the birthdays, anniversaries and cruisers! 🚢🎂🎉🥂 Bon Voyage to @SusieKIslandGirl! Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for the lists today. We appreciate your hard work.❤️ The port today is Quepos, Costa Rica. This was the port once before on Dec. 2, 2021 so I'll post the link for your convenience in retrieving any photos. I haven't been to that particular Costa Rican port before so have no photos for you. I checked and Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser has not been there either. Hopefully someone here has been and can share their experience. Hope you all have a great day! Stay safe and keep well.

Thank you Debbie. Ren isn't usually in his favorite position of center forward but that's because the other center forward cannot play right wing. Therefore Ren, who plays both well, only gets center forward occasionally. Ren kicks the ball to the center forward who sometimes scores. Not Ren's fault if he doesn't!! I would enjoy a poster of my athletic grandson on my wall. 🙂 I'd better make a note on my spreadsheet which cruise you're on. See you there! DH doesn't go to M&Gs so you'll have to meet him later. Come around on sea days and look for me in Ocean Bar. I'll try stitching there first. I tried to round up some stitchers/knitters on a roll call but no replies yet. If the Ocean Bar doesn't work out I'll look elsewhere for a sofa with a window behind it to work. I've taken a canal trip in Amsterdam before and enjoyed it. Well, then let's hope the surgery date gets here quickly to give you relief! Annie, I hope plan B works just great for you. On May 10 at 8 am we will be driving to Ft. Lauderdale to board Zuiderdam on the 11th (after returning from its world cruise!). But I will have you in my prayers for sure. Hope the cold nights don't damage any of our new growth.

Checking out Instagram a while ago and saw a picture of Ren at the game yesterday. What a runner he is! I believe they were playing a Mexican team. There are 15 countries represented at the Adidas Generation Cup. Thank you Joy. I hope the mammogram results are good for you. No problem at all posting about your Azamara cruise in my opinion. Everyone has seen my photos from over 50 Princess cruises, my Seabourn cruises, even one Celebrity cruise. We all enjoy comparing features of the lines but especially all the photos of places around the globe. Please continue! What great news about Richard's eye! Hoping the next surgery is that successful. I know it hasn't been easy but the results speak for themselves. Thank you Nancy! I believe the eclipse will be going through Southeast Missouri so my twin and her DH may drive down to our parent's gravesite in their small town cemetery and watch from there. They will see a total eclipse for 3 to 4 minutes. All the hotels have been booked for a year or more. They only live 2 hours away at most but there's sure to be traffic. Thank you @Niagarawine! Thanks so much Maxine! I hope the elusive migraine med is eventually found. Karen, I wish I had good eyesight. It takes a decent prescription to see anything, and a magnifying glass to make sure I'm seeing the proper icon on the chart. Thanks for your nice comments. Hope your snowfall is light. Thanks a lot, Debbie! Hopefully Chris will be pleased. I need to find out when the Meet & Greet will be for the June 8 Zuiderdam cruise. Will you be on for the entire 42 days? There are so many segments for us I don't think I'll attend each and every Meet & Greet. Thanks so much Vanessa! I'm sorry about the amount of walking for you today. I hope you can put your feet up and rest those legs tonight, and get some sleep. Does any pain killer help you? I hope your upcoming surgery relieves you of this pain permanently.

Hello again. I took a photo of 90 days work on my latest Christmas stocking for Chris (DGD Ashley's fiancé). I am considering moving down to the foot of the stocking now, just below the manger to work for a while since it looks harder than the remainder of the top of the stocking. Once I'm on a ship at Knitters and Knatters get togethers, it will be harder to keep my concentration on what color goes where. I just finished the area where the bright 8 pointed star will be. When I get to that it requires white for the star, pale yellow for an aura around the star, and a mix of 1 strand of pale yellow and 3 strands of light sky blue to finish it off. That should pop! Today's photo: And the chart for the bottom of the stocking. There will be two lambs and two cats plus a whole lot more straw on the floor. Back to work shortly. Terry I'm sorry to hear about Tana's worsening cough and wheezing. I hope the hospice nurse can help somehow. Prayers for her. 🙏 Those cooling breezes sound good to me. I'm very uncomfortable in the high heat and humidity in that area of the globe. Thank you for the lovely photos of your amazing evening. Prayers for Mike that he can recover from the double pneumonia soon. And for Sue who is no doubt very worried. Thanks for letting us know so we can put them on the Care list.

