WCB

Report #50 Sunday February 18, 2024 Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Docked Starboard Side To Pier 8am-5pm Sunny, Cloudy And Rain Showers 90 Degrees Very Humid Part #1 Of 4.......55 Pictures--Casual Dress Today’s port of call was Guam, an unincorporated US territory, located in the Southern Mariana Islands of Micronesia. The capital is Hagatna and the population is over 163,000 people. The indigenous language is Chamorro, but most speak English. The US has a military base and Anderson Air Force base with a population of 22,000. Guam is Micronesia’s most populous and largest island that is filled with World War II history, but also a place of tropical waterfalls, beautiful beaches, and parks. Everyone has heard of Spam, but have you ever heard of Guam Spam? Hormel actually makes a hot and spicy tabasco-flavored Spam just for this island. We believe this canned meat is popular throughout all of the South Pacific. We have seen it on shelves in Fiji, Samoa, Hawaii, and Tonga to name a few. Even spotted on Christmas Island. As kids, we enjoyed fried Spam sandwiches on occasion….not so much these days. The Zuiderdam arrived early to Apra Harbor, but once docked, we had to wait for the customs and immigrations folks to arrive. The plan was to have the guests and crew members do a face to passport check beginning at 8am, but that did not happen. More than once, Kimberly had to announce politely for the people that were lining up early to enter the upper dining room, to please go and have coffee somewhere until they were called. The officials had to set up their tables and could not do that if the hallway was clogged. We were in no hurry to get off, so it was breakfast as normal in the Pinnacle Grill. Our deck was scheduled in the middle, so after we ate, we wandered outside on the promenade deck to watch the first of the guests getting off of the gangway. Of course, the first off were the tour groups. There was one excursion today and it was the highlights of Guam for 3 ½ hours for $150. One hundred and fifty passengers took the morning tour, and the same amount went in the afternoon. Every guest was given a tiny seashell necklace, just like the ones we used to get in Hilo Hatties. A group of local ladies handed them out. Since we have visited all of the WWII historical sights in 2017, we were on our own today. Leaving the ship around 10am, we joined a waiting bus for the free ride to downtown. Specifically, we had a 30 minute ride to the Dusit Thani Guam Resort in downtown Tumon. We did remember the ride along the scenic coastline, but this time we went to the high rent district of resorts and the most extravagant stores. There were the big names of hotels such as the Hyatt Regency, Outrigger Resort, Guam Reef Hotel, the Westin and our destination - the Dusit Thani Guam Resort. A Thai-themed property, it was beautiful inside and out. Surrounding the hotels were stores like Gucci, Prada, Chanel, etc. There were dozens of eateries from fancy to popular such as California Pizza Kitchen, Tony Romas, IHOP, TGI Fridays, and more. But the best discovery was finding the Hard Rock Café right next to the resort. It would not open until after 11am, so we took a long walk in most of the air-conditioned malls that opened earlier. By the way, it was very hot and humid today. The skies were clear and blue early on, but suddenly clouds appeared and by 9:15am, it was raining. A big passing cloud, but enough to bring the umbrellas just in case. Never did need them. The temperature had to be in the high 80’s, but the humidity had to be in the 90% range. Running into Christel, she showed us where the reasonable shopping was located like Macy’s and Ross, but with the heat we decided not to try it. And besides, it was mostly uphill. By noontime, we back-tracked to the attached mall of the Dusit Thani Resort, and walked through all of the shops on two levels. We just happened to find the inside entrance to the Hard Rock Café, and decided it was time for those ice cold beers. It took some time before the draft beers arrived…like 20 minutes. The restaurant filled up quickly and they appeared to be short-staffed. Kimberly had mentioned in her talk that Guam is similar to Hawaii….they do things at their own speed, which is much slower than us. And we had plenty of time to get back to the ship before 4:30pm. We enjoyed a haystack salad with Tupelo fried chicken. This favorite of ours has been eliminated from most menus, and we were pleased to find it here today. By the time we left after 1pm, there was a line of folks waiting for tables. Their shop was located downstairs on the street level. We noticed that they were selling Saipan t-shirts as well as the Guam t’s. The shop girl said that the Saipan HRC had closed permanently, and all of their clothing was 40% off. Well that saves time tomorrow looking for a t-shirt in Saipan, which we never would have found if they are closed. Back to the shuttle, the ride was 30 minutes even with traffic. We did have to show our room keys and ID’s before we left the bus. Then our bags were searched. Getting on the ship, we still went through the xray like always. It was wonderful getting back to the room where we worked on photos and reports. The Captain took the ship out of the harbor a bit later than expected. The Coast Guard promised to accompany us out of the harbor, but they showed up late. With the help of two tugs, and the small gun boat, we sailed into the Philippine Sea, turned north, and headed towards our next port of Saipan tomorrow. Dinner had a nice appetizer of Shanghai ribs. Adding salads, we ordered one sweet and sour duck with noodles, and one flat iron steak. The rolls still are coming hard as rocks, and we are surprised no other guests have commented about it. Or perhaps they are not eating them. Our waiter suggested getting brioche bread tomorrow. That might work. Desserts were one strawberry tart and a peach crisp with a small scoop of ice cream. The entertainment tonight was a repeat of this afternoon’s movie, Rogue Agent. Some might call this dark night without a live show. This seems to be the pattern so far this cruise. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #49 Saturday February 17, 2024 Sea Day #8 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Cloudy With Rain Showers 84 Degrees 9' Swell 20mph Wind--Rolling seas Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures---Casual Dress Finally….day number 8 and the last day at sea. Not that it hasn’t been relaxing, maybe a little too much, but we are all ready for some terra firma (ground that does not move under your feet). The weather seemed to warm up today with a noticeable uptick in the humidity. We did expect this as we have sailed far enough south to experience this balmy weather. It remained mostly cloudy, but we did get some good showers during the afternoon. One thing about rain is that it did cool the air off briefly. Thinking we may have missed it in the daily newsletter, the talk on Guam and Saipan finally happened at 1pm today. Kimberly covered everything we needed to know about both ports in the Marianas, much of which the majority of folks on this cruise would never see and do. Things like climbing a mountain or exploring a cave with a 4 mile hike dealing with heat and humidity off of the charts. Luckily, there is only one highlights tour offered in Guam, and it doesn’t cover anything strenuous. There will be a shuttle tomorrow from the pier to a resort area about 40 minutes away. At least we had some names of streets and hotels to do some internet searches this afternoon. We have only been to Guam once, but it has been a while ago. It does not appear that we will be dropped off where we were back then. Colorful animals of the sea was the subject of the lecture today. At that time of day, we are always outside looking for those animals or birds and fish. We only spotted one bird and dozens of fish. There was another special event at 3pm in the Lido Market with “For Cake’s Sake”. The bakers onboard whipped up another display of sweets and treats for the guests to indulge with every bite. Around 2pm, one of us was collecting some Dive-In cuisine for lunch, and did notice that the Lido pool area was full of people waiting for the cake walk to begin. Usually you can count the people in here on two hands. Not today as every poolside table was occupied. This was a good time to do some business at the front desk. We have learned that there will be some money exchange onboard. Specifically, we are able to purchase Japanese yen, Singapore dollars, and Euro. It may be a bit more expensive to do this on the ship, but it will save a lot of time searching for this service while in the specific ports. And one last thing……we had an issue with a tank top that had gotten ink stains on it, not by us, but in the laundry itself. Permanent ink that did not come out. Prior to that, two tiny holes had punctured the lower front of this top, which was fixed by one of us. The front desk girl took photos of the top and the laundry slip, and even came to our room to have me put a price on it and sign their form. She handled this professionally and promised to inform us of a credit. It is still usable if it is tucked inside, so we don’t expect much of a refund. With all of the clouds, there was no sunset. It just got dark. And before we knew it, dinner time had arrived. Starters were Caesar salads, and a beef empanada with guacamole, sour cream, and salsa. Mains were KFC or crispy breaded buttermilk chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy. One of us forgot to say gravy on the side, and the potatoes were drowned with it. And it tasted different, like it had a seasoning we could not identify in it. Perhaps cardamom? Oh well, not eating the potatoes left room for the panna cotta dessert and a dish of slice bananas. Pianist Judy Carmichael was the excellent entertainer this evening. Her theme was swing time with songs from Gershwin, Cole Porter and Peggy Lee to name a few. Our buddy Greg mentioned that she performs in Sydney (his hometown) and is quite popular there. We can see why. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #48 Friday February 16, 2024 Sea Day #7 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Cloudy 82 Degrees 11' Swell 20mph Wind--Rolling seas Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures---Casual Dress Today marks day number 7 at sea, with a little over 700 nautical miles to go to our next port of Guam. That will take one more day and we will be docking on Sunday. It will be good to be on land after that many days on the rolling ship. We’ll all be lucky to be able to walk a straight line by then. It turned out to be a fairly nice day with scattered clouds, warm temps, and a nice breeze. We have all agreed that this pleasant and comfortable weather will not last too much longer once the ship heads north. It will be time to dig up those long sleeve shirts, jeans, and jackets. There was a “Brunch Sampler” in the dining room at 11 to 1pm. The guests had to make reservations for this special meal, or just show up. We still noticed a large number of people diving into the food in the Lido Market. It appears to be the popular spot on this cruise so far. Lectures on the sharks of Japan delivered by Justine Nadeau and another talk about Guam and Saipan by Joel Fleischer took place in the World Stage. We wish these talks could be televised and repeated later in the day. Years ago all of the lectures were on TV, but not anymore. Many sales were happening in the Shops. We seldom walk through that area of the ship, such as the Casino, Gallery Bar, or the Rolling Stone Lounge. Except for the Pinnacle Grill breakfast, most of our visits are on deck three where the promenade deck is located. The dinner menu had some good things tonight. It was one arancini and one shrimp cocktail for appetizers. Caesar salad and a mostly spinach/tomato salad were our other firsts. Then one of us ordered the chili rellenos with the poblano pepper stuffed with cheese with rice and sauce. Really good, and not as spicy as our waiter had warned. The other entrée was the honey mustard breaded chicken breast. Also moist and tasty. Hazel, our head waitress, came by as always and asked how our meals were. We said fine, but the dinner rolls were so hard and dried up, we could not even cut them in half with a knife. She agreed and said she would inform the chef. Our waiters have been serving the rolls hot, but tonight they were cold and hard as rocks. We doubt that anything can be changed with the rolls unless the recipe is tweaked to make them softer. And at times, the bakers add different grains to the bread such as bulgar. It tends to have small, hard fibrous particles that could break a tooth. Like gravel sometimes. One of us would love to talk to a baker about when and how they make their breads for the day. Anyway, desserts were one chocolate torte and a plate of fresh pineapple. Entertainment this evening was another performance by the Bird Dogs with more Everly Brothers tunes. One more relaxing day at sea, and we will be in a port……..finally. Bill & Mary Ann

Our buddy, Barb, chose not to go on this world cruise this year. We are sure she is fine. Thanks for asking. Yes, the internet is working fine and is Starlink. Bill & Mary Ann

