StLouisCruisers

Thank you Graham. Indeed it must be quite a lovely family. I can't imagine how many aunts and uncles we will be introduced to at the wedding reception, not to mention cousins! Ann @Vict0riann what a fantastic Christmas parade! The only one I've ever been to before was when we lived in Williamsburg. Virginia. It was on a Saturday in December and had floats and bands, etc. but it was held in the daytime. That was in addition to attending the Grand Illumination each year. They light all the candles in the windows of the buildings and have fireworks. It used to be held the first Sunday night in December, but it was extremely crowded on Duke of Gloucester street. I see now they hold the fireworks and other activities on three consecutive Saturday nights in December. That might work a little better. I've never been so crushed by people than I was at Grand Illumination! Thanks Lenda. I agree!

DD let me know today that her future son in law (her DD Ashley's wedding is Sept. 14) had a death in his family. His Grandma who was approximately 98 or 99 passed away today. Her husband is 101 and turning 102 on April 1, still here with us, and they were married 75 years! Grandma and Grandpa had 13 children one of whom is Chris's Mom. Chris's Dad is one of 8 children. It's quite the family! Of course Grandpa isn't taking it very well. He says a part of his heart is gone. What a love story. Both of them were recently put in hospice care so I'm not sure Grandpa will be here much longer either. Vanessa @JazzyV no need to include on the prayer list since they are not a part of the Daily family. Just wanted to mention them since they are such special people.

Roy, I'm very sorry to hear you had to be hospitalized but I'm so glad you got yourself checked out today. I hope you're feeling better soon! We'll be praying for you! 🙏

Thank you Graham @grapau27 for showing us all your travel, food and former HAL ship photos from your cruise! I'm glad you are both home safe from your journey and it certainly looks like you had a great time. And thanks also for Father David's sermon. I've already watched it so please send our thanks to him for making a video of his sermon each week. Welcome home to you and Pauline!

Bon Voyage! Anxious to hear how you like your transatlantic!

Happy belated birthday to your DH Maureen @RMLincoln! Sounds like you are still busy settling in and I hope there aren't too many bumps in the road. Good luck with your DH's upcoming doctor visit and surgery! And I hope you all enjoy the DGD's wedding in a few weeks.

I'm glad to hear you're back home safely and had an enjoyable visit up north. The teenager's interest in cooking is great and I bet he ends up being quite a chef. What a shame the aide was ill with the dratted GI issues while you were away. DD and DSIL deserve a medal for handling it while still doing their jobs. I worry about Tana. Being short of breath is frightening especially when you have PF. I promise if the condition I have persists I will make an appointment to be checked out. Thank you for your concern! So happy to hear you were able to find all your designer "duds" for your cruise. Good luck in the casino RNB!

Jacqui @kazu that hedgehog is adorable! Ivan will love it!🦔 Yes there is actually a hedgehog emoji! I'm shocked!

I'm very sorry to hear your energy levels have taken a nose dive lately Roy. I hope the medical professionals can help you regain your strength.

Good morning friends! Here where I live it is 42F with a high of only 51 expected later on. It will be cloudy with a 70% chance of showers. Could be worse! Where DS lives in Michigan it is 22 with a 60% chance of snow! Thank you Rich @richwmn for the Fleet Report and Daily. Nice days to celebrate with International (and National) Cake Day. Cheers to Small Brewery Sunday. It is also National Law Day and I read that refers to the India celebration of their Constitution. A nice Helen Keller quote. I would like the menu suggestion but probably not the drink or pinot noir. James Cook must have been very happy to see beautiful Maui in 1778, and I'm glad the pilgrims and native Americans decided to join forces for our first Thanksgiving celebration in 1789. Thanks to Debbie @dfish Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for your wonderful reports every day. Prayers for the people here on the Daily on the Care list. Still hoping and praying that Baby Murphy is doing quite well and her family is feeing a lot less stress. Also prayers for Tana with her Pulmonary Fibrosis and hope Terry @smitty34877 had a good visit out of state with her other family members. Prayers also for DB and friends Scott and Bob. And we would never forget the people of Israel and Ukraine with their countries invaded and citizens murdered. May all the hostages come home very soon!🙏 A salute to all celebrating happy events like birthdays and anniversaries, and their college football team winning. 🎉 LOL! I hope all the cruisers have wonderful cruises and are pampered every day. 🥂 Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for your work in keeping up with the Care and Celebration lists even while in so much pain. Special prayers for you each day! I'm feeling better today but I do feel uncomfortable when eating and the food or drink. Just a bit of discomfort at the stomach level. But that soon fades. I have a lot to do today to catch up -- all our hamper laundry which I normally do on Saturday plus the Sunday sheet and towel laundry and remaking of the bed. It will be a good day to stay inside and get things done. I see Georgia beat Georgia Tech AGAIN! Also Alabama beat Auburn. So there are a lot of happy college football fans here in our neck of the woods including Rich @richwmn !! 🏈 The port today is Jakarta, Java Indonesia (Tanjung Priok). I have not been to Jakarta but have enjoyed Bali (Benoa) before. We had this port twice before on July 26, 2021 and June 23, 2022. Here are the links for your convenience to retrieve any photos there. Have a great day everyone! Stay well and especially stay safe!