Ann @cat shepard I hope Bindi does okay at her spa while you're on jury duty. DD and I were just texting about Milo and Sadie. While she goes to school all day they will be alone at home because her DH and 15 year old son are on spring break with her DH's Father. Taking a road trip to the Blue Ridge mountains. She thought about leaving music on all day on Alexa and I suggested she have Animal Planet on the TV so they can watch the other animals. They love human interaction.

Good morning friends! Yesterday was a lot sunnier than they predicted but today they say cloudy all day, temp is currently 64 and the high temp will be 80. Rain is expected to move in tonight, possibly severe thunderstorms at times. Hope all in the path of the latest storm stay safe. Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for posting the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps. It appears N. Amsterdam and N. Statendam have yet to arrive but only N. Amsterdam will be in Turks and Caicos today. N. Statendam is headed to Amber Cove, DR. Well, no ferrets here to praise, and produce managers should be respected but loved? Enjoy your peanut butter and jelly sandwiches today. A nice quote. I've really gotta see this healthy French toast casserole recipe! The purple butterfly drink looks pretty but I doubt I'd enjoy it. No thanks to the Cabernet Sauvignon wine. Spain thought they were getting a nice spot in the New World but look who ended up with it. Lol! Thank you Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for your reports. Prayers said on the treadmill this morning for all here on the Care list and there are quite a few of you who have concerns about health, pain, surgeries coming up, and many other worries and stress. Also prayed for DB and great nephew Alex's new twins still "in the oven". 👶👶 And last but not least the people at war in Ukraine and Israel, hostages still held, and the military men and women in danger on bases and ships at sea. 🙏 Congratulations to the Celebration list including the long list of cruisers and folks preparing to join a ship this week. The cruise lines must be thrilled with all the business. Happy birthday and anniversary for anyone celebrating that. 🎂 Ann @cat shepard good luck with your jury duty. I was on a jury on a big case in Columbus Ohio in around 1986 and that was the last time for me. It's a privilege and an honor to serve on a jury. We know you'll do a great job. Thanks go to Vanessa @JazzyV for the lists today. Keeping you high on the prayer list!🙏 The port today is Townsville, Australia. That was the port before on March 30, 2021 and Sept. 21, 2022. I'll post the links for you. Even with a circumnavigation of Australia we haven't visited Townsville before though it would be great if we could see it someday. So I have no photos, nor does Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser so I hope someone else can share some. I heard from DS yesterday afternoon after the FC Dallas U17 soccer game in Florida. The team won Saturday, on Sunday lost in penalty kicks at the end. Both teams had no score at the end of regulation so the other team won on penalty kicks. ☹️ FC Dallas won Monday's game and Ren played well. DS said all the college scouts are there. The Notre Dame scout saw Ren's play and should be pleased with it. Today is a day off from play. More games coming up tomorrow onward.😀 DS was doing some fundraising after the game yesterday, driving down to Sarasota to meet with a donor to their university and discuss possibly where he would like to see his donations go. All part of the job. Have a great day everyone and please try to stay safe and keep well.

Jacqui @kazu it's good to hear you have Ivan's caregiver for your cruise dates set up. He is a lucky boy to have such a caring person as his Mom. Now you can get down to business preparing for your vacation. Annie @marshhawk how did the day go with your appointments? Gerry @ger_77 what a selfless person you are to interrupt your Easter dinner prep when a friend is in dire need of your support. This earth needs more people like you. My condolences to Ollie on her loss and pray for her and all their friends including you and Maurice at this time. Dixie @summer slope that is a shock to receive in the mail, isn't it? I hope they get right on to billing the insurance company. Crazy what they think these services should cost. Graham @grapau27 we will miss you tomorrow. I hope the internet issue can be addressed. No need to thank me for posting Lenda's @Quartzsite Cruiser photos. I don't mind at all. Thanks for the other photos of Tokyo today, too, everyone! And I hope the drive is going well for Lenda and Steve. I got so achy in the shoulders today from working on my project that I decided to take a nap. It has been 90 days I've been stitching on Chris's stocking and I'll post an update photo tomorrow after finishing up today's work. A dramatic change in the last month.