Our buddy, Barb, chose not to go on this world cruise this year. We are sure she is fine. Thanks for asking. Yes, the internet is working fine and is Starlink. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #47 Thursday February 15, 2024 Sea Day #6 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Mostly Cloudy 84 Degrees 16' Swell 30mph Wind--Rough Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures---Casual Dress It’s sea day number six, with two more sea days to go before reaching Guam. But who’s counting? According to Captain Frank we still have over 1100 nautical miles to reach our next destination. All through the night, the seas acted up to rock one to sleep or knock one out of the bed, depending on what deck you lived on. This morning we woke up to very cloudy skies and many white caps in the deep swells. These conditions may be with us all of the way to Guam we understand. After breakfast, we had a job to do. Yesterday we received Saipan customs and declaration forms to fill out, as well as a yellow fever verification letter. The customs form was fairly easy to fill out with the help of detailed instructions. The yellow fever info was required for the change in the upcoming ports. The good news is that if we have had at least one vaccination with documented proof, then we are good. If for some reason you were advised never to get it, you would need a letter from a certified doctor to confirm that fact. And something new to us was that if you are over 60 years old, you are not required to be vaccinated again. Anyway, these forms had to be turned in this morning on each passenger deck, just like the passport collection and distribution. Once the forms were scanned for accuracy, they were collected. Easy. It remained warm and partly sunny the rest of the morning, so we went to the Seaview Pool for some sun time. A lone sea gull flew overhead, and actually landed on the back deck. It hopped around until it found some fresh water that had overflowed from the pool. Then it made its way under the tables, obviously looking for food. Kind of freaked some folks out, so the waiters shooed it away. Shortly, it flew away and did not come back while we were there. The boobies are still with the ship, appearing on the starboard side all day. We read that they are capable of staying out at sea for months at a time. We paid a visit to the shore excursion desk on deck 10 to inquire about the new excursions that are available to us to choose one for free. It comes with the room we booked. Nothing is printed anymore, so we were advised to go on the Navigator app (on the computer) and read each tour. We have a choice of tours in Zanzibar, Cape Town, Namibia, or The Gambia. If you choose not to book anything, we will lose that perk. Use it, or lose it. Time for lunch at 2pm, we dined on Dive-In burgers and a hot dog. We noticed that shawarma was being served in the Lido at lunchtime. Once again, we have never seen lunchtime in the Lido Market so crowded. They must be doing something right, because we heard that the dining room lunch has not been that great. So far we have not tried it and probably won’t since we have a hearty breakfast at 8am. There was no good sunset tonight due to the heavy cloud cover. It simply got dark an hour earlier than yesterday. Then it was dinnertime. The appetizer section won over the entrees this evening. Beginning with a crispy prawn spring roll, we added lion head meatballs but were not sure what they consisted of. Asking Alfred our waiter, he went to find out and came back saying it was pork. We shared mains of Katsu pork (like Weiner schnitzel ) and every day lasagna. It was a good combination. Dessert were thin slices of carrot cake. Presty, the maître d’ was working the tables tonight and came to us with questions. He wanted our opinion how the food at dinner was comparing to last year’s world cruise. We began to compare when his phone kept going off, so we expect to continue this conversation another time. The Grand Voyage singers put on a show called Pop-Opera titled Dream. No dancing due to the motion of the ocean. Finally, we are done with the hour back almost every night. At least until we head for Japan……. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #46 Wednesday February 14, 2024 Happy Valentines Day Sea Day #5 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Mostly Cloudy 84 Degrees 7' Swell Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures---Formal Dress Happy Valentine’s Day ( a day early for most of our readers)! The message for the day was: May this Valentine’s Day be filled with love, understanding, and contentment as you journey through life with those you hold dear. That applies to everyone everywhere. The day began with very cloudy skies, warm temperatures, and mostly flat seas. That would change later on. With the time change last night, we think many people we know slept in later, not going to the Pinnacle Grill breakfast. Better for those of us who show up on time as we get the best service and the hottest breakfast. Besides the numerous activities, there were some talks today of what to see and do ashore, which is tied to shore excursions. The lecture by Nyron included all of the Hawaiian ports as well as Guam and Saipan. When we do watch it, we will have to fast forward to Guam. Too bad we cannot access the other talk about Guam and Saipan by the guest lecturer. Understanding Japan’s dolphins was the second talk in the World Stage. This happens to be the best time to walk on the promenade deck, since many of the guests are in the show lounge. Makes walking a whole lot easier. Captain Frank mentioned in his noon talk that we have 1580 nautical miles to go to reach Guam. That will take three more days. The Pacific Ocean is so large it is hard to even imagine that we are truly in the middle of nowhere. The biggest miracle of that is the internet, and the fact that it is still working. A few years ago, we would have been in a blackout zone. Anyway the sea swells were 7 feet and the sea and air temperature was 84 degrees. And this would change. One of us was due for a haircut, so an appointment was made easily this morning. The appointment was at 2:45pm, and by then, the spa was not busy. The morning was crazy with the ladies getting hair-dos for tonight’s Valentine’s Day dinner and dance later on. And the haircut turned out quite nice by the way. Later in the afternoon, we took our usual walk, noticing that the clouds had become darker on the horizon. There was the smell of rain in the air, and eventually, we could not avoid the clouds, and it did rain rather hard at times. Lucky for us, our walk was over and we discovered that our veranda was not wet. The winds were blowing towards the starboard side this time. Just as the Captain advised, the swells were deepening, and we were in for a change in the weather. And a change in the seas. The swells became a problem and the ship was rolling quite a bit by dinnertime. Bet some folks will be seasick. Formal was the suggestion in the dining room, of course, as it was Valentine’s Day. Lots of folks dressed in red, including the waiters with red bow ties. Something odd took place around 8:15pm. Several guests sitting near us left their tables, and we wondered if that many people would have gotten seasick. Why else leave all at once? We found out that they had decided to get the first dance in the Crow’s Nest when the doors opened at 8:30pm. Goes to show us that all of these special events are skewed to the early diners. Anyway, the group came back ½ hour later, and resumed their dinner. And yes, some folks did get seasick unfortunately. The menu had some of the usual formal appetizers and entrees. We still ordered the Caesar salads with one surf and turf (without the lobster) and one alternate steak without the gravy. The alternate was by far the tastier of the two mains. Dessert was one triple chocolate mousse and one hot fudge sundae. Once again, we noticed that the gormandizes of chocolates were not served. And maybe we missed it, but when we dined in the Pinnacle Grill for dinner, we don’t remember if we had chocolates there either. There was a Valentine’s Day Dance , as we have already mentioned, from 8:30 to 10:30pm tonight in the Crow’s Nest. Good luck with that…. with the ship rolling around like it was, there would be little dancing on deck 10. Nyron from Shore Excursion was the DJ for this event, one of the jobs he had while the ships were not sailing after 2020. Rene, the spa manager, stopped by and visited with us before she left for the evening. Hosting a table nearby, she was on her way to the Crow’s Nest for an obligatory visit with the guests. Or not. Back in our room, we found an elaborate towel design with two swans and a pile of special chocolates (Seattle’s Best). Also, there was a note to turn our clocks back another hour. Now we will be on Guam time. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #45 Happy Fat Tuesday February 13, 2024 Sea Day #4 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Partly Cloudy With Sun 6' Swell 85 Degrees Part #1 Of 1.......35 Pictures---Casual Dress It is official. Sometime today the Zuiderdam crossed the International Date Line, skipping Monday, the 12th. Technically, the clocks moved ahead 24 hours on the ship and for those folks who have watches or devices that needed to advance all of those hours. We really have not lost that day, as we shall get back those hours one at a time (more or less) the further west we travel. So today is Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday and the theme for the day was let the good times roll. A few of the events today will include an expanded Happy Hour from 3:30 to 5:30pm and 6 to 8pm. Just a reminder…..there is a 50% discount on all cocktails, wine by the glass, beers, and house spirits. Later in the evening, there will be a Mardi Gras celebration in the Ocean Bar. We happened to be passing through it when we saw a big table with a huge King Cake, all cut up and ready to hand out to the folks. We guess it was aimed more to the early diners. Not to worry, King Cake was on the dinner menu this evening as well. The Ocean Bar cake was gone by 9pm. Our day was filled with eating, of course, walking, listening to a lecture on octopus, and kicking back at the pool. The weather has been most pleasant, even though a bit on the hot side. The seas have leveled out with a small swell and not a lot of wind. During our morning walk, we thought most of the boobies had left the scene. But they re-appeared and have been joined by one frigatebird. If that is the case, this bird may be roosting on the ship. We wonder if this flock will be with us until Guam? There were two more lectures – one about Micronesia, where we are headed, and another about jellyfish. We suspect there will be talks on the Japanese ports soon, since they will occur very close to each other. And there are many excursions to be sold before then. After watching another fine sunset, we headed off to dinner. Mardi Gras dinner used to be one of the most festive ones with the waiters dressed for the celebration. Jester hats, colorful vests and bowties were worn by all, and they really got a kick out of it. So did we. Every table had a pile of green, gold, and purple beads to wear and also decorative masks. Tonight there was no sign of anything special happening in the main dining room. We know we should not live in the past, but it is what it is. Things have definitely changed in this respect, and we doubt it will ever change back…..even a little bit. The menu did have some nice surprises. We both tried the breaded shrimp appetizer, salads, and the best of all…….the Club Orange entrée of veal cutlets, which were veal chops. And the big ones with the long bone. Barb would have said they were HUGE. And she would be right. Our waiters have been promising us they would show up on the menu and tonight was the night. They were just as savory and tender as we remembered. Then for dessert, we had beignets, which were like a donut with powdered sugar. Our waiter had suggested some ice cream and he was right. But we declined since the chops had been really filling. There were new entertainers this evening, The Bird Dogs, singing songs of the Everly Brothers. They are actually brothers Max and Oliver Hoare promising a show like no other. Four more days at sea, and we will be in Guam. Bill & Mary Ann

