Hitch a Ride with Bill & Mary Ann on Holland America's 2018 World Cruise - 113 days +

Enjoy reading each days activities.

Thank you for your updates.

I am enjoying this thread.

Keith

Report # 17 Day atSea January 16, 2018 Tuesday Partly cloudy & 79 degrees 8Pictures

At his PM talk today, Captain Jonathon said we are closernow to a different land mass, which is the Marquesas. Every day, he has said the nearest land masshas been the Galapagos Islands. Only twomore days at sea, and we will be in Nuku Hiva. Believe us, that is a whole lot of ocean to cross.

The weather has gotten a bit warmer with mostly blueskies. But we can still say it ispleasant, which is great. It’s still necessaryto slather on the sunscreen. One day someonewill develop a pill that will give you sun protection from the inside out. Until that time, we’ll be greased up, lookinglike we’re ready for the BBQ spit.

The Explorations Central talks have continued for theupcoming ports in French Polynesia. Barbara H had to amend her suggestion to purchase fresh flowers while inPolynesia, or anywhere else on this voyage. Apparently, bringing cut flowers on the Asia/Pacific created a problemwith insects that took a ride on these flowers. So the decision has been made not to allow any more to be broughtonboard. The little tiare blossom or thehandmade head bands are OK, but nothing more than that. Could be that we would have run into aproblem if we had brought our window garden materials onboard. And now we doubt we will be able to purchasea potted plant in Singapore. Oh well, itwas fun while it lasted.

Lunch was in our room again with burgers from the DiveIn. There was no line at 2:30pm, so thewait was a short 10 minutes. Instead ofice cream cones, we split an apple instead. That will tide us over until 8pm.

During our afternoon walk, we spotted hundreds of smallflying fish. As the ship cuts throughthe schools, they come popping out, flying many yards before diving. Lucky for them, there were no birds hunting them……yet.

We took the time to watch the sunset tonight. Tablemates Bonnie and Paul came out to watchit also. It was not disappointing. As we recall, the sunsets can be spectacularin this part of the world, and we hope to see many more. By the way, Bonnie had attended the ball lastnight, leaving dinner before 9:30pm. Shereported that it was fun, even though the time was short. She admitted she wore her mask through thewhole dance, and did a few waltzes with some officers and dance hosts. Little chocolate candy balls were handed outon sticks at 10:15pm.

Dinner for us was in the Pinnacle Grill. Even though we had rack of lamb last night,one of us tried the lamb chops. Handsdown, they are far superior in this restaurant. The chicken jidori entrée was also a nice alternate. French fries, the skinny type, weredelicious. Skinny? Dream on….. We saved a little space for dessert, Cherry Garcia ice cream and theraspberry cheesecake, which really isn’t anything close to cheesecake. During our mealtime, we could hear many of ourbuddies, who were enjoying their travel agency’s dinner. Located in the back room, we could hear themlaughing all evening. Guess the wine wasflowing freely, and no one was in a hurry to leave.

The show this evening was a comedian, Martin Beaumont. Wehappened to have ridden the elevator with him, as he was on his way to the showlounge. He cracked some jokes on theway, so we guess we can say we did hear some of his show.

The clocks went back again tonight, as the ship heads southwesttowards paradise.

Bill & Mary Ann

Those sea days are passing quickly.

We also love the lamb chops in the Pinnacle.

Report # 18 Day atSea January 18, 2018 Wednesday Partly cloudy & 79 degrees 8Pictures

Today things heated up in the weather department. Now we are experiencing the typical warm andhumid tropical temperatures, like it or not. Obviously, this is what the folks are liking, especially with the coldfrigid fronts that have plagued the states.

Walking the promenade, we saw fewer flying fish than we sawyesterday. There had to be thousands ofthem. Keeping a lookout for birds, wedid spot a pair of white ones but hundreds of yards off of the ship. This might be an indication that we arenearing the Marquesas, which of course, we are. One more full day at sea, and weshall be there.

For those who are interested, there are several bridgelessons during the sea days. Beginning asearly as 9:30am, beginners can get instructions in the Hudson Room. This class is followed by the Intermediategroup. The couple that are the teachersthis year happen to also be President’s Club members. Later in the afternoon, the largest groupcongregates in the upper dining room for duplicate bridge.

The Casino has remained mostly non-smoking, with theexception of some slot machines, where one can smoke only if activelyplaying. A Texas hold’em tournament took place at 10:30am, followed bya blackjack tournament, then at 1:30pm, a poker game was repeated. Couldnot locate the bingo, but they did have a $290K paradise lotto jackpot drawingat 10pm. We have heard on past cruises,that if they don’t get enough participants for bingo, they cannot play. Hard to imagine that in days past, you couldnot find a seat in the show lounge when bingo took place. Everyone played. Not so anymore. While we are on the subject of the Casino,and in case we have not mentioned this yet, they only let you cash out yourwinnings now, no matter how much money you have put into your gambling account.

Tonight was our Captain’s Dinner in the Pinnacle Grill at6pm. Oops, we had told Barb a few daysago that it was 6:30pm, and when we were seated with Don and Peter, the purser,she was nowhere to be seen. Peter put acall into her, and she did arrive close to 6:30pm. Better late, than never, we say. We asked Peter how many folks were “fullcruisers” and he replied 1100. That hasto be a record percentage. So instead ofhosting these special evenings only on gala nights, they have to have them oncasual nights as well. Tonight was acasual night ship wide, but the dress code in the Pinnacle was dubbedelegant. This meant dress or skirt forladies, and jacket and tie for gentlemen. A handful of the guys did wear suits or tuxes, but most had only therequired jacket and tie. To be on thesafe side, it is always better to be over-dressed than the opposite.