Since it seems Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser and Steve are leaving town today I'm sure she is pretty busy now and I'll just post her photos for Tokyo for her. I know you all will be happy to see them. From Lenda's posts: We have been to Tokyo twice. The first time was in 2002 on the Asia Pacific Explorer Cruise on Volendam. Our older DD was on for the first 11 days and disembarked in Tokyo. After we helped her get settled in her hotel, the three of us toured the city. Our second visit was in 2018 on Coral Princess. That day we took the train from Yokohama to Tokyo. The pictures are a mix from our 2002 visit and our 2018 visit. The air in 2018 was noticeably clearer in 2002. In 2002, our older DD disembarked the Volendam and spent two nights in Tokyo before flying home. The day we were port, the three of us toured the city. We were lucky in 2002 and docked in Tokyo where we took a bus into town. The view from DD's hotel room, and some of the area around the hotel, which was outside the main downtown area. There was a small park near the hotel. More of the local area near the hotel An interesting tree near the Imperial Palace. In 2018, we took the train from Yokohama where we docked. The train station is the red brick building in the background. You could easily get lost in this huge. station A market not far from the Ginza on our walk back to the train station. There was also a show for the children. We also found a Krispy Kreme in a mall next to this area, and naturally, we had to have a snack. The next group of pictures are a combination of the Ginza area in 2002 and 2018. All were taken at the intersection with the many crosswalks that is shown in most pictures from Tokyo. In 2002, we had dinner in a restaurant in one of the big stores. Since none of us spoke Japanese, we chose this restaurant because we could point to the displays of the dishes we wanted. After dinner, we left our DD in the Ginza and took a bus back to the ship, while she looked around some more and then headed to her hotel. For this mother, it was hard to leave her alone even though she was 26 and well travelled because of her job. 2002 2018 The intersection from the roof garden of a department store In 2018 waiting for our train back to Yokohama Lenda

Good luck with your efforts learning how to make sourdough bread. I bet you will be glad you did it once you get some practice at it. I've never attempted though I do like sourdough. When you make some take some photos to share of the finished product. We love photos of food!🥖

Rabbit, Rabbit, White Rabbit! 🐇 Good morning friends and happy April Fool's Day! I won't try to trick you, I promise. The weather here is 64F and we expect a high of 80 even with mostly cloudy skies. When I looked at Halfacts.com/Daily today I thought Rich was trying to fool us. Thanks to Jacqui @kazu for filling in some of the blanks on the Daily and Fleet Report, and thanks to Roy @rafinmd for the maps today. Something must have changed for Nieuw Statendam because it is currently en route to Puerto Plata/Amber Cove, Dominican Republic. The Marilyn Monroe quote seems rather cynical to me, we can make a meal of a charcuterie board, no thanks to the cocktail and don't know about the wine yet. A big day in computers back in 1974. Today is also National Sourdough Bread Day and National One Cent Day. Thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for your reports. Prayers for my DB, great nephew Alex's twins, friends Scott, Susan and Sandy, the people of Israel and Ukraine, the many hostages held, our troops in the region, and to all of you who are in need of them! Thanks to Vanessa @JazzyV we can keep track of you and she is one of the Care list in need of prayers. Hoping Vanessa got some sleep last night and the pain isn't too, too terrible. Praying for improvement in everyone's condition and state of mind. 🙏 Congratulations to the Celebration list folks cruising and with special events today. 🎉🚢🎂 Port today is Tokyo, Japan. This was the port before on Nov. 20, 2021 and April 8, 2022. I've been to Tokyo's airport a few times but never visited the city. I don't know if Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser will be able to post today or not, but I can post her photos later if she doesn't turn up. I should have asked earlier if she wanted me to but I've been busy most days with cross stitching and it didn't cross my mind. Here are the links if anyone would like to check for your own photos. Hoping you all have a great day today and watch out for the tricksters! Stay safe - keep well! My white rabbits!

I made it too!