Well, it’s Sunday, and a special one at that. It is Super Bowl LVIII Sunday and we will be cheering on the 49ers, since we both are San Francisco born and raised. It’s really a toss-up whether or not they can beat the Kansas City Chiefs, but time will tell. We may have missed something, but usually there is a big promotion in the World Stage where they sell special seating with a drink package for the duration of the game. We do recall a nice event where Super Bowl food was provided in a buffet outside the Main Stage on the Amsterdam. The only advertisement for this game was to enjoy a bucket of beer with friends while you cheer on your team. There was no mention of any fun food being served. The showlounge was to be opened at 11am on deck two, but Kimberly had announced there was a pre-game show by the singers and dancers at 10am. As for the two of us, we decided not to fight the crowd for seats, and enjoy the game in our room on our big screen TV. After all, we had plenty of snacks to enjoy as well as ice cold cokes. During the commercials, we could go out on the deck and get some fresh air and sun. Actually the special ads were not shown, but ESPN put on rerun after rerun of sports ads. The 49ers came really close to a win, but lost in the final minutes of overtime. It could have gone either way, but it was fun to watch anyway. We had expected the half time show to be blacked out, but it was not. We suppose the entertainment appealed to a lot of fans, but the music was not our favorite. Now Reba singing the national anthem was more our style. So congratulations go to Kansas City. We really got the feeling that they were favored to win by listening to the commentary before, during, and after the game. Captain Frank came on the speakers at noon, even in the staterooms, and went on and on about crossing the International Dateline. We did not realize that this will occur tomorrow, and we will lose one whole day. Therefore, there will be no “Monday, February 12th” and we will be starting Tuesday. By 4pm, it had cooled down a bit to take a nice long walk. The day was warm, in the high 70’s, but we do not know how long this beautiful weather will last. The seas were calm although we still have some considerable swells. And we still have the company of the boobies…at least 16 of them. Their hunting pattern seems to differ from the previous ones we have watched. Since the flying fish are few and far between, these birds seem to stay high in the sky, and soar over the ship. They tend to go further away as well, so taking pictures is difficult. Getting photos of the sunset seems to be a lot easier. Finally we had some nice choices on tonight’s menu for dinner. One of us tried the grilled shrimp taco and the other had the Thai beef tataki….both were tasty. Mains were the prime rib, which was good, but for some reason they drowned the meat with gravy. If we knew in advance, we would have requested it on the side. Different chefs do things differently, not necessarily following standardized recipes. The meat was tender and went well with the baked potato and most of the toppings. Missing was the butter, which was brought as an afterthought. Desserts were a lemon cake and a sliced banana. Our waiters always seem disappointed when one of us orders something simple, like fruit, but it works well ending the meal on a sweet note. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #43 Saturday February 10, 2024 Sea Day #2 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Mostly Sunny 75 Degrees 11mph Wind 4' Swell Part #1 Of 1........20 Pictures---Dressy Night Another relaxing day at sea was in store for us. The seas have calmed down, and the weather was just about perfect. The overcast of clouds finally blew away, and we were left with clear blue skies with temps on the high 70’s. And very little wind. Sure hope it continues like this for the rest of the sea days at least. Every sea day, Kimberly, our cruise director, hosts a coffee chat with a member of the staff, lecturers, entertainers, and even crew members. In a half hour interview, yesterday she grilled Henk, the hotel manager we have known it seems like for centuries. It appeared she followed a format of questions in a magazine, and most of them were really funny. Henk did a good job of answering them, hesitating with the harder ones along the way. Maybe in his previous life, Henk may have been a comedian. Anyway, now that we know where to find these interviews on TV, we can watch them especially when she grills people we know. There are two new guest lecturers onboard. Cultural understanding for travelers was the subject for Joel Fleisher, then Justine Nadeau delivered a talk all about whales of Japan. Due to copyright laws, these lectures cannot be televised. Today we were pleasantly surprised to find some tables and chairs around the Sea View Pool. We got there around 11am, and took over one table. By the time the Lido opened for lunch, all of the tables filled up. Quite often, we see officers from the navigation team come outside to eat their lunch. It is the best place to get some fresh air and sun. Today they were in luck and sat outside near us. One thing this ship does not have are umbrellas on stands for the tables. There is sufficient shade on both sides of the pool area, so umbrellas are not needed. The Volendam had some and they were forever falling over in the wind. Our buddy Greg came outside and stayed for a visit. A former tablemate, he shared what he and Heo had been doing in Hawaii. Normally that would be dinner conversation. At least we got to hear about their lunches and site-seeing in all three ports. They do share photos, so now we can put the stories to the pictures. Lunch for us was room service Cobb salads and a shared roast beef panini. A 2pm lunch works better for us, and we do not have to search for a place to sit if we went to the Lido. Walking through the Lido on the way back to our room at 1pm, we noticed the place was full of people , most looking for seats. Way to crowded and noisy, we were happy to leave the area. By the way, today was Lunar New Year also known as Chinese New Year. The Lido restaurant was the only place that had some decorations. And they were hanging Chinese lanterns. There was a time when the dining room was highly decorated for this occasion, but like everything else, things have changed. Oh well, at least we might have some Chinese cuisine at dinnertime. Tonight’s dinner dress suggestion was “dressy” for a change. Most everyone we saw was cleaned up nicely. The appetizers of dim sum were very good, and the salads tasty. We still think they are using up house-made salad dressings, because they are not the usual ones. This applies to the thousand island, ranch, and Caesar dressings. On past cruises, the dressings were Ken’s, but we do not know if they are still being used. Our mains were one huli-huli chicken and one BBQ pork ribs. Both were good and served hot. Desserts were one date pudding and a few slices of fresh pineapple. Then our waiter appeared with a tray of single-wrapped fortune cookies. Nice surprise for the Year of the Dragon. The entertainment this evening was a performance by the singers and dancers called Time After Time. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #42 Friday February 9, 2024 Sea Day #1 Of 8 Enroute To Guam Island USA, Apra Harbor, Marianas Sunny With Clouds 75 Degrees 12' Swell Part #1 Of 1......40 Pictures--- Casual Dress Today we began our eight-day run towards Guam. Even Captain Frank said this will be the longest stretch of sea days he has done, at least on a cruise ship. The morning began with sunny skies, but later it turned overcast and almost cool. After our morning walk, we headed to the Sea View Pool for some fresh air and sun. We noticed that once again, the round tables and chairs were stacked under the overhang. The bar area and the smoking section had places to sit, but not out around the pool. We took chairs and brought them over to the pool railing, then asked the next available crew member why all of these tables and chairs were not out. He said they needed permission to bring them out from the navigation officers. Perhaps last night, it may have been a bit rocky, but not enough to send tables and chairs flying. Today, it was back to normal. After the lunch service began in the Lido, many folks walked outside with their plates to find a table, but there were none out. And the deck crew made no attempt to set some up around the back of the pool. The way we see it, if there are no places to sit, it forces folks to go indoors. It is not a welcoming feeling. All we could do is share our thoughts with one of the crew members, and perhaps he will pass it along. By the way, he did offer to bring us a table, but we said no thanks. Another thing missing were the bar waiters asking guests if they would like beverages. It sure is not that way in the Lido Pool area. You can sit down at any one of their tables, and be offered drinks within minutes. Something is missing back here. We still had reports and pictures to work on from yesterday, so we did that after the cloud cover cooled everything off. A Dive-In lunch was sufficient, and spending time on the clean veranda took the rest of the time. It appears that a small flock of masked boobies have decided to tag along. Since we have not spotted any flying fish, we have no idea what they are hunting. They are still fun to watch. At 4pm, the Block Party began. This was a repeat of the first one we had after boarding in Ft. Lauderdale, and we suspect it will not be the last of them. Music was blasted in the hallways, and the ding-dong of the PA system kept going off. Complimentary wine was served as the officers and crew ran down each and every passenger hallway. We went towards the end of the soiree, but went left this time to the front set of elevators. Only a few guests were there finishing up the last of their wine. It is quite possible that at 4pm, some guests may have been in the middle of a nap due to so many clock changes recently. We know one thing for sure, there were very few folks taking a walk at 5pm. The sea swells had picked up, and the winds were blowing pretty good. Just a guess, but we believe being in open waters like this leaves us vulnerable to high seas. Sure hope it does not get worse. The menu was a little better tonight with new appetizers of pork spring rolls with sweet and sour sauce. They sure are stingy with the sauce though. Had we known there was ¼ teaspoon of sauce, we would have asked for more. That’s the best part. Mains were spaghetti and meatballs and Hawaiian-style kalbi pork ribs. They also had a sweet and sour sauce on them. Dessert was a little chocolate cupcake with caramel popcorn on the frosting. One of us had a sliced banana, which had just arrived yesterday. Tasted even better with the frosting of the cupcake on top. Kind of defeated the purpose, but it was good. Surprise, surprise……there was another hour back on the clock tonight. This will put us at UTC-12/International Date Line West. It sounds good on paper that we get an extra hour, but too many in a row really upsets your body’s clock. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #41 Thursday February 8, 2024 Honolulu ,Oahu, Hawaii 7am-11pm Docked Starboard Side To Pier Sunny With Broken Clouds And A Early Morning Rain Shower 80 Degrees Part #1 Of 4.......55 Pictures---Casual Dress Early this morning, we were greeted with a beautiful rainbow as soon as we opened our drapes. Of course that meant there was rain close by, but normally as the day advanced, the showers went away. Within minutes, the rainbow disappeared as well. Today ended the first segment of this grand cruise. Some folks had put their luggage outside their rooms before retiring for the evening. Everyone received stickers with the first segment’s itinerary which we put in a small souvenir booklet. As the future segments end, we will get more stickers. First things first…..we had a notice that the maintenance team will be working on the air-conditioning unit that takes care of our deck or section. That would occur between 8am and 11:30am, and we were asked to be patient for the rooms to get to the normal temperatures. Ample time could mean all day. While we were working on completing photo work, we did notice that the temperature was rising. Sure hope it was not a repeat of the last time it failed. As it turned out, the outage was for only an hour or so, then it resumed working well. The next job was a thorough balcony-washing from 9am to 3pm. This time all of the balcony partitions would be unlocked and a worker would come through with a hose. Then someone would follow up and wipe down the veranda glass and windows. Before we went to breakfast, we took in all of the chair and lounge pads so everything could be cleaned well. There was salt built up on the ceiling and walls, but the majority of it was on the floor. Now it is clean for a while. There were a few tours today that covered most everyone’s needs. There were two choices of ho-ho buses. One was a day pass for $75 and included the red, pink, and green lines. The other option was $90 for the blue line, which included admission to one of the main attractions. The most popular excursions took the folks to Pearl Harbor and the Mighty Missouri for 6 ½ hours for $210. Another popular but strenuous tour was a climb to Diamond Head, a 763 foot steep climb. It was 3 ½ hours for $220. We heard through the grapevine that if you wanted to do this on your own, you had to get tickets ahead of time. Out of town, the tours were a rainforest walk for 4 hours at $220, or a ride to the North Shore for 6 ½ hours at $240. The easiest excursion was a circle the island drive for 8 hours and $140. Another shorter tour for 4 hours was monarchs and missionaries for $190. And since we were not scheduled to stay overnight, there was no dinner luau or a sunset cruise. Even though there was an early morning shower, the weather cleared up and was just about perfect. Three months ago, it was near 100 degrees when we visited Honolulu, so today with the temps in the low 80’s, it was nice. And there was a breeze that never stopped. Great walking conditions. We left the ship by 11am, and headed for the main street out of Pier 2. Turning right, we hiked past the car dealers, and many other businesses. We had two choices today, since we had only one day here. Normally we walk to Waikiki, then on to have lunch at the Hard Rock Café. Did you know that the name Waikiki means “spouting water”? It seems that this beautiful beach with turquoise water used to be a swampland. In 1901, the first hotel, the Moana Surfrider was built here. That marked the beginning of the massive tourist industry. Here’s another little thing we learned. Diamond Head got its name from the calcite crystals in the rocks that early explorers in the late 1700’s mistook for diamonds. We always take photos of the famous lookout when we get to the beach. However, to go there and also go to Ala Moana Center would take too much time and energy today. So the second option was to walk through Ala Moana Beach Park spotting birds all the way. There are some mighty fine banyan trees as well as baobab trees planted there. Unfortunately, there are some homeless people there living in tents. Most of the day, they sleep, but do not bother people in the park. Except for one fellow in his twenties that was ranting and raving for no reason. We guess that all big cities in the US have this problem, but more so where the weather is warm most of the year. Crossing the street, we entered the world’s largest open-air shopping mall – Ala Moana Center. If you cannot find things there, you never will anywhere else. It is so huge, it is easy to get lost. One of our destinations at this mall was Macy’s, where we recalled they had an instore watch shop. One