I managed to get down more veggies and cranberry sauce for dinner, plus I took a tiny sliver of pecan pie. So far everything is staying down. Hoping this is a thing of the past tomorrow. Talked to DS after he dropped DDIL and Ren at the airport since they are flying back to Texas tonight. The elder DGS flew back to L.A. earlier today and may go to the UCLA game tonight against Cal Berkeley. He said the tickets for Ren and his friend were Club class so they weren't sitting out in the cold, they were behind glass and close to refreshments. Sounds like a good deal. Michigan beat Ohio State so I will not be bringing up football with DD as I'm sure she's not happy tonight! Have a good night everyone and I'll "see" you tomorrow, God willing!🙂

Are you thinking of Princess Future Cruise Deposits? They are only good for 2 years these days, but the HAL ones I bought this summer are still good for 4 years.

Enjoy all those B2B's Joy and Allen!!

You're right off the coast of Cuba. Turned the ship around and headed back according to Cruisemapper.

Thanks everybody. I just had some chicken noodle soup for lunch and it's doing okay so far. I decided not to eat an apple though like I usually do. Easy to digest foods today. I remember waking up numerous times last night with heartburn. That's something I don't normally have. Only during my second pregnancy with DS. Hoping I'm on the road back to normalcy. Carolyn @Cruising-along I went to check to see if the tram still runs and it does. There are instructions on where to get your pass to ride. I'll copy and paste them here so you know what to do. Public transport to and from Melbourne CBD To travel between Station Pier and the Melbourne CBD, catch the Route 109 tram or bus. Tram Route 109 leaves from Stop 129 Beacon Cove/Light Rail, a short walk from Station Pier. Bus Route 109 runs express from Station Pier from 8 am to 5 pm on cruise ship days when there is no Turnaround cruise visit. Please check the cruise schedule. You need a myki ticket to travel on public transport which you can buy at the myki customer service desk in the International Cruise Ship Terminal. For more information, either: visit the Public Transport Victoria (PTV) website download PTV’s Cruise Ship Factsheet (PDF).

I heard back from DS and he was able to locate some tickets for Ren. He will take one of his old buddies and former Tiger soccer player with him. Two years ago this same buddy took Ren to the game with tickets they were able to obtain. But it's very cold in Michigan today (as Nancy @ottahand7 and Debbie @dfish mentioned), so I hope they are dressed in warm layers. I'm trying to get some fluids into me but it still hurts my tummy when they get there! DH says he needs some help eating the pecan pie from Thanksgiving but I've only had one slice on Thanksgiving. Hoping this is only a 24 hour tummy ache. I hope Annie @marshhawk gets her tummy back to normal soon. Last night I only had about 3 bites of baked potato and about the same of cranberry sauce. No leftover spatchcock chicken at all. I doubt I starve. Thanks for the concern friends!

Melbourne, Australia! Our first cruise down under was in 2013 on Diamond Princess. There were two stops in Melbourne. The first time it was raining and windy so we bundled up and took our umbrellas and went for a walk. I believe we ended up at Queen Victoria Market. Home to more than 600 small businesses, it's a great place to find fresh and specialty produce, handmade and unique products, great coffee and food, souvenirs and clothing. Somehow I lost one of my favorite earrings during that walk. Then the second time the weather was better so we walked to a nearby beach. But I think we enjoyed our third time there in 2017 while on Sun Princess the most. That day we had a plan to walk to the end of the port area, cross the street and follow the tram line all the way to downtown Melbourne. Most people bought tickets and took the tram but what fun is that? It was actually quite a nice walk if you don't have any mobility issues. This is the end of the port area where we crossed the street to the tram line. And this is the building you go into to buy your tram tickets. Looks like some crew waiting for the next ride into downtown. This is the walkway along the tram line, which is on the right side of the photo. And here comes the next tram flying past us going the other way. Finally made it to the main road at the end of the tram pathway. The Yarra River runs right through the city. You can take lunch, dinner or day cruises on the beautiful river and be surrounded by the city. Here is their aquarium. This building says it's the Immigration Museum. Near that was St. Paul's Cathedral I looked this up. It's the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Federation Square. At this point we decided to turn around and walk back to the ship. The downtown is really stunning. You can see the Sea Life Aquarium across the river during the walk back. Artwork outside a building. That's when we heard this helicopter start up across the river. A lot of people stopped to watch it head out. The weather in Melbourne is very changeable and any native will tell you that! We walked all the way back to the ship and enjoyed it very much even though we later calculated it was a 9 mile walk that day!