The five of us had a grand time, as we always dine togetheron this occasion. The captain and hiswife no longer eat at the large table in the back. That room is divided up with smaller tableswith each one hosted by staff members. Captain Mercer and Karen were seated in a booth near the entrance withtwo couples we did not recognize.

The creative menu began with lobster medallions with thetiniest diced bits of green apple and watermelon. A dot or two of tarragon mayonnaise was onthe plate. They served the best flakybutter rolls, and red or white wines. Good stuff, according to Barb. She knows her wines, unlike us, as we rarely drink it. Peter, knowing this, did offer to get uscocktails, but we thanked him and said no.

The next course was a plate of potato soup with smokedsalmon, crispy leeks, and crème fraiche. A queso fresco with red beet gel, roasted hazelnut cream, and sweet andsour cucumber balls was served on the long rectangular plates. Barb joked that the plates were not bigenough.

The entrée was slow roasted and pretty rare beef tenderloin. What looked like mashed potatoes, wasreally parsnip puree. Two sprigs ofasparagus, glazed carrots, and a red wine beef sauce filled the plate. Really the tastiest part of the meal.

Chocolate sphere was the name of the coconut, cashew nut,coffee ice cream, and corn, which was served last. Corn? We all had a laugh when we saw that on the dessert menu. But we guessed it may be like Cracker Jacks,and it was just that. A few of us hadcoffee, while the others finished their wine. By the way, the wines were Grace Lane Riesling, Washington, and PenfoldsCabernet Shiraz, Australia.

Every guest received a box which contained a vase from RoyalGoedewaggen. Peter thought with theshape of it, it could be used for a taco holder. This is why we have so much fun at ourtable. Actually these unique vases willhold four single stem flowers. Theevening ended with a speech from Captain Jonathon, who thanked every chef,waiter, and Tina, the manager for their excellent dinner. The party broke up by 8pm.

Taking a quick walk outside, we went back to the room tofind our room stewards doing their turn-down service. Forgot to tell them we were eatingearly. Only took them 10 minutes, and westayed in for the rest of the evening.

Showtime brought back Helen Wilding, the singer. We snuck into the show lounge earlier andcaught her rehearsal. She has a clear,fine voice, we thought.

The clocks went back tonight once again, but an oddtime. Instead of one hour back, we onlydid ½ hour back. Isn’t it odd thatFrench Polynesia would have such different times? But when you consider the size of the areathese archipelagos are situated, it makes sense.

Bill & Mary Ann

Thank you for sharing your marvelous cruise with all of us. Physically we are unable to do this, so we cruise along with you. Enjoy every minute.

Enjoying & learning so much from your blog. I do have one question on the casino. You mentioned one can only cash out their winnings. How do you get the remainder of your money (if one is lucky enough to have an overage)?

Report # 19 Day atSea January 19, 2018 Thursday Partly cloudy & 79 degrees

Well, the longest run at sea is about to end. By 1pm, we were only 202 nautical miles fromthe Marquesas. Captain Mercer said hehas been putting the pedal to the metal to get us close to the bay in Nuku Hivaas early as 4:30am tomorrow. Clearingcustoms and immigrations may take over an hour, since there are some folks thatwill need to present themselves to the locals before this ship will becleared. The good news is that we arescheduled to stay until 6pm, which is much later than our usual departure around3pm.

Barbara H is up to her talks in the Cook Islands andNiue. Once we begin having several portsin a row, these talks will stop until we have more days at sea.

America’s Test Kitchen continued today with meatless Mondaymeals. Once all of the five star guestshave gone to their complimentary class with a free apron, we believe the restof these demos will be open to everyone onboard.

We’re happy to report that we got the second delivery ofPresident’s Club gifts of beverages and or flowers. We ordered vitamin water bottles and a flowerarrangement. The water arrived today,while the flowers will come January 23rd. Eddy, the florist, has to wait until he getsthe fresh delivery in Papeete. It sure is a nice perk.

There was a South Pacific deck sale, where the shops bringout their specials to the Lido pool area to sell. It is always very popular with the shoppersonboard. Then at 2pm, fellow guestsbecame models, showing the Joseph Ribkoff clothing selections. One of us bought a silk jacket on the lastEurodam cruise, and we’re happy to report, they are not selling the same onehere. Would be funny (or not) if 10 ormore of us end up at a gala dinner all dressed the same. This designer uses colorful bold prints,which caught our eye.

We’re happy to report that bingo was back in the Queen’sLounge at 4pm. Even though the casinohosts many tournaments, we have noticed that the gambling is at a minimum. At least during the day, it is slow. Late at night? We’re never out and about to find out.

Bet most of you know what geocaching is? Our hosts, Wendy and Steve, are experts atit, with having found 9,000 geocaches in 70 countries. They are having a presentation for the membersof our travel group this coming Saturday, where they will explain what it is,how it is done, where you can do it, and who actually does it. Knowing them, they may add some new membersto their team. It is an alternateactivity if you have done organized tours too many times to count.

Speaking of our travel group, they hosted their firstcocktail party tonight. The early one at4:30pm was the biggest crowd of 120 guests. Our group would be smaller with 100 folks, plus staff members who floataround to all the smaller groups. Theyalways have the best canapes and our choice of beverages. During the course of this grand voyage, therewill be a total of four parties.