of us had two watches that needed batteries, so we located the shop, and they had both watches running within 10 minutes. Then it was time for lunch and we had our minds set on pizza. One of our favorite restaurants at home is California Pizza Kitchen. Lucky for us, there is one here. We got one of the last booths, surprised at how busy they were for a Thursday afternoon. We shared a BBQ chicken chopped salad, and a pizza with the same toppings. The French bread slices and seasoned olive oil came right before the salad. We had forgotten to bring our CPK member card, but using our phone number, the waiter discovered we had $5 credit to use. Adding a couple of Coke Zeros, we were happy campers. The last job of the day was a trip to Target for some room snacks. Funny thing…..on or way out of the terminal this morning, we saw a couple coming back to the ship loaded with big bags of crackers, chips, and other snacks. They probably made a trip to Walmart or Costco. All of us like our little snacks, not only the crew members. We did notice that the Shops onboard were selling saltine crackers, something we have never seen. So we loaded up on chips, pub mix, some blocks of cheese, pretzels, and popcorn. We looked all over for bean dip, but all they had was cheese and salsa dips. It will be hard to find any of these favorites in Japan or China. Taking our time going back, we noticed that every bus passing us was full of folks going to Waikiki or the Ala Moana Center. Since all aboard was 10:30pm, we think a lot of people will go for cocktails and dinner in town. We got back by 4pm, and used that time as we always do. Keeping up with the photos every day really helps. So does relaxing on the veranda watching the harbor traffic. The sunset was really pretty tonight, and went down very fast. Time for dinner, we noticed that there was only one entrée with beef. That was the alternate steak. There has been a lot of pork, some fish, a little chicken or duck, and more than one vegetarian choice. A new appetizer with skewered shrimp and onion with soy sauce and peanut dip was excellent. Instead of one wonton in the clear broth, we asked for two wontons. Great choice, even with the one drop of some spicy oil that burned the lips. Our entrees were one lasagna and the alternate steak. Both were surprisingly good. A lemon meringue slice of cheesecake and a plate of pineapple were the desserts. We do know that some big loading happened today, so we shall see if the menu improves. There was a special show this evening featuring a local group called Kauvaka. The group included singers, dancers, and drummers from the island of Oahu. The costumes were worthwhile to see as was the performance of Polynesian and Hawaiian dance. Always nice when they have a local group like this one. Another plus was finding out we had another hour back on the clocks tonight. As we head west, this will happen every few days now. Fine with us. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #40 Wednesday February 7, 2024 Hilo, Hawaii 8am-5pm Docked Port Side To Pier Overcast With Rain Showers 72 Degrees 30mph Wind To Night Part #1 Of 4.......55 Pictures---Casual Dress The Zuiderdam arrived to the sheltered bay of Hilo early this morning under partly cloudy skies, some sun, and some rain too. One of the shore officials said their weather here is “bi-polar”. We tend to agree. The ship was cleared quickly and the tour folks were off and running to their coaches as always. Today’s excursions revolved around Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which was a trip to Kilauea volcano and lava fields. Four different variations of that tour were offered. One of them went to the Volcano Winery, a candy factory, and it included a lunch for 6 ½ hours for $270. The volcano with a garden tour for 3 ½ hours was $180, while a side trip to Rainbow Falls for 4 ½ hours was $160. Then a visit to a macadamia nut factory with the volcano for 4 ½ hours was $120. The last three tours did not include a lunch. The last time we toured Kilauea it had a lunch, which was a stop along the way at roadside picnic tables with a boxed lunch. Tropical fruit, farm, and falls was $200 for 3 ½ hours. We left the ship around 10am, and failed to take our umbrellas. We know better to go for a long hike without them, but the sun was shining when we left. Never gave it a thought. Did you know that Hilo is one of the wettest towns in the USA? They get an average yearly rainfall of 128 inches. It’s no wonder there are so many gushing waterfalls here producing a jungle of exotic trees and flowers. By the way, there was no shuttle to Walmart, but there was a shuttle to the produce market in Old Hilo. We know that the crew members really miss that free Walmart bus, and so do we. There are close to 41,000 residents here living on the slopes of three major volcanoes. Mauna Kea tops out at 13,796 feet, but measuring it from the base, it is 32,000 feet. That makes it the tallest island mountain. Next is Mauna Loa at 13,679 feet and spreads over half of the island. Measuring 30,080 feet from the base, it is the largest volcanic mountain in the world. Then comes Kilauea at 4300 feet in elevation. The most active of the volcanoes, Kilauea gets all of the attention. Passing by the restaurant, Ponds Hilo, at the Ice Pond, we realized they were closed today. Reading the door sign, we saw they were closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Guess we have always been here on their “open” days. We did have another option, so decided to continue walking first, then eat later. Crossing over the Ice Pond, we also figured it was a school day, and there were no kids showing off their skills in soaking the tourists that walked by here. And for the first time ever, we saw three large green turtles swimming gently in the pond. We bet they always live there, but are scared away with too much activity. They seemed to be watching us, and came up for air often. Another good photo op. We made our way past the industrial part of town as well as the international airport. Our first stop was at Reeds Bay Beach Park, where the rain began. Taking shelter under the old banyan trees planted by celebrities and local famous folks, helped keep us mostly dry. We could see the shower coming across in waves, eventually stopping. It was heavy enough to make the local beach-goers pack up their gear, load their vehicles, and leave the narrow strip of beach. The rain let up, and we continued on to Lili’uokalani Gardens, a 25 acre Japanese garden on Banyan Drive. It includes arching bridges, fishponds, pagodas with seaside and mountain views. And some well known residents there are mongoose. However, try as we could, we never spotted one of them. There is a cropping of volcanic rocks under some banyan trees there, and we have always seen some mongoose coming out from the caverns in the rocks. Today we waited and watched for 20 minutes, and did not spot one. It just happened that a bus full of HAL tourists had been let loose and were trying to cover every corner of this park. Might have kept the mongoose away, who knows? What we did see was a pair of Hawaiian nenes, or geese. They had a chick with them….just one. That is the first time ever we saw a young nene. And they were being quite protective, which is good since these state birds almost became extinct at one point. Walking back, it began to rain again, but this time it was heavy rain. It was a good thing we were close to another restaurant across the street from Ponds. Next to or part of a hotel, it was Coconut Grill. The restaurant was much larger than it appeared from the outside, and had a really good menu with many choices. We were happy they had draft beer on the list too. So we ordered a BBQ pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw on a taro bun. We asked what a taro bun was, and discovered it was made with the flour of the taro root, which is purple. First time we ever saw purple bread, which really tasted like regular bread. We added fries to share, then saved room for another serving of “Naughty Mud Pie”. Similar to yesterday’s treat, this one had a layer of fudge sauce on the top under the layer of whipped cream over the mocha ice cream on a cookie crust. Broken Oreos were on the very top. We have to say, that made our day. Time to head back, we got to the terminal around 2:30pm. We had noticed that the US flag as well as the state flag were flying at half -mast at the pier. So we asked the officials, and they said the flags have remained that way ever since the fire destroyed Lahaina months ago. Regardless of the island, these Hawaiians are a tight family. Catching up on photos and reports took the rest of the afternoon. One other fact we learned was that the macadamia nut requires 300 pounds of pressure per square inch to crack the shell. Well worth the trouble since they are delicious…..chocolate covered or not. As far as calories go, well we won’t even go there. These nut trees are actually from Australia, but they thrive in the islands and are famous worldwide. The ship left the harbor at 5pm. Captain Frank said to expect some rough sailing around the top of the island of Hawaii. He expected the winds to pick up to 35 knots with some deep swells. By morning, we will be in Honolulu, Oahu. Dinner was the final one for those who are leaving this first segment. We have not been able to get an exact number of departing and new guests, probably due to the fact that the following segments may have been marketed well to gain more guests. We have heard the term “ferry boat” regarding the numerous segments, but that is the way it works these days. Split pea soup was the best appetizer choice since the weather was almost cool tonight. Caesar salads, and mains of chicken with stuffing and a pork chop with a loaded baked potato were good. Desserts were a little rum cake and a plate of fresh pineapple. Entertainment this evening was the Grand Voyage Band playing the Beatles hits. Easy listening. Looking forward to Honolulu, although it will be a one day stay instead of overnight. Too bad. Oh yes, thank you for the description of shawarma. We have seen this skewered meat often in foreign countries, but never knew the correct name. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #39 Tuesday February 6, 2024 Kona, Hawaii 8am-8pm Anchored With Tender Platforms On Starboard Side Which Faces Town Morning Sun Turning To Clouds In The Afternoon 79 Degrees Part #1 Of 6......55 Pictures--Casual Dress It was a fine morning to be arriving to the bay of Kona, Hawaii. The skies were mostly blue and the temperature was in the mid 70’s. No humidity to speak of, which was nice. We went to breakfast as usual, then waited until we were called by decks to go to the US Customs and Border Protection Inspection. All we needed were our passports and room keys, which were scanned upon entering the upper dining room. Then we opened the passports to our picture page, and simply passed by the officials who did not even scan them. On the way out of the dining room, we had a green sticker placed on our room key cards. We would not have been able to get on a tender boat without that green sticker showing we had been cleared. Of course, we were able to bypass getting tender tickets, showing just our room keys to access deck A. We left the ship around 10am, and we do think most of the tour groups had already gone to shore. There were a lot of excursions offered today and some of them were quite expensive. A coffee farm and bay snorkel must have included a lunch for 7 ¼ hours for $340. Senses of Kona for 4 hours had tastings for $320, while an Atlantis submarine dive for 1 hour was $240. Kona coffee and a cloud forest visit for 4 hours was $210, but the most reasonable tour was a 1 hour glass-bottom boat ride for $90. The ride to shore was quick since it was less than a mile to the landing pier. There must have been leis given out because the remnants of the flower petals were scattered all over the ground. We really did not have anything in mind except getting a good walk in today after so many days at sea. Turning right, we followed Ali’I Drive, the main street, where all of the shops and eateries are located. Going this direction took us past the Hulihe’e Palace, a vacation home for Hawaiian royalty and the oldest church in all of Hawaii, Moku’aikaua Church, built in 1837. Both were closed today, but that did not stop the folks from walking around the outsides. Kona’s farmers Market has always been a very busy spot not to be missed when here. However, it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. It is the first time we noticed that this extensive market with produce as well as a wide array of souvenirs was all set up in tents. There was not one tent on the property this morning. Just an empty parking lot. Further up the road, we were able to access the water’s edge where we always remember a stretch of sandy beach. There must have been a storm here that removed the sand, because all that was left were rocks of volcanic origin. And lots of black sand crabs. Further up the road was the Kona Inn Shopping Village where there are art galleries, eateries, and numerous souvenirs shops. One of the more amusing shops is the Donkey Balls Store where they sell a variety of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts. And although we did not see it, we know there is a Hilo Hattie’s there. They are famous for their matching Hawaiian-style clothing for men, women, and kids. We kept walking until we passed by the old Bubba Gumps’, now another restaurant. Making our way to the Royal Kona Resort, we spent some time walking the property and sitting near their outdoor pool area. There seemed to be a good size crowd staying here, although we did hear someone mention that two days ago, the waves were washing over the wall here. Guess we got lucky with the weather