Good morning friends! Today it's 38F and we expect a high of 59 and partly cloudy skies. I intend to stay inside today and did a small amount of online shopping on Black Friday. Late yesterday afternoon I started feeling unwell and could only eat a few bites of dinner. Still don't feel great this morning and intend to take it very easy until this goes away. Tummy hurts when I put food or drink into it, so not a Covid-related problem. I skipped my treadmill today and stayed in bed. Thanks once again Rich @richwmn for our Fleet Report and Daily. National Parfait day would be nice if I felt like eating. Maize day only reminds me of Michigan's Maize and Blue, not corn, and it is also Shopping Reminder Day. We won't forget Small Business Saturday here in the U.S. An interesting quote by Einstein. I like meat in my stuffed bell peppers but would probably not like the drink or wine. 🍷 Looks like Britain hung around for a while with their military presence here after the Revolutionary War. Maybe they thought we'd fall on our faces! Anyway, thanks to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope, and Ann @cat shepard for their food and beverage reports for today. Prayers for all our Daily family sick, in pain, or suffering in some way. Also to those in Israel and Ukraine and may there be happy reunions with the hostages being released. Special prayers for DB, friends Scott and Bob and their wives who care for them. 🙏 Three cheers for those celebrating happy events and especially the cruisers. 🥂 Thanks Vanessa @JazzyV for the lists today and I hope last night wasn't a sleepless one. One of our two kid's teams will no longer be undefeated after the Michigan-Ohio State game being held at the Big House in Ann Arbor. Ren wanted to go to the game so DS went hunting for two tickets, but I haven't heard if that was successful or not. I will ask once everyone is awake there. I don't watch big games like this because I can't handle the stress.😮 The port today is a very nice one, Melbourne (Victoria), Australia. We were there twice in 2013 and once in 2017 so I have pictures! This was our port on January 25, 2022. Here's the link: I hope everyone has a wonderful Saturday after Thanksgiving. Normally a busy time of the year. Stay safe and well!

Good morning friends! I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving and are ready for Black Friday. The weather is chilly at 42F and will be 61 with mostly sunny skies. However the weather app threatens showers scattered around our area for the next hour or so. Just trying to cover all bases I guess.☔ Thank you Rich @richwmn for the Fleet Report and Daily including the special days we should celebrate today and the quote from E. B. White. I will pass on the salmon with turnips and Swiss chard and the Nil Fashioned. Oh yeah, I don't drink red wine either so you all can have my cabernet sauvignon. A great day in history for our solar system, beautiful Tasmania and Charles Darwin. Thanks go to Debbie @dfish, Dixie @summer slope and Ann @cat shepard for their reports today. Wow, so many people leaving for their cruises today so Bon Voyage to Joy @Seasick Sailor, Father @Himself, and @Niagarawine! Welcome back to U.S. soil Roy @rafinmd! Happy 61st wedding anniversary Ann and Pat @Vict0riann!! And let us remember Jose ( Jacqui @kazu) on his heavenly/angel birthday.🙏 Prayers said for those countries at war and the people being attacked. May all the hostages return home soon and safely. Prayers also for my friends here on the Daily in pain and others suffering. I hope all the surgeries that are upcoming get here quickly. Prayers too for my DB and friends Scott and Bob. 🙏 Cheers to those celebrating something and heading out for their cruises!🥂🚢 Thank you Vanessa @JazzyV for taking the time to note all our happenings! Much appreciated! The port today is East London, South Africa. This is the third showing for it and the prior dates were Dec. 9, 2021 and Jan. 10, 2022, only a month apart actually. I have not been there before and doubt I reschedule another Africa circumnavigation cruise. The first times never happened due to Covid and I've sort of lost interest now. But I do hope those who have been will post their photos for all to see. Here are the links: Have a happy, safe and well Friday y'all!

Very happy to hear that Dixie!

Love her curls! So cute.

Nice post Debbie! Thank you very much for your kind words for each of us. I'm so glad we met you and Sue on our cruise together. Same with Dixie and George. Who knew the Daily and Fleet Report would grow to what it's become?

Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser your photo of the Texas Bar reminded me of this exchange of photos from one of the previous times we posted on Tallinn. Here is @tjcox9's post: Rotterdam 2005 - here is the front of the Texas bar (I was a Texas at the time so this was a necessary shot) and the front of another interesting bar as well. We were there later as well, but I'm sure the photos are much the same as the others that have been posted. And here is mine showing the same two places 6 years later. Hey, looks like we all liked the Texas bar! I took a photo too in 2011. Then a photo of the Hell Hunt with a very different nameplate on the front.

Thanks Lorraine, but I don't do any more than the other contributors. We all enjoy spending time here because of how interesting it is with everyone's perspective. No problem posting your photos Lenda. I figured I was safe waiting today for you to post now that you're back in Quartzsite, though it sounds like you've had your hands full with the water problem and the furnace/AC needing replaced. I hope everything goes smoothly from now on and you can enjoy sitting out on the porches taking in the good weather. That is a really beautiful photo, Pennie!

Thank you Melanie. She was a darling dog who adored snuggling next to you on the sofa. Very well behaved too. DD's new dogs Sadie and Milo have settled in. Sadie used to be very rambunctious but has settled down a lot, and Milo likes to tease her and get her going. I really don't know Milo yet so Christmas should be interesting. 😄