All but one of us was present at dinner. We enjoyed the cordon bleu and meatloaf waybetter than last night’s meager designer meal. Bet if we had that meal in a fine restaurant, it would have been a smallfortune. Barb agreed, as we still laughabout the tiny bits of food on over-sized plates. She said the good red wine made up for the lackof food.

Brenda, our tablemate, had saved hats for the five of usmissing at last night’s Moulin Rouge themed dinner. Bright red or black, they look like cabarethats. Pretty nice of her to think of allof us.

We had two young fellows join us for dessert, as they wereat the table across from us. The ladiesat our table have been trying to catch their attention for the last two weeks,so tonight they took a chance and introduced themselves. We all figured they were too young to beretired, and we had guessed they might be segment folks. Turns out we were right. They’re from Zurich, and will be debarking inAuckland. Always interesting to meet newpeople from distant countries. The truetest will be if they dare come back to the adjacent table tomorrow.

The show this evening was “Variations” an opera, pop, rock,and musical theater performed by the singers and dancers. Usually they are always doing their show ongala nights, but that has not been the case so far.

The good night card on the bed had a good saying: Traveling…..it leaves you speechless, thenturns you into a storyteller. Yep, weare guilty of that.

Tomorrow – terra firma.

Bill & Mary Ann

Thank you for your updates.

Report # 20 Taiohae,Nuku Hiva French Polynesia January 19, 2018 Friday Mostly sunny & 75 degrees Part # 1 of 4 80Pictures

Today was a day of surprises, none of which weexpected. Well maybe a little. You know when you get a gut feeling that ifsomething is going to go wrong, it will? Here’s the story…..

Breakfast was early, and we did want to keep it light andquick. No problem as the dining roomopened at 7:30am, and we planned on taking the first tender boat ride over toshore. Most of the time, we don’t takethe first boat over, but almost two years ago, we happened to catch a localfellow baiting the waters for sharks. Itwas quite thrilling to see them close up, right below our feet on thepier. The tugging and thrashing ofseveral sharks almost pulled the fellow into the water. So, we thought it could happen today if we goover early.

We escorted ourselves down from deck four, and got onto thefirst boat. Once it was full, we heard astrange noise, followed by an alarm. Seems that one of the engines stalled, and there was no fixing it. Bouncing up and down, we got fumigated whilewaiting for help to get us going again. Well, it never happened, so Henk M, our hotel director, had to have allof us debark slowly, and wait for another boat. In order to hold our disabled boat, anothertender had to nose it at the aft, and hold us steady. We half expected to see the windows shatter,but luckily, they did not.

So we all waited in the holding area on deck A beforeanother boat appeared. Then somethingnice occurred. Bottles of water werehanded to each of us as we left. Goodthing, because it was going to be darn hot and humid all day. All is well that ends well, as we got toshore before 9am. The drummers wereperforming a welcome ceremony, and the local ladies were handing out the singletiare flower to all. There were many 4 x 4 vehicles lined up to offer theguests tours, some of which were the HAL tour for 3 hours. This excursion would take the folks in acaravan, where one English-speaking guide would do the talking at each site. The drivers spoke little if any English. After a couple of stops in town, they wentinto Taipivai Valley, where crops are grown. More villages, churches, and temples exist in these soaringmountains. One interesting fact is thatthe show Survivor was filmed here in 2001. One last stop at the black sand beach at Hooumi, and the tour ended backat the pier where shopping for souvenirs could be done. All this for $140.

Having done this tour years ago, we went in search of theshark show. Our hopes were dashed whenall we found were the fishermen dicing up tuna steaks, and the ladiessaran-wrapping it for market. No sharkbaiting was happening today. Drats.

So we began our slow walk through the tented tables,checking out their offerings of carvings, drawings, jewelry and t-shirts. The more colorful part of this area has to bethe produce market with the freshest fruit and veggies for sale. We would be back later to pick up some ofthose small tangy bananas.

Numerous postcards and shell jewelry were available in thetourist shack. They also had some islandbooklets with maps and tourist info for some of the next ports we will visit. Invaluable info that we do not have with theship’s brochures.

Our destination was the Keikahanui Pearl Lodge, located on ahillside on a road at the opposite end of the bay. Recalling that their lunch time did not beginuntil well after noon, we needed to take our time getting there. That was perfect for one of us that is nursinga quite sore foot due to a recurring heel spur, most likely activated bywearing new shoes. A reminder to fellowtravelers: bring your old shoes withyou, as comfort is utmost number one when putting on significant walking mileslike we do.

One of the fun activities we enjoy is bird-watching. And this island does have a few hiddentreasures in the bird department. Flocksof white terns live in these trees that line the Taiohae Bay. Sometimes you have to stop and watch for awhile to see them hiding on the branches of the flame trees. Along the way, you can always find largerocks to sit for a spell, which worked just fine for one of us. Crossing over a fresh water channel, wespotted a small heron, all alone, fishing along the shoreline. Further inland, we did see some pretty littleyellow seed-eaters, but could not ID them. One or two green and yellow birds looked like a pigeon. We mistook them for parrots in previous years,but upon closer examination, their beaks were not the parrot type.

Taking a right turn halfway on the bay road, we found the NotreDame Church, a most unique Catholic church built from rocks found on the six ofthe largest Marquesas islands. Hugecarved doors are made from local rosewood, we believe, and are original fromthe time the first church was built. This church had been remodeled or rebuilt back in the 1970’s. Martha happened to be on a tour with a shipgroup, so we stopped to chat. She was onher way to the valley next with a group. Then one by one, several folks we knew stopped to talk. Never realized how many people we have cometo know over the years, but that is part of the fun of touring on your own,like we are doing today.