today. This was a good place to turn around and head back. Crossing the street, we walked through the Coconut Grove Marketplace where there is a nice Outback Steakhouse. It did not appear to be opened until later. We had planned on locating pizza for lunch, but when we checked the menu at the Kona Canoe Club, we saw that pizza was not longer on their menu. But a back-up plan was to try the newly-relocated Pancho and Lefty’s Mexican Restaurant. Glad we did. Climbing up a flight of stairs, we entered their patio dining on the second floor facing the ocean. This location was exactly across the way from the old place, but was much larger and nicer. We ordered two draft beers – Longboard, and they were wonderful….ice cold. Then we shared a platter of cheese nachos with carnitas (pulled pork) with chips and salsa on the side. Sure was good. We thought we might add a taco salad, but glad we didn’t. We had saved room for a huge slice of mud pie, which came just like Hula Pie, covered with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. The ice cream was solid hard mocha….so good. Anyway we left happy campers. We had planned on a walk uphill to a CVS, and also perhaps sharing a shaved ice at Scandinavian Shaved Ice, but there was not any room for it. Maybe next time. And we ended up skipping the CVS hike. We did have a nice visit with Tom M. our former host from years ago. It seems he is always surrounded with his clients and we seldom have a chance to talk. Today we did. From there, we headed back to the tender pier and got on the boat back home. The remainder of the afternoon was spent on photo and report work. Whenever there is an opportunity to collect local information on a port we are visiting, one of us is a pack rat and picks up everything available. Today that opportunity happened along the entire Ali’i Drive. Two great sources of info were the This Week and Big Island brochure as well as the 101 Things To Do on the big island booklet both dated 2024. Scanning through the things to do, I came across some good statistics concerning the humpback whale migration through this area. These behemoths will swim 3000 miles from their feeding grounds in Alaska to mate and deliver their calves. The estimated numbers of humpbacks from 7000 to 10000 are expected to be seen this season in all of the Hawaiian waters. With that news, we began to scan the huge bay we were in and guess what? We saw whale blows in the far distance. Many of them. There appeared to be some adults and several young ones as they came closer to the ship. The young ones seemed to be doing the most breaching and jumping. They were rolling and throwing a pectoral fin as they spun in place. Then we hoped there was nothing below them causing this behavior. Like killer whales or sharks perhaps. The mothers would protect them from that we suspect. We were glued to our veranda taking photos and enjoying the show through binoculars for at least one hour. Eventually the Captain came on the speakers and announced the sightings. Nine hundred pictures later, the sun began to go down on the horizon, and their activity subsided. We were lucky to see a few of the adults diving and showing their tails, although they were not diving deep. And we did not have to take a tour to see the whales as they came to all of us. Another plus was watching the sun go down quickly on the horizon. This evening they were having a “Glamp Out” activity in the Lido Pool area at 8:30pm. It was advertised as a camping experience with a movie, drink specials, sliders, and s’mores. We chose to go to dinner as usual, and ordered some of the items they were serving there. We both ordered the chicken tenders with a mustard sauce, learning we need to ask for extra sauce next time. One of us had an artichoke heart and risotto salad and the other a Caesar salad. Mains were a Chef Neil burger with fries and the other a sliced pork plate with macaroni salad and rice. Dessert was one upside down pear cake with vanilla ice cream. Good way to end a very busy day in Kona. Tomorrow we will be in Hilo. Seems like we were just here. We were last fall. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #38 Monday February 5, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Kona, Hawaii Cloudy And Cooler With Rain Showers 72 Degrees 30mph Winds 12' Swell Still Rough Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures---Casual Dress Well we have finally arrived to our last full sea day on the way to the Hawaiian Islands. The weather has not improved at all, we would even say it got worse with deeper swells and very overcast skies with rain on the horizon. It was probably not the best conditions for the 5K On Deck for a Cause walk, although it is not required to take the walk even if you donate. The cause for this cruise was for Maui, specifically for Lahaina and the devasting fire that destroyed the area. Our fondest memory of visiting Lahaina had to be in 2001 when the ship was at anchor in the harbor and was surrounded with humpback whales and their newborn babies. The ship was the Star Princess and the cruise was her inaugural voyage. It is sad to realize that we will never be able to see that sight again….at least not in that part of Maui. We caught up with Kimberly’s talk on Kona, which gave us hints of what to do and see while in Kona. It is a small town, so we will take our usual hike from one end to the other. We see that the produce and souvenir market will be closed. It is not a huge market, but there are a lot of trinkets sold there at much better prices than in the shops. Not that we need any more bowls or carvings, but they are fun to look at. If we are lucky, we may find a good place for pizza, which we have not enjoyed since leaving home back in December. Since tomorrow we have to clear immigrations, we will not get to shore until well after 10am. We still find it odd that we are not stopping in Hilo first. Our best guess on that one is that other ships may be in port that day, or the shore excursions are more numerous in Hilo on Wednesdays. Today’s theme in the Lido lunch was “shawarma”. Does anyone know what that means? Since we never dine in there, we did not remember to check it out. After our 4:30pm walk, we wandered into the World Stage where a rehearsal was happening. We took in a few songs by Michelle Montuori who belted out some Frank Sinatra favorites. What a voice she has. DJ Bucciarelli was also sharing the stage with her, but we did not hear him at the rehearsal. Something odd happened before our dinner time. Around 7:45pm, we had just sat down when Kimberly came into the upper dining room and addressed us all. Then she announced the entire culinary team and their workers were on the way with a parade like we may have at the very end of the long voyage. Within seconds the parade began with everyone clapping as the group passed by, followed by all of the wait staff and head waiters. We felt like the cruise was over, but we were told it was for the end of the first segment. Really? It’s only been 5 weeks since the trip began. So how many people are actually leaving in Honolulu? Originally we had been told the number of guests leaving was 250. About half that amount would be boarding. Now we asked and the number was over 100 leaving. We shall clarify that number tomorrow with someone who knows for sure. That would be Henk. Even though the parade happened tonight, it was explained that with two days in port, not everyone would be present to watch it. Anyway, dinner was almost formal cuisine with escargots as appetizers, and surf and turf…..what they should have offered on formal night. Most people around us did order the sliced tenderloin and lobster, but we went for the Hawaiian chicken with grilled pineapple. It had a spicy gravy, but it was good. Then we shared a small slice of Nutella cheesecake just because it was different. Tasted like regular chocolate to us. It will be great to be on firm land tomorrow after we get off of the tender boat that is. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #37 Sunday February 4, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Kona, Hawaii Mostly Cloudy With Some Sun 72 Degrees 30mph Winds 15' Swell--Rough Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures----Casual Dress No doubt about it, when we woke up, it was still rough and getting worse as the day advanced. The seas turned choppy with “white horses” as Captain Friso would say, and the winds took the sea spray all the way past our deck. By 6pm, there was a coating of salt on deck three portside, as well as our veranda. The mist had turned the veranda glass opaque. And speaking of verandas, when we were on the Volendam last fall, every veranda on each deck got hosed down at once a week, or every two weeks. The partitions were unlocked and the fellows went from one end to the other. Then a follow-up team came and wiped down the windows, chairs, and tables. On this ship, the room attendants do it all. The glass on the veranda gets wiped off almost daily, and the floor gets vacuumed, but seldom washed. Never hosed. The one difference we see is that when the hoses are used, the lower decks get soaked. If you happen to be at the railing when cleaning is happening, you might get a surprise shower. The first Sunday Brunch Sampler took place this morning at 11am to 1pm in the lower dining room. What was different was that regular breakfast time still happened 7:30am to 9am. For some reason, the Pinnacle Grill filled up with some new guests who chose today to try it. What they did not expect was the number of us who visit among the tables as we have since day one. It will be interesting to see if they return again. On the way back to our room, we noticed the tables for the passport collection had been set up. Spotting Rene, the spa manager, we went directly to her and got our passports returned for inspections the morning we arrive to Kona. We expect the process to go smoothly since several agents come onboard to handle many guests and crew as well. We did take a morning walk, but we were among only a few that did it. The temperature was cool at 69 degrees or so, not counting the wind chill. If we did not know better, we would say there was a chance of a storm arriving. Despite the high dark clouds, it never did rain. Wanting to be able to hear the Captain talk after the noon whistle, we stayed in the room. The speaker in the room works better than the TV, but the volume is still too low to catch it all. We had to laugh yesterday when Captain Frank began his talk by saying we were in the middle of nowhere. That’s reassuring. The Pacific is huge and we are sure we were not anywhere near land or islands. Even the few birds we had following us were gone. Or blew away. Captain Frank did admit that the swells were going to increase and the winds were going to be worse. And he was right. It was another good day for reading and watching news. We even took in a movie to pass the time. A Dive-In lunch with burgers was plenty, followed by a difficult walk on the promenade deck. There were three or four of us on that deck, so one mile was enough. While on the Volendam in Alaska, the decks were roped off for half of the wind we had today. Dinner had a few favorites with Thai beef tataki, arancini, Caesar salads, and mains of honey-mustard parmesan-crusted chicken and meatballs and spaghetti. A favorite for one of us. During the course of the meal, we hit some very deep swells, causing covered entrees, plates, and glassware to drop all over the floors of the serving stations. There must have been a big mess, since we saw waiters running with brooms and dustpans. We finished our ice cream and a tres leche caramel flan, then called it a night, carefully making our way back to deck six bouncing off of the walls all the way down the hallway. There was a show with a comedian, Jose Sarduy, but we are not sure how many folks would attend when the seas got so much rougher. We do know one thing…..a Zuiderdam bar hop for $25 gathered a good-size crowd in the Ocean Bar. It must have originated in the Crow’s Nest at 8pm and by 9:30pm, the group was hooting and hollering just fine. Good time for another hour back on the clocks. Now we will be set for Hawaii time. Sure hope the seas level out tomorrow or sooner. Might be time for meclizine. