Where In the World Are Tom and Jet

January 13, 2018

Unfortunately, we spent a good bit of the day in the infirmary. In spite of her improved cough and no more fever, Jet became dehydrated and her potassium levels were out of line so she had to have IV fluids and potassium to get her back on track.

The good thing is that, with her fever being gone, she’s no longer confined to the cabin.

Now we just need to get her energy level back to normal. The doctor says he feels she’s “over the hump” now in her healing process.

We’re very impressed by the infirmary staff. They have 2 doctors who have had a wide range of experience and 3 nurses who have at least 3 years of critical care nursing experience before they are considered for hiring. All of them are very kind and understanding. We’ll have to figure out some sort of gift to give them for their care and kindness.

 

Five more sea days before we hit port.

Hope Jet is soon back to normal.

Maybe you could gift the infirmary staff a dinner in the Pinnacle Grill.

Thank you for for your reports.

Enjoying this thread.

Keith

January 14, 2018

The weather is cooperating again today. 73 degrees and the ocean is almost as smooth as a mirror.

We crossed the equator for the first time this morning. There will be a total of 4 such crossings over the entire world cruise.

We’re getting further from land. Yesterday, we were about 150 miles from the Galapagos Islands while today, we’re about 900 miles from the closest land. Still have about 2000 miles to go before we arrive at Nuku Hiva. After today, we still have 4 more sea days before we reach that port.

I’m glad to report that Jet is doing much better today. She’s been released from the the doctor’s care after her blood potassium test was normal this morning. Still kind of weak so I’ve been pushing her around in the wheel chair.

We celebrated the good news by wheeling around the deck a couple of times to enjoy the fresh air and enjoy looking at the ocean. We had a dolphin pod swimming off to one side of the ship earlier today.

Our cabin stewards, Deden and Ipa, have been our saviors over the past few days. They’ve been making sure we have lots of towels, ice, drinks, fruit and anything else we’ve asked for, especially our nightly chocolate treats.

I know you’ll get tired of me saying this, but the crew on this ship, in every area we’ve been to, has been spectacular. If any of them sees you looking like you need help in any way, they’re right there to assist or ask if they can help you. I went to the Lido Cafe to get some dinner for Jet last night and asked one of the young ladies, Julia, we’ve gotten to know if she could give me a tray to carry back to the room. Before I knew it, she had everything I’d asked for in the way of food covered with saran wrap and ready to go. Then, despite having a fairly full section of guests, she insisted on carrying the tray back to the cabin with me and then came into the cabin to say hello to Jet and give her a hug.

This afternoon will be taken up doing computer work and perhaps playing Bingo and rejoining my trivia group for evening trivia.

Entertainment tonight is a gentleman singing and doing a Las Vegas type show. From the looks of his promo picture, I have a feeling we’re going to hear lots of Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. music.

Enjoying your live reports.

Hi Tom,

I'm enjoying reading about your adventure.. Glad your wife is doing better.. FYI the entire continental US is "red" as in the flu is widespread.

Hope all goes well from here on!

January 15,2018

Aboard MS Amsterdam

Just finishing day 5 of 8 days at sea before our first port in French Polynesia, Nuku Hiva.

Weather has been pleasant again with air and water temperature both at 78 degrees.

We’re about 1600 miles from the nearest land, the Galapagos Islands, and still about 1300 miles from our port.

It’s ben a busy day. Jet has been with me all day but I’m wheeling her around in a wheelchair since she’s still kind of weak during her recovery from the flu. Each day is getting better for her and she’s definitely gaining strength.

We saw our young friend, Julia, in the Lido restaurant this evening and she came running up to greet us and give Jet a big hug to welcome her back.

Our trivia team did OK this morning but not so great this afternoon but it’s been a lot of fun doing the trivia.

We started a necklace in the arts and crafts class today and will finish those tomorrow when we glue the pendant we made today to the metal piece that connects it to the cording.

We’re also getting to know one of the photographers, Nicky, well and had a nice conversation with her this evening while she was waiting to take pictures of everyone in their formal attire for the Black and White Masked Ball the ship had for a gala night this evening. Everyone looked very nice in their formal attire and suits and the ship gave everyone very nice masks to wear.

Nicky is from Hungary and she was doing a great job convincing us to travel there some day to see her country. She’s going to show us some pictures of her home town tomorrow.

I was reminded today why you should do what you want, in the way of travel and adventure, whenever you are able to do so both financially and time wise, and not wait until you retire. There’s a young family on board with 2 daughters, age 9 and 12. I was speaking to the mother this morning and she was telling me that they had lost 3 young good friends in the last year to cancer and other diseases. She said she and her husband decided that they didn’t want to regret not following their dreams so they sold their house and came on the ship. They’ll stay until Sydney and then tour Australia for another month and then take another ship back to the US. From there, they are going to move to Ireland so her husband can go back to college for a new degree. Over this 6 month period, their daughters will be home schooled.