A little ways past the Monument to the Dead, built to commemoratethe death of French colonial sailors in the 19th and 20thcenturies, local workers were busy constructing trellises for shade. Made with large bamboo and palm fronds, thisappears to be the site for the next big concert that takes place here everyyear. There was even a large hole dug inthe ground for pig-roasting. Years ago,we did have a ship’s party here, but it got rained out big time.

Finally passing the picnic-type area where locals park theirkayaks, we made our way past a couple of horses, a cow, and the local highschool. Then we approached the end ofthe road, where we hiked straight up towards the Pearl Resort. Many vehicles were parked up there, so weexpected the place to be full of diners. Well…..surprise number two of the day…..it was closed forrenovations. Drats, again. Before we left home, we did think that maybewe should research these special places we frequent, but ran out of time to doit. Oh well, if nothing else, we got ina great walk.

Ice cold beer was on our minds, so we went to the nearestlittle restaurant and bar at the bottom of the road. It was named He’e Tai Inn, and was locatednear the museum, a converted house with some historical pieces. Only a small group of locals were eatingthere, so we asked if they served lunch, and would they take the USdollar. Their answer was lunch was readynow (12:30pm), and yes, they happily took US dollars. No credit cards however.

Three adorable puppies were roaming around the veranda wherewe sat. The mama stayed close tothem. Not resembling the female, werealized these puppies looked like pit bulls. Suspicions were confirmed when we saw the suspectmale, a large pit bull, chasing more girl dogs. What a life.

First thing we ordered were cold bottles of Hinano beer, thebest brew of French Polynesia, in our opinion. The menu was printed on a blackboard, 3 feet by 4 feet, on a pedestal. The waitress just moved it so we could readit. She did the same for the rest of thefolks that eventually filled the tables. They did not serve paninis, but they did offer us salads and Frenchfries. That sounded good, as we were notexactly sure what the French entrees were except for fish and more fish. Finishing our light meal, we ordered profiterolleswith creamy ice cream in the middle of the pastry crust. The bill came to $38, but we had expected itto be more. Previous years, we found thebeer to be close to $10 each. Who saidPolynesia was cheap? It is not.

We back-tracked slowly, watching the local rowers in theirlong boat racing in the bay. Some bravekayakers were following the tender boats like they always do, catching a ridein the boat’s wake. Several sailboatswere moored in the bay today also. Thephotos we took today make the area look cool, but believe us, it was thewarmest day that we can remember. Goodthing we had four bottles of water to keep us hydrated.

There is a small shop on the hillside where the concert t-shirtsare sold. Hoping to find the 2018version, we were disappointed to find none. Actually, nobody was minding the shop when we stopped by. That is island living, a very different wayof life.

We did pick up those bananas, but did not find any treasuresin the way of jewelry this time. Somepearl items are sold here, but they are more of the culled variety. They were the black pearls, common to thispart of the world. And of course, our collectionis maxed out.

The tender boat was waiting, and we were ready to goback. Nice thing is that the last oneson, are the first ones off. And that wasus. Our clothes were stuck to us by thetime we got back on the ship, so that air conditioning was most welcomed. Since sail away was after 5:30pm, we had acouple of hours to work on photos in our room.

Around 6pm, we went to deck nine, armed with the goodcamera. Watching the waters around theship, we saw what looked like a floating plastic bag right under the surface. Then it moved. From the shape of it, we surmised we were seeinga manta ray feeding. Then we saw a fewmore drifting along, although no one standing near us spotted them. Once the captain began the side thrusters,the mantas disappeared. Speaking of thecaptain, during his talk before our departure, he mentioned the story of twotender boats failing today. Engineproblems, which eventually did get fixed. That’s when we heard about another boat accident while we were in FuerteAmador. The story went that the tenderdriver ran into a local yacht, putting a good-sized hole in it. And somehow the windows of our tender werebroken. Oops…..glad we were not on thatride.

The sun set quickly on the horizon as we left the bay,ending a nice stay here. During the day,we heard various comments about this port. A few people thought it was far from tropical, after seeing the drynessof the lower hillsides. Looks like adesert to me, they said. It’s notparadise like we have been led to expect. We wanted to say, just wait, it does get better, but we didn’t as somefolks are stuck in the half full glass, and refuse to see the beauty thatdefinitely surrounded us today. The outlineof Ua Pou, one of the six populated islands of the Marquesas, was visible inthe distance. Even though Nuku Hiva isthe largest of the islands, Ua Pou is the most populated with over 2000natives. Out of the 12 islands in thisarchipelago, only 6 are inhabited by about 9200 people (2012 census).

Dinner was with friends Leta and Bill. They have a table for two, and it sure wasnice visiting with them. Our food wasprompt, and hot-hot-hot. Although we hadfinished our three courses by 9:15pm (their usual time), we lingered overinteresting conversation until closer to 10pm. We do like our larger table, but occasionally, it’s nice to breakaway. And besides, Barb was also missingbecause she went to a birthday dinner for Don’s birthday.

We also got another ½ hour back on the clock tonight, astrange occurrence that happens in only a few parts in the world. We think the time difference has something todo with the fact that the five archipelagos that make up French Polynesia coveran area the size of Europe. Prettyimpressive.