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #36 Saturday February 3, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Kona, Hawaii Sunny With Broken Clouds Deep Swell 20' A Lot Of Rolling 75 Degrees Part #1 Of 1........38 Pictures------Formal Dress This morning we all had a notice that tomorrow we will need to pick up our passports between 9 and 9:30am. They have figured out a way that really makes it easy. Desks will be set up in each center elevator landing on all room decks, except those who are on deck 10. They will go to deck 8. Starting at 9am, even number rooms will be called, then at 9:30am, the odd numbers will go. We’ll have to dig up those passport receipts we got on day one, although most times they are not required. The actual face to passport inspection will take place when we arrive to Kona. The highlight of today was the Great Gatsby Soiree, a Roaring 20’s celebration, which really was well before our time. Everyone would be invited to cut a rug or put on the Ritz wearing flapper dresses and dapper suits. And yes, we did see a few folks dressed for the occasion. This would take place in the Lido Poolside, but not until 8:30pm and last until 10:30pm. A speakeasy party would follow in the Crow’s Nest, although we are not sure how many guests would make it up that late. It was another easy day for us, doing our regular routine. We always make it a point to get out twice a day and walk a couple of miles no matter the weather or the rolling seas. Today the swells were significant, but then subsided later in the afternoon. It was a better time for most folks to go to lectures, one of which was with Captain Frank….a question/answer session. All things Hawaii have continued all throughout the day including tour participation. Shop sales were offered, but we are sure these are the every day specials. And it was no surprise that the 3pm movie in the World Stage was The Great Gatsby. We keep forgetting that popcorn is available ½ hour before showtime. Today the movie was repeated at 7 and 9:30pm, since there was no entertainment tonight. Maybe it’s just us, but we found the menu for tonight’s Formal dinner to be lack-luster. Normally there are set items such as pate, escargots, or even caviar. Remember the days when caviar was always offered? And as much as you wished? As good as it gets has to be the nice jumbo shrimp (4) with cocktail sauce, which is now an everyday item. The entrees were mostly a mystery. Not the normal surf and turf, there was a lamb cutlet, which was a mystery since we have never seen that on any menu. Turned out to be lamb chops (rare as can be) with a different sauce and a beet puree on top. Our other entrée was a vegetarian choice with sliced polenta rectangles, more suitable for an appetizer. For a change we ordered desserts of lemon custard in a filo dough shell. A nice lady sitting across from us had a birthday, and she shared small pieces of her birthday mousse cake with us and another couple. It was far better than the lemon dessert. With the usual suspects missing on the menu tonight, we have a feeling that the cooks are running out of food. Our head waiter, Hazel, confirmed it. Perhaps after Hawaii, we will begin to see more of the normal offerings come back. Once again, the clocks went back one hour tonight. A good thing for those who made it to the Soiree this evening. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #35 Friday February 2, 2024 Day At Sea Enroute To Kona, Hawaii Sunny With Clouds And A Rain Shower 72 Degrees 12' Swell 14mph Wind Part #1 Of 1........No Pictures-----Casual Dress Strangely enough, we think today was even cooler than yesterday. Normally when we head southwest like this, it gets warmer and much more humid. What has changed are the seas. We are experiencing deeper swells and lots of pitching and yawing. According to Captain Frank, he mentioned that the next few days may bring more swells and possibly showers. We sure do hope we are able to get into the three Hawaiian ports, because it has become apparent that we are running out of some staples like fresh veggies and yogurt. The dinner menus seem to be spotty with the dinner entrees we always expect. It seemed odd to be going to breakfast and it was still dark. There has to be a time change tonight, which would put us on Pacific time. Then we think we still have two hours to add before we arrive to the Hawaiian Islands. That would work out well for all of us. One of our buddies admitted he is going to sleep 12 hours tonight. Of course, it was another day to relax and spend some time chatting with friends. Quite often we see Greg when we go to the Seaview Pool. When we arrived by 11am, the ship had sailed under the blackest cloud in the sky, and it began to sprinkle. Not enough to get us wet, but enough to send us under cover. People in the one jacuzzi spa never got out of it. We don’t know why, but it seems that only one of the two spas are open to use every day. Very few people swim in the pool back here, so we suspect the water is cool now. Anyway, we spent some time talking with Greg and catching up on all of the news. Obviously, the biggest subject is the change of our itinerary and what the guests will do with the total switch of ports. There is some talk that some people may choose to call it quits, and go home. We will probably never know the number of folks that may leave, unless they are people we know. Not everyone is thrilled with all of the Africa stops, especially those in West Africa. Life onboard with all of the talks and activities have gone on as scheduled. Today it was everything “Hawaiian” with craft-making, a lecture on Hawaii by Kimberly, and dance lessons with the ambassadors. Kainoa gave two talks about Hawaii- kingdom to state, and later he lectured on Captain James Cook, a fascinating character in the South Pacific area. It was a good day to enjoy watching two boobys diving for fish while reading on our veranda. Before we knew it, dinnertime had arrived. Like we said, there were not a lot of good choices for entrees, so we settled on the chicken cordon bleu. Sometimes we suspect that these entrees are frozen, but tonight’s chicken was cooked on the spot. Each serving was twice as large as we usually get. The ham and cheese was lost in a giant chicken breast and a bit on the dry and chewy side. We don’t know for a fact, but we think our meals are microwaved to make them hotter. Perhaps 30 seconds would be sufficient, but any more than that will toughen up the dish, which was the case tonight. It tasted fine, so we did not mention it to our waiter. Next time, we might think twice before ordering it. Slices of pineapple and a cup of hot coffee finished our meal. High Notes was the title for the entertainment this evening. DJ Bucciarelli was the singer who celebrated music of Neil Sedaka and he was back with an all- new show. We have gotten many reports that the World Stage is freezing during the shows. For some reason, they seem to be having problems regulating the air-conditioning and heating. For the most part, it has been too cold for most people. It is not uncommon to see sweaters and jackets in the dining room at night. Then in the middle of the night, it warms up and you wake up in a sweat. Go figure….. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #34 Thursday February 1, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Kona, Hawaii Sunny With Clouds Cooler 72 Degrees 4mph Breeze 8' Swell Part #1 Of 1.......33 Pictures----Casual Dress Well, here we start the month of February with a whole new outlook for the second half of this world cruise. Many people we know have already begun searches on independent tours in the new ports. We are more than certain that the shore excursion team will come up with many choices as they always do. The interesting ones will be in Africa especially if overland safaris will be included in the choices. Normally, most of the big camps fill up more than a year in advance. So far, we have no plans to do any overland trips since we are looking to do that in 2025. That is if HAL decides to repeat the African portion of that future cruise. Perhaps more guests will opt for the Pole-To-Pole grand voyage. Only time will tell. We did receive another letter from Henk, our hotel manager, who went into further detail about the Future Cruise Credit. Originally, the first letter stated that only new bookings could receive that credit. Now they are saying that if we have existing reservations and they are not paid in full, then the FCC will apply. Last evening at the cocktail party, we also heard that the FCC may be applied to the 2026 Grand Voyage. But that has not been put into writing yet. In addition, it may take until February 29th for everyone’s FCC to be calculated and applied to our Mariner accounts. Of course, we are all welcomed to make a visit to the cruise consultant onboard and have them explain the details even further. It appears that the most asked question about the itinerary changes has been regarding the cancellation of India. No matter how they tried, HAL could not fit in that 2 day stop without impacting the rest of the journey. For us, we did not have any plans for over lands in India this time, so the change did not matter all that much. One of us will miss the shoe shopping however. Now we are curious if any guests have decided to leave this cruise from Singapore for instance. The way we read the first communication, if you choose to leave the trip, you will not get the 15% future cruise credit. So far that particular option has not be clarified. Nor will it be encouraged. Our day was a relaxing one. We were pretty much set on an overcast cloudy day, but eventually, the clouds departed and we had mostly blue skies and mild temperatures. There was a nip in the breeze in the afternoon, which was nice. At one point, we think the Captain mentioned seeing whale spouts, but we cannot be sure, since at 4pm, no announcements will come into the rooms. Might disturb those who are taking naps perhaps? We were outside, and the announcement was coming from deck three, so it was impossible to decipher what was being said. We did spend some time at the Sea View Pool and found that many guests were lined up for the Lido lunch. Yesterday the theme was “soul food”, and we are not sure what that might be? Today the special was donuts and eclairs and the line was even longer. So far we have been successful in staying clear of those temptations. Lunch for us was room service around 2:30pm with salads and a shared sandwich. That way we have exactly what we ordered and are not tempted with all the other good stuff. A few boobies have stayed with us, and today we did see a couple of flying fish. The birds appear sporadically, so we figured they are taking breaks on the bow of the ship. We never did see any whales spouting, but then they may have been on the starboard side. The dinner menu had few good choices this evening. Luckily we were not that hungry. Caesar salad is always a good option, since it appears the only lettuce is romaine. One of us opted for the room service chicken noodle soup, and a tomato/mozzarella salad without the lettuce. Our mains were one grilled pork chop and a roast beef dinner we used to get at the Mariner brunch. One of us had some fresh pineapple for dessert, which was really ripe and sweet. Hoping for a time change with the clocks set back one hour. But it did not happen tonight….darn. Maybe tomorrow, as we are heading southwest at a high speed. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #33 Wednesday January 31, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Kona, Hawaii, USA Sunny And Cooler 73 Degrees 6mph Wind And A 6' Swell Part #1 Of 1........8 Pictures---Casual Dress On Backwards Day We have now begun a trek at sea on our way towards Kona, Hawaii. It was very quiet in the Pinnacle Grill this morning , more than likely due to the fact we rolled the clocks back one hour, and the fact that yesterday was a busy one in a fun port. We did notice that many guests on our deck had their “do not disturb” sign in their key slots. The skies remained partly cloudy most of the day, keeping the temperatures down. In fact, we noticed a change in the breeze, which did not have the humidity with it. We do hope that the fairly calm seas will stay with us for the rest of the sailing. Sometimes this route we are taking can get plenty rough. Todays newsletter was nicknamed “Backwards Day”. Why….we have absolutely no idea. The itinerary was printed flip-flopped inside, perhaps to see if the folks are really reading it. The new Hawaiian cultural ambassadors have arrived, led by Kainoa. He has been on every South Pacific cruise we have done in the past several years as well as on the Alaska runs. He does his job quite well and we look forward to his talks. Today he will discuss the humpback whales. We spent an hour at the Sea View Pool and actually found it comfortable back there. Up until now, it has been very hot and humid. We do know that after we leave the Hawaiian Islands and head north towards Japan, the weather will be quite different. In a word……it will be cold. So we will soak up the sun as much as we can until then. There was a mandatory drill today that meant we all had to attend our muster station and have our room keys scanned. It began at 1pm and the odd number staterooms went first. Those on decks one, four, and five went first. Then at 1:30pm, the even number cabin numbers went from decks six, seven, eight, and ten. It seemed to work well because no one was called after the fact like what usually happens when we are in a port. After getting scanned, we all had to go back to the room and run the safety video. Once completed, the room TVs went back to normal programming. Sure beats the days when we had to trip up or down the stairs with our life vests in tow. Then stand at attention in the hot sun by our tender boats. At 6:30pm, we had an invite to a cocktail party for the President’s Club members and the key officers and staff. It was dubbed Mexican Style and included some nice Mexican canapies, like nacho chips with bean and guacamole dip, coconut crusted shrimp, a cheese puff, and a beef treat. Drinks flowed by the attentive bar staff as we were greeted by Captain Frank and Henk. We would guess that the number of staff and officers exceeded the number of guests, as there are only about 26 of us. It was a perfect opportunity to discuss the itinerary changes that were made yesterday. It does sound as if the change in direction will be final. A lot goes into re-routing, according to Henk, and we learned that the deliveries and fuel bunkering are the first things to be mapped out. Then the ports are added depending on their availability as well. More details regarding these changes will be coming in the following days according to Shiv, who filled us in on some of the details. Following the party, we had dinner in the Pinnacle Grill tonight. Usually we always order the wedge salad, but tonight, there was no iceberg lettuce, so we had to switch to Caesar salads. They still went well with the clothesline bacon, although the thick slab bacon has not been available since day one. They have substituted regular bacon which is OK, but not quite the same. Our entrees were the lamb chops, but on a “naked “ plate. In other words, no smear of bean puree or other unidentifiable vegetables. We each added a half of a baked potato, and our plates were full. Our waiter had suggested we ask for three chops instead of two, but that would have been too much. We are happy with the slightly smaller portions. And as it was, we skipped dessert. No room. While talking to Captain Frank, he sort of said that the seas will remain calm at least for a few days. Now we are wondering what we have in store for us? Bill & Mary Ann