I told her my goal was to spend our kids inheritance doing what Jet and I wanted to do and that, hopefully, the last dollar will come out of the bank when we take our last breaths. She busted out laughing and said that wasn’t a bad goal to have.

Until next time.

Great reports.

Glad Jet is starting to feel better and you all are getting back to activities.

Enjoy cruising while you can. No one can predict what the future holds health wise for anyone.

Thank you for telling us of the family on board following their dreams. I think that is absolutely wonderful.

OP - I'm thinking of following my dream, too. Been on a few 26-day cruises with my daughter (now 8), but really want to see the world with her (she's from China and I want her to experience all of Asia, etc.). Will road school her for several months (my state is pretty reasonable re: home school requirements). I want to do it while I'm still physically able and she's still mentally willing (once she hits 12ish, I'm afraid she'll no longer want to be seen with her mom!!!). Love your updates!

Thanks, Tom. Glad Jet is improving. Thanks for taking time to do this.

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Good to hear Jet is feeling better. I couldn't agree more with the family that's following there dream, good for them. That's what I keep saying, do it well you can, you never know what can happen. Our CC handle "ski ww" stands for spending kids inheritance world wide. We all owe it to our self after working hard looking after our kids, now it's our turn. Enjoy.

Allan

January 16, 2018

Aboard MS Amsterdam

We’re finishing day six of 8 days at sea. Our destination, Nuku Hiva, is now less than 1000 miles away. Our speed has been fairly constant at about 19 knots per hour, which translates to about 22 MPH.

We’ve been busy doing things around the ship today. Trivia, crafts class, watching our cruise director, Hamish, interview our entertainer for tonight, Martin Beaumont, a comedian from Great Britain, plus attending a port lecture and lecture on pearls.

I’ve also been doing some remote computer work for the medical practice I work for and working on some lectures I have scheduled for later this year.

Apparently, one of the must places to go, when we reach Bora Bora in a few days, is a restaurant/bar called Bloody Mary’s. It sounds like most of the passengers and crew may end up there. However, with the age group of passengers we have aboard, average age about 70, I doubt we’ll have any reenactments of scenes we’ve seen with very “happy” passengers returning from Senior Frogs in Cozumel. But, you never know, this crowd could surprise me.

Our cruise director, Hamish, is very friendly and funny. He reminds Jet and me of a gentleman, named Joseph, who used to work at the security desk when we lived at Seagate Condos. He sounds and acts just like Joseph. Perhaps he’s his long lost son.

Jet is continuing to improve and get stronger each day. I’m still having her use the wheelchair because she still tires quickly if she walks too far. To say the flu kicked her butt would be an understatement. However, we’ve been doing several laps around the deck every day with me pushing her. It helps me work off those extra servings of bread pudding. They have the best desserts on this ship. I need to go to the spa to weigh myself but the medical center nurse told me the digital scales aren’t accurate while we’re moving. Not sure I believe her but it gives me a good excuse to avoid the shock of what I think the scale may read.

If anyone is considering taking a cruise, I would recommend Holland America hands down. The ships may not have all the glitz and glamour of some of the ships, like Royal Caribbean’s Oasis class, but the crew and general amenities on board make up for that. This afternoon, we walked past the Gust Services desk and all seven of the ladies working there looked up from what they were doing and said hello with big smiles on their faces. Jet comments that, in all the cruises we’ve done on RCI, we never had that happen.

Well, until tomorrow.

January 17, 2018

Aboard MS Amsterdam

Day 7 of 8 at sea today. Getting a little warmer at 80 degrees today but still comfortable.

The last 2 days, I’ve discovered a new form of exercise which I’ve really enjoyed. It’s called Qi Gong and reminds me of what I’ve seen when people do Tai Chi. Slow exercise which stretches your muscles and gets your blood moving.

They also offer Tai Chi so I’ll have attend one of those classes to compare.

We’re now about 500 miles from Nuku Hiva and have traveled over 3000 miles since leaving Panama. We’ve been very fortunate to have smooth seas so far and our Captain Jonathan says they should continue.

Jet is doing a little better today. She’s been walking around more to go to some of the different event locations but I’ve still been pushing her in the wheelchair when she gets tired. We’re hoping that she regains her normal stamina and strength by the time we start the port intensive portion of the trip in New Zealand.

Surprisingly, I haven’t seen too much sea life so far. A couple of days ago, I saw a school of what looked like miniature bottle nose dolphin as they skittered away from the wake of the ship. This morning, we saw several flying fish. Hopefully we’ll see more wildlife as we get closer to the islands.

I’m looking forward to swimming with the black tip sharks and sea rays when we reach Bora Bora.

We've turned our clocks back 4 hours from East Coast time and, for some strange reason we turn them back only 30minutes tonight.

Until tomorrow.

Thanks for your report.

Good to know that Jet is doing a little better.

Loving your daily reports.

Glad that Jet is feeling better and getting stronger.

Glad Jet is getting better. Glad you are enjoying.