Happy birthday wishes to Charlene @cunnorl's DS today! Hope you all enjoy your day celebrating with him. I didn't get back to yesterday's Daily to mention this but while looking at the Rio photos Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser posted from Christ the Redeemer statue tour, I saw DH and I in one of her photos. We actually discussed it one time when Rio was port of the day. She said she didn't see herself or her DH in my photos but I have one I haven't posted before and maybe she can spot themselves in it. It's taken from the stairs looking downward. So take a look Lenda. If you do see yourself, please let us know what you are wearing because I have other unposted photos I could check out. If it weren't so gloomy up there we could have seen who is who better.

Good morning friends and Happy Easter! This morning it is 52F. Today will be a mix of sun and clouds and a high of 79. Still, a lovely day for Easter celebrations.✝️🐰 Thank you Jacqui @kazu and Roy @rafinmd for the Fleet Report and Daily as well as the fleet location maps. Quite a variety of days to recognize but doubt I run into a Bunsen burner, Cesar Chavez or a medievalist - sorry! Stephen King may have something there with his quote. A spinach-egg bake would not be my first choice. Probably would skip the cocktail and red wine. Looks like we celebrate the Alaska Purchase again as well as Hailey's Comet and the 1930 motion picture code. Thanks to our F&B ladies Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for you reports each and every day! Prayers said today for DB, great nephew Alex's twin boys, friends Scott, Susan and Sandy, and our many friends here at the Daily who need prayers for health issues, pain, emotional issues and stress. So sorry to hear about Paul @kochleffel's fall and hope the pain has reduced. Also for Dixie and George's @summer slope aches and pains after the golf cart accident. Hope the bruising is going away. Also sending prayers for those in Israel and Ukraine living in war conditions, the hostages held so long, and our military in the region in harm's way. 🙏 Cheers to those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries and their wonderful cruises. 🚢🎂🎉 Bon Voyage Tony and Martha @sailingdutchy. And thanks to Vanessa @JazzyV for keeping the lists updated for us today. Hope you had a good night's sleep last night and not as much pain. The destination today is Nafplio (or Nafplion?) Bay anchorage, Greece. This is the first time for the Bay anchorage though we've seen the port of Nafplion, Greece three times already. I'll post the links for them in case you want to post photos of that area. Wishing everyone who celebrates it a Happy Easter. Stay safe and keep well!

Bon Voyage!!

Happy Birthday wishes to Susan @Suslor and Mary Kay @cruzn single Happy Anniversary Ray and Sara @USN59-79 Bon Voyage @ocean sounds Welcome Home Susan and Lorenzo @Suslor and Jane @lazey1!!

Photos from Rio de Janeiro We stayed at the Sheraton in 2012 and this was a view from the hotel of the beaches. Area around the hotel As a group we decided to risk walking along the roadway path to an overlook to get a better look. Wearing no jewelry and hiding our tiny point and shoot cameras as we walked, we made it safely there and back. This was Feb. 17, 2012 so close to Carnival there. The beaches were crowded. The following morning we got a brief tour of the city as we headed to the port for embarkation. It was utter chaos there. The buses were parking a block or two away and letting you drag your bags to the end of the line at the terminal building. As you approached the line, men ran out of the building and tried grabbing your bags with no identification or anything, so most of us refused until we got to a point where we were entering and could identify the people in charge of luggage. The lines snaked all through the building. We vowed then and there to never embark in Rio again! Another odd thing here was just as you left the building your carry on luggage and purses were X-rayed and examined by local authorities, then you walked out the door and up the gangway and the cruise line employees X-rayed and checked your bags again. I have no idea why it was necessary to do it that way. Later in the afternoon we prepared to sail. The sun was setting and we were able to get several cool shots of Christ the Redeemer. Exactly three years to the day that we embarked the Star Princess, we arrived in Rio on the Ruby Princess on our route from Florida to California going all the way around South America. On Feb. 18, 2015 we went on that tour to the top of the mountain to see Christ the Redeemer in person. It was a very cloudy day but it wasn't raining so we dealt with it. We got on a tram like this to head to the top. By the way, that's a photo of the statue on that wall behind the tram. It looks life like, doesn't it? view from the top Christ the Redeemer statue Sugarloaf Mountain After our visit, walking down. And photos along the beach on our way back to the ship. The bus stopped and let us out to walk on that esplanade, walk in the sand, take photos, buy goods from vendors on the beach, etc.