Report #32 Tuesday Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico Docked Port Side To Pier 8am-5pm Cloudy With Overcast Skies 75 Degrees 1mph Breeze Part #1 Of 5........55 Pictures--Casual Dress The Zuiderdam arrived to the port of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico around 7am…..in the dark again. The ship was cleared shortly after 8am, but there was a problem with the keycard check at the gangway. It wasn’t working, so everyone debarking had to give their room number which was written down. The tours that were offered today all went off at 8am, so there must have been a long line for folks to get off. All those who were not on the HAL excursions were asked to wait a while for the guests to get off to their buses. Today the ship was docked in a different spot than we used to be. Portside, or our side, was facing Walmart and Sam’s Club. There would eventually be another ship here, the Carnival Panorama, but she was docked sort of behind us. Much bigger than us, she has 133,500 gross tons and holds up to 3954 guests and 1450 crew. They are just beginning their 7 day Mexico runs. The slip across from the new terminal shopping mall remained empty, except for the pirate boat and some catamarans. Leaving the ship, we were channeled between two rows of souvenir tents, then through a very small building with armed guards and xray to be used on our way back. The crew were most happy since we were close to Walmart where every one of them was planning on snack-shopping. There were several tours today, but here are a few of the most popular. A boat ride to see whales and dolphins at Marietas Islands with a lunch was $90 for 6 hours. Another speedboat took folks to a beach for horseback riding. It included a lunch and was $145 for 7 hours. Rare spirits of Puerto Vallarta with lunch was $65 for 5 ½ hours. We left the ship before 10am, and headed towards the Malecon, which was a walk of 3.4 miles. Lucky for us, the weather was mild, with temperatures in the mid-70’s, and a little humidity. We have been here so many times in May when the sun is blazing and the highs are in the 90’s. With a nice breeze, it did help make our walk a little more pleasant. The seaside walkway that lines the Pacific Ocean is one of the most celebrated spots in the city. It was full of people shopping, drinking, getting seats in the dozens of restaurants along the street, and watching the pole-climbers that put on a free show for the tourists. The sand artists were there as well as some young local fellows dressed in traditional feather headgear and costumes. Not sure what they did, other than pose for photos with people. Towards the center of the Malecon was the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The church looms over the city and has become an iconic symbol of the town. This was at the 4-mile mark for us….from the pier to the church. Continuing on, we walked through old downtown and across the Rio Cuale, where one of our favorite restaurants is located. It was exactly noon when we arrived, and they were opened for lunch. Cannot tell you how good it was to sit down and relax with ice cold Pacifico beers. Seated at a table with the view of the river, we ordered their Mexican combination of cheese nachos and quesadillas. Complimentary tortilla chips and salsa started our meal. Then we added one order of chicken fajitas with corn and flour tortillas. They were delicious with guacamole and a bean dip. Our kind waiter turned on some fans and added the misters which cooled off the balcony nicely. Back round music was added by a harpist, and later a troubadour came through the restaurant playing his guitar. These days, that is something you might see in a movie. This is authentic Mexico at its best. We did take note that this café attracts more locals than tourists. We had to watch our time, since it was a long hike back, and all aboard was at 4:30pm. On the way out of the restaurant, we saw friends who were there with their friends who happen to live in this city. They all agreed this restaurant was the best in town. We chatted for a bit, then continued on our way passing by numerous riverside souvenir tents. Making our way back up a flight of stairs to the oceanside, we ran into Heo and Greg as well as Ginni and Rich. The guys were so excited to be the first to tell us that our itinerary for the world cruise had been announced and very much changed due to the evolving situation in the Red Sea and Suez Canal. As we expected, both were cancelled along with India, The Emirates, Oman, and Jordan. The Mediterranean was totally out of the question now. So after we stop at Sri Lanka, the ship will head to the Maldives, Seychelles, and Tanzania….all two day stays. Then we will hit Mozambique, Durban, and a 3 day stay in Cape Town. There will be two stops in Namibia, Ghana, The Gambia, and Cape Verde. Then it will be Transatlantic to Puerto Rico and finally back to Ft. Lauderdale on May 11th. A future cruise credit of 15% of the base price of this cruise will be applied to a new booking to be sailed by the end of 2025. In addition, each of us will receive $500 shipboard credit to be used to offset the new visas we will need. The ship will be able to obtain these visas onboard, and we will not have to apply on our own. People will get credit for tours that they booked, and we are certain excursions will be added in the new ports. So, the “mystery” cruise is no longer a mystery! Not everyone is thrilled with all of the changes, but better safe than sorry we say. We highly recommended the restaurant to our buddies to get the best lunch, so we hope they took us up on the tip. But we think the walk there may have been too much for the group. Taking our time, we walked back to the ship with many short stops along the way. We had intended to make a visit to Fiestamerica , but when we passed by the driveway guard, he asked to see our bracelets. What bracelets? Apparently you need to be a member of their hotel complex in order to use their facilities. That included getting sodas at their outdoor pool bar. Oh well, at this point we were close to the pier, and continued along our way. That’s when we spotted the Carnival ship’s famous whale tail stacks. And that had to be the groups of folks that were headed past us and into downtown. They were staying later than us, and still had time to make it to the Old Town. We got back by 4pm, and really relaxed with cold sodas for the rest of the afternoon. We were surprised to see how many passengers arrived with one minute to spare before the all aboard time. One man was using that time to negotiate a jewelry purchase at one of the tents, and we hoped it worked as he had to run to get back to the gangway. When you see some of the officers gathering at the gangway, you had better hustle and forget the shopping. Leaving the harbor, a very nice pilot boat followed along. When the pilot was dropped off, Captain Frank tooted his horn several times, as did the pilot captain in response. We will not see another pilot boat until we reach Kona Hawaii several days from now. On the way out of the gigantic bay, Captain Frank had mentioned to keep a watch for whales. Then shortly after 5pm, he came on the speakers and said they spotted some on the port side. Lucky for those of us on the port side, we did see some whales blowing and skimming the water. We are not certain the type of whales we saw, but they did not behave the same way humpbacks do. Once again they may have been fin whales. Around 7pm, we were waiting for the sun to go down, but did not expect to see the display that developed suddenly. Beginning with a sliver of orange light on the horizon, eventually lit up every whipped-cream like cloud that had scattered through the sky. Very similar to the Hawaiian sunsets we have been lucky to see. If the ship maintains the mostly west/southwest direction, we should be able to see both sunrise and sunset for the following week. We could have easily skipped dinner, but there were a few items on the menu that were good. One such item was a tomato soup, different salads, and flat iron steak. We would call the steak London broil, sliced thinly and served with crispy fingerling potatoes. A small slice of carrot cake and much-needed sliced bananas were our desserts. And good news….the clocks went back one hour this evening. We sure need the extra time after such a vigorous day in Puerto Vallarta. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #31 Monday January 29, 2024 Manzanillo, Mexico Docked Port Side To Pier 12:30pm-9pm Heavy Clouds And Overcast 80 Degrees Slight Breeze Part #1 Of 3......69 Pictures---Casual Dress Another day, another country. This time it is Mexico and the port of Manzanillo, the sailfish capital of the country. It is far from the largest city, but it does have 159,000 people that keep this port city going. Manzanillo is the major seaport that transports cargo for Mexico City, the nation’s capital. We happened to stop here two years ago while on the Nieuw Amsterdam, but never realized the size of the container and commercial area of this massive harbor. No wonder it was a pirate’s haven back in the old days. When we woke up this morning, it was still dark. Even at 7am, the daylight was just beginning. Sure feels like a time change is necessary soon. Perhaps after we stop in Puerto Vallarta. Our arrival time was set at 12pm, so there was no rush to get up early for most folks this morning. The tours would not leave until after noon time, and two of those would go first. One was a drive to Comala with a lunch for 6 ¾ hours for $115. The second one was magical pueblos in Comala for $110 and 7 hours. Manzanillo beach and shopping was 6 ½ hours for $50, while Salt, Fruit and clay brick-making was 5 ¼ hours for $70. Another beach trip was 4 ½ hours for $50, and fruit, folklore, and orchids was $70 for 5 hours. Last was a city drive and shopping for $50 and 4 ½ hours. During her port talk, Kimberly also suggested taking a taxi to another beach where you can buy a day pass. This would include use of the hotel’s beachfront, all beverages, and a buffet lunch for $70 per person. Considering that included all soft and alcoholic drinks, it is not a bad price. She did advise everyone that it is common for shops and restaurants to close down during siesta time. That would be from 2pm to 4:30pm. Considering the weather was warm and sticky, the overcast skies might not have been the best for a beach day. Once we were docked, everyone was waiting to get off, but there was a problem. The local officials had not shown up yet, and we were not officially cleared. That did happen before 12:30pm, and we watched as all of the tour groups went off and headed for their buses. And it was one l-o-n-g walk on the pier to get to the shoreside. We waited until 1pm before we left. One nice thing we noticed was that the dining room offered an express lunch from 11am to 12pm. That way the Lido would not be crowded. Once outside the port gate, we turned left and followed the main road to see all of the fishing boats in the harbor. No fancy yachts or sail boats here, but strictly deep sea vessels or small fishing boats. There is a reason there is a gigantic blue sailfish marking the malecon, as this is considered one of the best places in Mexico for deep sea fishing. We did not go too far this way, because the wide pedestrian street ended. Turning back, we headed for the wide avenue of the malecon where the sailfish stands proud.. Along this stretch of harborfront, there is a Zodiac walk with artist’s editions of each month’s signs. There was a nice parklike setting where benches were placed under shade trees. We took full advantage of the benches, at least for a few minutes. At this far end, we turned left and headed up one of the main shopping streets of the old town. There was everything that you would need right in about three blocks. The most common shops had to be the shoe stores, followed by some clothes shops. There was one fairly nice hotel that was just opening for lunch. It was full of locals more than tourists. The side streets provided more photo ops with the steepest steps we have seen to go uphill. Most of the homes on the hillsides were painted bright colors. They also painted the stairs the same colors. When the street ran out of shops, we turned around. It was really crowded for a Monday, and from what saw, very few businesses were shutting down for the siesta. We made our way back to the ship arriving by 3pm, never finding a suitable place for lunch. Chicken Caesar salads sounded good to us and a shared club sandwich. We had the best view of town all afternoon. Two years ago, we had the treat of seeing a whale in the harbor, which came quite close to the ship all day long. We did search for it, but only saw pelicans, frigates, terns, and sea gulls. Later in the afternoon, we spotted a sting ray in the harbor waters below our room. At one point, we believe we bunkered fuel on the starboard side, as we could smell it. During dinner, we did see a barge was alongside the starboard side of the ship until we left close to 9pm. Dinner had a few good choices starting with breaded chicken tenders and split pea soup. One of us ordered the pork tenderloin and the other had the alternate steak. The best part of the steak dinner were the French fries, which were served piping hot. Desserts were a lemon meringue cheesecake, a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and pineapple slices. Knowing most folks would be tired after a long day in port, there was a movie in the World Stage instead of a live show. It was Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and was also shown at 3pm today. Both showings offered popcorn. Tomorrow we will be visiting Puerto Vallarta, another place where we walk until we drop. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #30 Sunday January 28, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Manzanillo, Mexico Sunny And Warm 85 Degrees Sea State Flat Very Little Breeze After A Very Rough Night 45mph Winds Part #1 Of 1.......26 Pictures--Dressy Night It has taken us this long to remember we dubbed “Sunday” as mimosa day in the Pinnacle Grill at breakfast. As a matter of fact, fresh-squeezed orange juice, mimosas, cappuccinos and espresso coffees are complimentary every day. They are not necessarily promoted like they were when we traveled on the Nieuw Statendam two years ago, but these items are on the menu for those who wish to order them. Actually, one of us had the poinsettia version which is cranberry juice and champagne. And that leads us to Sunday Brunch, which used to be a venue every couple of weeks while on last year’s world cruise. So far, we have not seen that happen on this trip. But close to it, we discovered there was a Spot of Brunch in the Lido Market from 11am to 2pm where waffles, pancakes, and eggs Benedict were being served along with many other items. The regular dining room breakfast was still an option, as was the regular lunch menu in the Lido. This probably works better for everyone. The biggest subject of the day had to be weather we encountered last night. Captain Frank had predicted a very windy and possibly rough evening as we entered an area of a system along the coastline. By midnight, it became apparent that his prediction was obviously right on. The winds reached 45mph and combined with deep sea swells, it made for one really rough evening….extreme at times to wake one of us up all night long. Thank goodness, by the morning, the conditions improved leaving only wet decks outside. During his noon update today, the Captain said last night’s episode was a phenomenon which we hope would not be repeated. The system that caused the ship to roll and pitch was far behind us now. But there would be something to brighten our day…….the sightings of dolphins and whales. Taking a walk on the promenade deck around 9:30am, we saw some spouting whales in the distance. Not quite the same as humpback whale blows, but definitely something big. Then we saw the giant splash from one of the breaching whales. Some friends who were also on the deck, said they may be fin whales. They had brought up a picture of one on their phone and it sure looked the same to us. At that point, we did not have our camera, so we headed back to the room to whale-spot from our veranda. And we did get some shots of them as well as some dolphins. Naturally we kept watch for an hour, and may have seen some more whales but far in the distance. We went to the Sea View Pool and had to pull chairs over to the poolside. The tables had been pulled under the overhang while going through that bad weather, but not put back. We have been finding that the wait staff back at this pool is about non-existent. If there are a few waiters, they seem to bus tables more than anything else. We find this most unusual as on other world cruises, these fellows or gals have been very attentive. While we were sitting there, the Captain announced dolphins were seen on both sides of the ship. Going to the side railing, we did see at least three of them swimming under the surface, but never jumping. Most of our afternoon was spent watching both football games. The first game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens went about as expected. The second game between the SF 49ers and the Detroit Lions was not going well, and we had to leave for dinner right after half time. What a surprise to learn that the 49ers won that game as they were down by a lot from the very beginning. Looking forward to Super Bowl Sunday next month. It should be a good game. Dressy was the code for tonight’s dinner. We have only had one of those in the entire month. Anyway the menu was really leaning to the formal cuisine with escargots, ½ Dover sole, with the most requested entrée being liver and onions. Really. We opted for shrimp cocktails, salads, and mains of lasagna and everyday chicken. A small slice of lemon torte finished our meal. A vocalist by the name of DJ Bucciarelli did the Neil Sedaka Songbook. We are sure he was good but we really wanted to get back to see who won the football game. We do not arrive to the port of Manzanillo until noontime tomorrow. It will be a good place to stretch our legs and take a long walk through town. Hope it will not be too hot. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #29 Saturday January 27, 2024 Sea Day Enroute To Manzanillo, Mexico Sunny With A Slight Breeze A Few Clouds 85 Degrees 6' Swell Part #1 Of 2.......44 Pictures---Casual Dress Our day at sea was most relaxing even though the day began early with the 7:30am breakfast. We have been used to an 8am start on sea days and the half hour early is a bit hard to get used to. Of course, we like the table we are given every day, and the minute we arrive 5 minutes late, someone else will claim it. Almost like a game with some folks. By the way, our entree plates have been hot every morning, and as long as we are very specific with our order, all has come exactly correct. Hoping that the temperatures would have cooled down a little that did not happen. It was just as warm and muggy today as yesterday. The seas have smoothed out nicely and that would prove to be a very good thing later in the afternoon. The masked and brown boobies have followed us from Costa Rica, diving after flying fish, and perching on the bow. According to Captain Frank, they are amusing to watch however they are leaving quite a mess out there. Now we wonder how far they will go before flying back south? There is a new lecturer onboard by the name of Frederick Grant. His topic was about Mexico’s parks, reserves, and marine areas. It’s always nice to learn as much as you can about an upcoming part of the world that we are about to visit. Also Kimberly gave a talk on Manzanillo, the first of two ports we will be visiting in Mexico. We caught it later when it appeared on the TV. Have any of you heard of an ice cream social? And one that includes a banana-split eating contest? Yes….the top three fastest eaters will be prized with a treat. That happened from 3 to 4pm, but we missed it as we were on watch for any type of sea life we might see. Just by pure luck, we were sitting on our veranda, and heard a splash near the ship right below us. Low and behold, it was a jumping dolphin. It popped out twice then dove. If there was one, there must be more right? Being patient, we waited and watched and finally we saw more splashing in the distance. Yep, more dolphins playing in the ship’s wake. It was far off in the distance, but the camera caught the action. We stayed outside until after the sun went down hoping for more sightings, but saw none. But there’s always tomorrow….. Last night we had a reminder notice that our credit cards will be charged on January 30th. If we owed a balance, then the credit card on file will be charged. If we had a credit, then it will roll over for the next period. They do give you the choice of changing your card on file if there is a problem with the billing. This was never done on a world cruise, but it seems to be the rule now on all of the ships, especially those with longer itineraries. Dinnertime had some new items with a bay shrimp appetizer, a Caesar salad, and the old stand-by of French onion soup. Our entrees were the same…..pork tenderloin with applesauce. Could have used a lot more applesauce, but we always forget to ask. Desserts were one caramel flan and a fruit plate. And one cup of hot coffee. A new entertainer joined the ship and her name is Michelle Montuori, a stage and recording artist. She was billed as a cabaret singer with her own brand of humor. We agree…she was good. Another day at sea with hopes of seeing more of those dolphins. Bill & Mary Ann

Report #28 Friday January 26, 2024 Quepos, Costa Rica Anchored Tender Port 7am-4pm Cloudy And Hot 90 Degrees Wind Star Also Here Part #1 Of 5.......55 Pictures---Casual Dress The Costa Rican port of Quepos today is a new one for us. But first of all, here is a snippet of info on this Central American country. Costa Rica has a population of 4.8 million Spanish-speaking people. The capital is San Jose where the coffee plantations are situated as well as the volcanoes and rainforests. This country has a little of everything such as waterfalls, crater lakes, jungles, and beaches. The locals are friendly and enjoy the “pura vida” or good life. Compared to neighboring countries, there is very little poverty here as the standard of living is high. Their secret lies in the fact that education is a top priority. Another interesting fact is that Costa Rica has survived without an army for over 60 years, relying on their police and national guard. The shore excursions were different here compared to the usual ones out of Puntarenas. We were anchored off of the town of Quepos, located near the Parque National Manuel Antonio, the smallest park, but the most popular area. This park has howler monkeys, white-face capuchins, tropical birds, sloths, and iguanas. A tour to this park (the only place you will see these critters) was $140 for 4 ½ hours. A tropical forest aerial tram was $160 for 7 hours and included a lunch. Savegre River floating adventure for 5 hours was $170, while a dolphin and whale watching tour with lunch was 7 hours and $200. And a most interesting fact to remember, is that there are 8 species of poison-dart frogs that may be beautiful, but they have skin secretions that can cause paralysis and death if they get into your bloodstream. Don’t touch! Ever! Today’s temperature must have been the hottest yet, around 88 – 90 degrees with a very high humidity. In other words, it was extremely uncomfortable. The breeze was almost non-existent, which did not help. There was a sun haze that enveloped the entire harbor and hillsides all day….almost like a thin veil of fog. Not the best friend of the cameras. This was a tender port as well. During breakfast, one of our waitresses told us that the line to get tender tickets was stretched from the Rolling Stones Lounge to the back end of the ship. We had arrived at 7am, so many folks wanted to get off early in hopes of booking independent tours ashore we assume. And there was another ship in the harbor……Windstar. Although smaller than us by a lot, there were still many guests looking to do the same tours. We stayed onboard until the thundering herd got off, which was about 10am. The tender boat ride to the marina was only about 10 minutes. It became quite apparent what this town is all about when we saw the number of deep sea fishing boats in the Marina Pez Vela. It is renowned for world-class sports fishing for blue marlin and sailfish. This complex is very modern and filled with restaurants, bars, stores, and boat- related facilities. And from the signs we saw, there are competitions here. The actual town of Quepos was about a ¼ mile walk to the left. The park was about 5 miles away and the closest beach was about the same distance to the south. Due to a powerful undertow, there were no usable beaches in town. As soon as we left the marina complex, there was a wide promenade walkway along the beach and water below. The rocks holding up this embankment were full of iguanas of all sizes. They were just starting to appear on the heated rocks to warm up. This walkway was really the highlight of the town, which was basically essential shopping for locals. The only thing touristy about it had to be the bars and restaurants. We walked the whole area, passing the supermarket, a few fruit stands on the corners, and plenty of shoe shops. The biggest attraction was the firehouse, where some folks were admiring the fire engines. There was a church nearby, but asking some locals where it was did not work as they did not speak English. And the only monkeys, toucans, and sloths we saw were the stuffed animals for sale in the toy store. Back to the promenade walk, we did spot every bird that lives here such as the pelicans, shore birds, herons, grackles, pigeons, doves, and a vulture. We got back to the marina by noontime, and boarded a waiting tenderboat. And yes, it was great to get back to the coolness of our room. All aboard was 3:30pm, and the ship eventually left the harbor by 4:30pm. We watched for dolphins and whales, but had no luck. All we saw were the brown boobies that re-appeared once we got out to sea. Dinner was good with curried chicken empanadas for starters. One of us had chicken “spaghetti” soup and the other a Caesar salad, which arrived without the dressing. Our waiter quickly brought one of those tiny square containers of dressing. Mains were the everyday herb roasted chicken and a chicken scaloppini with mashed potatoes and a savory gravy. One of the head chefs, Hari, stopped by and asked how we liked the chicken. Very good for the scaloppini, which was a new entree for one of us. The chef described the process of the mushroom gravy making with added cognac and heavy cream. He knew it would be a hit tonight. Desserts were opera cake and sliced pineapple. There was a show tonight with the return of Chris Pendleton, a comedian who promised to be hilarious. We are not sure how many people would attend the late show, since it was such a long, hot day, most of the diners had left the dining room by 9pm. Now we have a few days at sea before arriving to Mexico. Hope it cools down a bit by then. Bill & Mary Ann