We had 3-4in of snow today 22 degrees,wind chill 12 degrees.

Enjoy Enjoy!!!

Dorothy & Edwin

Love this

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January 18, 2018

Aboard MS Amsterdam

Well, our last day at sea has arrived and it’s now bout 9:30 p.m. our time.

We’re 4 and a half hours behind east coast time now. Not sure why the half hour comes into play but the captain says that Nuku Hiva is in a strange time zone so we switched to their time last night.

Not a great deal to report for today. Jet is still recovering and I still need to pusher in a wheelchair due to her inability to walk long distances. She’s better but only slowing recovering. The flu bug she caught is a real tough one. We’ve been walking/rolling laps around the deck every day and are up to about 3 miles per day.

I’ve enjoyed the Qi Gong class a great deal. Very good way to stretch and work all the muscle groups.

I had a tour set for tomorrow and had been added to a group the tour operator had been putting together of passengers gets from our ship. When the argumentative passenger who is the “group leader” contacted us this afternoon to give us the meeting time and place, he tried to insist that I had to pay for Jet even though she wasn’t going and then he told me I couldn’t go either. After arguing with the jerk, I just told him that I would try to get another tour once I got ashore. He then informed me that he had already replaced us with another couple anyhow!!! Some people think they’re the kings of the world.

We saw a really great show last night with a female singer and another excellent show tonight featuring the ships’ singers and dancers. Beautiful voices.

Our trivia group continues to have fun and we keep coming up one point short of the winning score.

Our crafts class was good today as well. We made a jewelry pouch that we had to sew by hand. By the time I get off this ship, I’ll be able to sew my own clothes. My grandfather was a tailor. Maybe that gene has been hidden inside me all these years.

I’ll let you know how I make out tomorrow. If nothing else, I’ll get a good walk around the dock area and check out the small town on the island.

Until tomorrow.

January 18, 2018

 

Our trivia group continues to have fun and we keep coming up one point short of the winning score.

One of these days we will win!;)

Keeping up with your reports.

Love all the arts and crafts you all do.

I hope you will be able to find another tour. Glad Jet is recovering.

January 19, 2018

Aboard MS Amsterdam

Well, we’ve just left Nuku Hiva. What a beautiful island with very friendly people. I was able to get on a tour after I got to the island via tender, which was a bit of an ordeal. So far, we’ve had 3 ports where the ship cannot dock and we have to be tendered ashore and, each time, we’ve had at least one tender break down. I was aboard the second tender going ashore this morning and one of the engines stalled while we were still at the ship so they unloaded all of us and brought another tender around and off we went.

I met a tour guide named Beatrice who was with her son in law Chris after a warm welcome at the dock by native dancers and singers. We got our group together and had an excellent tour of the island for half the price of my original tour which I was ingloriously booted from. But it worked out for the best because we actually left the port before the group I was originally supposed to go with. Beatrice was a great guide and managed to show us all the island highlights in about 4 hours.

Nuku Hiva is part of the Marquesas (sp) chain of islands and is the largest of five inhabited islands in the group with 3000 residents. Therefore, it is the seat of government for the islands and has a hospital as well. French is the primary language. Most of the people here make their living producing products from coconut such as coconut oil, as well as from tourists and fishing.

The ship was anchored in what was the crater of the volcano which formed the island. It’s full of steep hills and beautiful valleys. There is one major road which was only paved about 10 years ago. Before that, it was dirt and difficult to drive on because parts would wash away or become very slick in the heavy rains. Therefore, every vehicle on the island has 4 wheel drive. Toyota seems to have about 90% of the car market here.

Beatrice told us that a ship comes from Tahiti every 15 days to deliver food, fuel and almost everything the islanders need, including cars they order from the dealer there. Some food crops are grown locally but most things need to be imported. I only saw one small grocery store when we drove around.

Jet stayed aboard the ship today and went back to the doctor to see why she hasn’t recovered her energy as quickly as normal. The doctor feels that the bug that caused her bronchitis before we left home has hung on, hiding behind the flu bug she caught, and she is now on a stronger antibiotic than our doctor back home put her on.

We tenure our clocks back another 30 minutes tonight, which now makes 5 hours inn time changes for us. Tomorrow is another sea day and we arrive in Rangoroa on Sunday. Not sure what we’ll be able to do there since the people on the islands are very religious and the government had to give us special permission to even stop there on a Sunday and hasn’t decided which businesses it will allow to open, since almost everything is closed on Sundays. I remember those days many years ago when Virginia had its “Blue Laws.”

Until tomorrow.

Scrapnana, yes perseverance will carry us to the winners circle one of these days!!!

Hope HAL gets the tenders fixed.

Whenever I get bronchitis, I am sick from 6 - 8 weeks with the doctor constantly changing me medications. So I know how Jet feels -- weak all the time.

Glad you found a good tour once ashore. Your fellow passenger certainly was not nice to you so glad your tour worked out so well. I am enjoying your blog very much.