Bill & Mary Ann

Report # 21 Day atSea January 20, 2018 Saturday Partly cloudy & 83 degrees

A day at sea was just what everyone needed after a day inport yesterday. A chance to refresh thebatteries, so to speak. For us, that wasa nice breakfast in the dining room. Service has been over the top in there, unlike what we experienced onthe larger HAL ship last fall. The bigdifference is that this world cruise group is split up between the Lido and therestaurant. And there is always thePinnacle Grill breakfast for the deck seven folks. Except for dinner time, nothing has beenoverly crowded during the meal times.

Some maintenance painting has been ongoing on the lowerpromenade deck. With the following wind,the fumes linger in the doorways and around the lounges. Sometimes it can be almost sickening. In this heat, it does dry faster, but wecannot figure why the passengers continue to lay on the lounges with thepainters so nearby. By the way, more ofthe teak lounges have re-appeared. Wethink they have been down below being sanded and repaired. The concentration of the pool lounges aretowards the aft of the deck. The hotterit has been getting, the fewer people are outside.

We were invited to the third wine tasting this morning. It was a sommelier suite wine tasting,extended to a few passengers. Onceagain, we passed on the chance, mostly because we don’t drink it, and would notconsider buying any bottles. Still, itis nice to be included.

The explorations central team continued their presentationon Auckland to Sydney. The shore exmanager, Nyron, and Barbara H combine their talents in describing what to seeand do in those ports. For those who maylike to know, Irene and Leslie, the usual grand voyage managers, are not herethis year.

Sunbathing and swimming was a mixed bag today. When the sun was out of the clouds, it wasreally warm. Every now and then, cloudspassed over, and it sprinkled. That feltwonderful. But then we were side-swipedby a shower that suddenly flooded the deck, and everything on the lounges. By the time the people picked up their stuff,the sun came back out. Typical tropicalweather. Actually, we did more visitingwith friends than anything else. Barboften stops by with her ice cream cone, and gets some fresh air and sun.

Speaking of Barb, a question has been asked about her. Goingback thirteen years ago, we probably met Barb and her friends at our travelagency’s cocktail parties. But it wasn’t until two years later that we becametablemates. Our friendship wasestablished ever since then. With the exceptionof one year that we went on the Prinsendam around South America, we have beentablemates every world cruise ever since. It would not be the same without her.

Another question we’d like to address is the “cork-forking”game. The tools of the game are a dinnerfork, a wine cork, and a bowl of flowers in the center of the table. You balance the cork on the handle end, anduse the tines to launch it. With alittle practice, eventually you land it in the bowl. We have not done this for a few years now, asit tended to bring out the rowdiness at the table. Perhaps when the entire dining room clearsout, we could try it again. Or not.

Photo sorting took up some of the afternoon. Then we went to the Ocean Bar to listen to theband play. The 6:15pm music was moreupbeat during this session. We noticed acouple of guests wearing woven sombreros, and figured they got them from the waitersat dinner. Tonight was Tropical ParadiseDinner complete with lush palm trees hanging from the ceiling. So we found out that everyone got the hatstonight. Can you believe that we havebeen gifted four different hats so far? Seems that the folks like these the best….go figure.

The menu was tropical-themed too. We both ordered the macadamia nut coatedchicken breast entrée, and it was delicious. Fish, of course, was popular, and also the suckling pork. A hamburger with pulled pork and a sunny sideup egg was also on the menu. Philip, thedining room manager, stopped by, as he often does, checking on how we liked themeal. We think he is checking to see howwe are accepting some of the new changes on the menu. So far, so good.

Showtime featured singer and impressionist RobbieHoward. He was back with an all newshow, but we missed it again.

Waiting in our room were two messages. One was regarding bringing wine onboard, asstated in the Know Before You Go Booklet. Only one bottle of wine was allowed to be carried on at the beginning ofthis voyage. If consumed in the room,there would be no corkage fee ($18). Bringingon addition bottles are subject to that fee, or they can be stored until theend of the trip. Obviously people arenot following the rules, which are being enforced now. If you go on a wine-tasting ship’s tour andreturn with one bottle, that fee will be waived.

The second notice was about the toilet paper. Yeah, you are reading correctly….toiletpaper. This is the first time ever thatone has to use at least 6 feet of the roll to equal two squares of regularpaper. Inferior, but it had beensubstituted for a short order. When wearrive in Papeete, there will be a swiftest changeover to the usual stuff. Henk M admitted that this subject has sparkedthe imagination of several witty comments. We bet it has…..

Bill & Mary Ann

LOL!!!! The toilet paper is priceless. One of our families favorite giggles, even among the young grands is....”did you use more than 4 squares?” We rented a house for the 10 of us and when we checked in, we were informed due to the old septic system, you could only use 4 squares of 1 ply paper.

Enjoying the blog. Loved the photos of Nuka Hiva. Brought back great memories. Bummer there werent any sharks though.

Cheers, Denise and Howie too

Just got caught up.

Loving all your reports.

The toilet paper issue made us laugh. DH knows how I go through toilet paper at home and he mentioned that he can't imagine how many roles I would use in a day. lol

Thanks, Bill & Mary Ann, for continuing to use your holiday time to keep us entertained and informed. Your description of ship life and the ports you visit are a pleasure to read. Smooth sailing!

ON Cruiser

Report # 22 Avatoru,Rangiroa, French Polynesia January 21,2018 Sunday Chance of Rain & 85 degrees Part #1 Of 4 80 Pictures

Our port of call for today was a most unique one – a coralatoll in the Tuamotus, and the largest in the archipelago. Imagine a string of pearls that surrounds amassive lagoon, and you will have Rangiroa. The center lagoon is 50 miles long and 13 miles wide. Once inside this lagoon, you cannot see theenormity of it, as the actual strip of coral reef is hidden from sight. Discovered in 1616 by the Europeans, it wasnot until 1850 that it was settled by Catholic missionaries. They encouraged the natives to cultivatecoconut groves to produce copra….an industry that still employs many islanderstoday.

There are two major passes for ships into this lagoon fromthe ocean, and they are located at the two main villages. One is at Avatoru, and the other at Tiputa,which is the seat of the government. Upto 3300 people inhabit this atoll, employed by the copra, tourist, and pearl industries. Oddly enough, their other businesses areselling honey and wine. Yes, there is avineyard that has been adapted to this climate, although not accessible to thepublic, the wine is sold in some of the little stores on the island.

The most famous activity has to be diving andsnorkeling. There is a wall dive rightinside the Tiputa Pass, where you can see the grey and hammerhead sharks, mantarays, turtles, napoleons, and dolphins. Acouple of excursions were offered here with a glass bottom boat or a one tankdive. They ranged from $80 to $130 forone hour to three hours.

A most informative tour took the folks in mini vans to the GauguinPearl Farm, one of the largest facilities in French Polynesia. Here you can learn all about the black SouthSeas pearls and how they come to exist. Demonstrations show how these special species of oysters are grafted,cared for, and harvested. They produce round, baroque, and semi-baroque pearlsgraded from C to A+. Naturally, there isa shop where you can purchase these gems for $$$. They are gorgeous, although the prices arefixed, they do accept cash or credit card…..gladly.

Shortly after the Amsterdam entered the lagoon through theTiputa Pass, the captain dropped anchor. To our surprise, another vessel appeared. It was the Wind Spirit, a sail/cruise shipbuilt in 1988, and remodeled in 2012. Itis 5350 gross tons and houses 159 passengers. She has 4 giant masts, 170 feet above thedeck. The sails are computer controlled,and must look stunning when they are up. There is a water sports platform in the aft, where the guests can use abanana boat, kayaks, small sailboats, windsurf boards, as well as snorkel andscuba equipment. We noticed they wereusing one small tender boat, and dropping off their people at the same pier wewere using.

Even though the newsletter said there was a chance of rain,the sun was out, and it was promising to be a really hot day. The ship was cleared around 8am, but we didnot feel the need to be the first ones off. We have to admit, it is nice not to have to get tender tickets, as wecan go off any time by just showing our room keycard to the staff member at thedoor to deck A. After a light breakfast,we headed down and boarded the boat for the 10 minute ride to shore. Henk, the hotel director, was helping peopleinto the boat this morning. We did hearthat someone had broken their leg on Nuku Hiva at the landing, so he is makingsure the transfer is safe as possible.

All of us were greeted by some native musicians and dancers,where we proceeded to the tables of trinkets for sale. Waiting for those who booked tours, the vansloaded up, as well as the boats for water tours. Our plan was to follow the road to thedolphin monument near the channel. Thereare 60 bottlenose dolphins that stay in this area, feeding on the plentifulsealife. There is an interesting signthat describes these dolphins, including reasons why people need to stay awayfrom them. They have lost their naturalfear of people, and some have become aggressive. Much to our surprise, they can transfer aserious disease to people if touched, which is incurable. Who knew?

There are several lodges, resorts, and pensions (vacationrentals) on this stretch of the atoll. Mostlyhidden in the coconut palms, they line the lagoon side of the road. Swimming is far safer inside the lagoon, thanventuring into the ocean, where the current can be deadly. There are a few ways to get around this atoll,one of which is by bicycle or car. An unusualtype of vehicle that can be rented is called a Twin – go. It is not much bigger than a motorcycle, butis made for two people. Talk about claustrophobic. You can get one for two hours for $50, or$125 for 12 hours. Since the distancefrom one end of the motu to the other end is no more than 10 miles, the twohour rental would work the best.

We prefer to walk, getting photos along the way. There is not a huge amount of bird life here,although we did see some frigates, white terns, and brown noddys. The views of the lagoon and ocean werestunning. The heat of the day was alsostunning. Most of the time, there was nobreeze. And when the wind did start toblow, you could feel the temperature drop. That meant rain. About ½ hourinto our hike, the rain did come down hard. Good thing we brought umbrellas. Hoping it would continue, we were disappointed when it stopped, since itmade it even more steamy and humid.

By the time we reached the airport, our water was runninglow. Lucky for us, the airport was openfor a few hours. Open-air, this airporthas no security. But it does have aplace to sit and relax out of the beating rays of the sun. Better yet, therewere nice bathrooms here. We purchased ahuge bottle of cold water for $3 USD. Yes, they do take dollars or francs, and credit cards. It was apparent that people were expecting aplane to land soon. It did 10 minutesafter we resumed our walk.

Making it to the Gauguin Pearl Farm, we repeated the sametour we had a few years ago when we stopped here on another cruise. And it was free, although, this place isnever open on a Sunday. We understandthat we had to get special permission to visit this atoll on a Sunday. Good thing they said yes, or else everythingwould have been closed.

We began to worry that the resort was not open, much likethe lodge in Nuku Hiva. Would have beenone long walk for nothing. Not only werethey opened, they welcomed us for lunch. With only one other customer in the restaurant, we figured this is off-season. According to the info booklet, the coolerseason is from May to October. No wonderis was so hot today. Anyway, we orderedtheir ham and cheese panini, which came with a mountain of skinny Frenchfries. We downed four bottles of Heinekenbeer, which was a life saver today. Inorder to have the energy to hike back, we indulged with an order ofprofiteroles. This one we split, eventhough we think they made the dessert super-sized. Lunch was not cheap, but then, nothing ischeap here. It is an expected part oftraveling the world, and makes us realize how remote this atoll really is. Everything has to be imported, so naturally,there is a price for that.

We took our sweet time heading back, estimating that we hadhiked near ten miles. Now the breeze was blowing at us, and we knewit would probably rain again. Wewelcomed it. And it did, but not untilwe were back near the boat landing. Perfect timing. We always checkout the trinkets on the souvenir tables. Well, not trinkets, because mixed with the sea shell jewelry, wereexpensive black pearl pieces. Unless youhave done your homework, spending big bucks here may be a roll of the dice.

The tender boat was ready to leave, so we jumped on for theshort ride back. By now, it was pouringheavily. Couldn’t help but overhear twoladies grumbling about their interrupted excursion. They had donned their swimwear, lathered upwith sun block, threw on a moo-moo, and came over to swim. They gave up with the passing shower, notknowing that within 10 minutes, the sun would be out again. So they rode back with us, complaining aboutall of that lotion they just wasted. Inour minds, what’s a little rain, when you are headed to go swimming? You get wet either way. It’s got to be about the hair we suppose.

The Captain got the ship out of the lagoon after 5pm. Dozens of natives lined both sides of thepassage as we sailed out, waving goodbye. Keeping our eyes peeled for those dolphins, we were rewarded with ajumping display near the entrance on the ocean side. Those of us that witnessed the dolphinscheered and clapped as they disappeared as fast as they appeared. Many fellowguests remarked what a wonderful visit this was today. On the down side, there will be a whole lotof people sporting a serious sunburn tonight. Snorkeling, swimming, or even walking in this strong tropical sun is akiller if you’re not prepared for it.

It has been a week since one of our tablemates has beenmissing from dinner. Seems he has comedown with the deep cough that goes with the recent cold going around theship. All of us are grateful that he haschosen not to contaminate us. Brenda hadlugged the straw hat she had saved for him last night, only to pack it back toher room after dinner. She is sothoughtful. The entrees have stillleaned towards the tropical theme. Butwe opted for the English sliced beef with the traditional Yorkshire pudding. It was good – tender and tasty.

The stars were out when we walked the deck after ourmeal. No rain tonight. Tomorrow we will be docked in Papeete,Tahiti, staying until the wee hours of the following morning. Should be fun.

Bill & Mary Ann

Glad your one table mate has chosen to stay away while he has that cough.

Report # 23 Papeete,Tahiti, French Polynesia January 22,2018 Monday Chance of rain & 86 degrees Part# 1 of 4 80 Pictures

French Polynesia is an Overseas Territory of France,consisting of 120 islands scattered over five archipelagos. Namely, the Marquesas, Tuamotus, SocietyIslands, Australes, and Gambiers. They encompass 1.7 million square miles in themassive South Pacific Ocean, which is larger than all of Europe. As of 2012, 270,000 people lived in FrenchPolynesia.

In general, you can expect typical warm and balmy tropicalweather, as these islands and atolls experience 2500 hours of sun a year. We are visiting in the hot season, which israinier – December through April. Thedry season is July through October, but the best time to visit is April throughJune, and October through December, when the temperatures are fair andpleasant.

Tahiti is the largest island of French Polynesia, withPapeete as the capital. It is the centerof Tahitian and French Polynesian public and private governmental offices. It is the commercial, industrial, andfinancial capital as well. Outside thedowntown area, you can find a myriad of recreational activities. This island has the most off-road 4x4 roadsystems, interior hiking trails, waterfalls, and high peaks. There are lagoons for water sports along withthe contrasting nightlife in the bars in Papeete.

They offered 9 tours through shore excursions today. Five of them were island touring, running from2 ½ hours to 7 hours for $100 to $210. The other four were water-related such as a catamaran ride, snorkeling,or one or two tank scuba dives. Theseran from 2 hours to 3 ½ hours for $150 to $210.

We have taken most all of these tours over the years, soonce again, we set off on our usual walk. We found that nothing stays the sameforever. The entire pier side artisancomplex, along with the information shop had been leveled to the ground. All that was left was a mountain of concretedebris. What a surprise. Speaking with asecurity guard, he mentioned that a new post office will be built on thisproperty. Not sure if this is correct,but it made sense to us.

The usual dancers and Tahitian drummers greeted us at thebottom of the gangway this morning. There was even a louder native group for theship docked across from us…..the Silver Whisper, which holds 429 lucky passengers. This is one of many vessels owned bySilverseas. This ship was launched in2001 and is 28,258 gross tons, a baby next to us. We sailed with friends on her sister ship,the Shadow, a few years ago, and we can tell you it is a very excellent experience. The rooms are very large with the nicest bathroomswe have ever seen. They are close toall-inclusive, with enough shipboard credit to buy tours with $$$ leftover. An interesting bit of info aboutthis particular ship is that in 2003, Vladimir Putin chartered it to host a 3day celebration of St. Petersburg’s 300th anniversary.

Tied up next to the Whisper, was a private yacht with ahelicopter on the aft deck. The name onit was VAVA from Georgetown. Quiteimpressive.

Another new addition to the pier area, were two open-airtrain-like vehicles. We believe theyoffered a round trip sweep through the city for $10 per person. Perhaps they stopped at the major hotels. They were filling up with passengers rapidly,and was wonderful for those folks who could not walk far in this heat andhumidity.

We left the ship around 10am and headed for the fabric shop oneof us loves. Never have a problemfinding some blouse material. Then wecontinued on to the Marche Municipale, their extensive market with everythingTahitian from produce, fresh fish, handicrafts, and souvenirs. Much has been modernized there such as thefish tables. Now they have glass-covered ice cases with everything fly-proof. We looked for the vendors that had been selling shell necklaces at thepier artisan shop, but none were to be seen. And since we cannot buy any fresh flowers anymore in French Polynesia,we did not spend much time here.

We headed towards the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception,taking photos of the interior. Thenwandered over to Place Tarahoi, Papeete’s governmental center. There is a garden walk there, where we cameupon some kids playing soccer in the field. Native plants line the trail, which leads to ponds with ducks, fish, andusually giant eels. Today the kids hadscared the geese away, and the huge eels were nowhere in sight. We think that they have been removed.

Across the busy street, we entered Bougainville Park, andstrolled past the creeks to the monument and dueling cannons. Thinking the vendors with the shell jewelrywould be set up here, they were not. Noteven in the government complex. The nextexhibition show in there will be the Austral collection – baskets, hats, andjewelry woven with native flax. Thatbegins January 29th.

Making our way back to the ship, we checked out shops thatcarried the Hinano t-shirts. There wasone nice air-conditioned shop that was dedicated to everything Hinano. But they would not sell anything without a5000XPF minimum, about $50 US. They tookonly credit cards or francs. The dollar was not accepted there. So we left.

Up the main street, which is also under major renovations,we went to a shop where we know they take credit cards. Found the perfect t-shirt, and the vendor washappy to take the credit card…..no minimum limit.

We ran into Shiv, the head housekeeper. He did confirm that since even before theAsia/Pacific grand voyage, there had been a problem with ants inparticular. Probably brought onaccidently with fresh-cut flowers, they had begun colonies everywhere. On past cruises here, we have noticed thatsome tiny ants hitched a ride to our room. They would hide inside the computer, and come out at night. It was creepy, we admit. Once we get to Auckland, this flower ban maybe lifted.

Unloading our stuff and re-hydrating back onboard, we headedback for lunch. Did we mention the heatand humidity was a killer today? Keepingour fingers crossed that our favorite pizzeria was opened on Mondays, we werehappy to find the place about full of customers. Judging by hearing only French spoken, werealized that this restaurant is well-known to the locals. We got our “pizza” fix today and also ourdessert fix. We shared a banana split, amountain of sliced fruit, ice cream, whipped cream and slivered almonds…..allcovered with a chocolate drizzle. Onceagain, we believe they super-sized it, knowing we were sharing. A local lady, sitting next to us, giggledwhen she saw the dessert, and said please enjoy. Turns out she was a tour guide, who escorteda group for HAL today. She wished us amost wonderful continuation of our world voyage.

Walking back to the ship, we took the walkway across theroad into the park that lines the harbor. In one large section, they have created a natural aquarium filled withlocal fish. Now, they have included astand with waterproof booklets with all of the fish captured here, so they caneasily be identified.

Eventually, this entire downtown area will be like new. The interior of the city has become to look abit seedy, but by the next time we come here, we’ll find a lot of changes forsure.

The rest of the afternoon was spent cooling off in our room,putting pictures in files. Trying to geta head start on the reports as well. By6:30pm, we went up to deck nine to find tonight’s sunset was going to bestunning. A bit drizzly, a rain showerhad passed over by the time we went outside. The outline of Moorea was visible from the harbor, coming out of the cloudsthat normally hide it from view. We willbe floating over there early tomorrow morning.

On our way out of the gate the second time this afternoon,some vendors handed us flyers for Moorea’s tours tomorrow. One of the fellows told us that we wouldindeed be in Opunohu Bay, not Cook’s Bay. We have not dropped anchor in Cook’s Bay in a long time, if ever, withHAL. Smaller ships will go there, butnot us. Truthfully, we prefer Opunohu, becauseit is closer to the hotel we like to visit. So by the time we wake up, we will know exactly where we are.

Dinner found all but two there. Not too much exciting was on the menu, but wealways find things we can put together. One of us tried the moussaka, which was OK, but seasoned a bitmuch. Steaming hot too. The Hawaiian kalbi boneless ribs were thebetter choice. After enjoying thatbanana split today, jello made do tonight. And the sliced strawberries were back on top.

There was a local group entertaining the folks in the showlounge tonight. One time only, Mana, TheSpirit of Tahiti, sang and danced. Theydazzled us with their talents and costumes, although we are certain we saw thisperformance many times. Or somethingsimilar.

Plan on sleeping really good tonight. Oh yes…here’s the latest TP update. As promised, all of the inferior rolls of TPhad been removed from the cabins, and the good stuff back in its place. Now we wonder how many passengers actuallydid complain about that? Lots, we bet. There is a first time for everything.

Bill & Mary Ann

TP issue on Koningsdam. Must be plumbing decision. Glad you have better stuff. Thank you again for sharing your cruise with us. Glad you were not in Alaska, tsunami warning, thank goodness it did not develop.

We are on the Whisper WC. Capacity is 386 guests and for the first leg we had only 270 guests with 110 on for the full WC. Forty five disembarked in Papeete with 120 joining.

The poor crew will probably have to use the old stuff....

Loving your detailed reports.

Hopefully you can get fresh flowers once you get to Auckland.

Report #24 OpunohuBay, Moorea, French Polynesia January23, 2018 Tuesday 83 degrees & Chance of Rain Part #1 Of 4 80 Pictures

Located a very short distance from Tahiti, the island ofMoorea is truly a lush natural paradise. Surrounded by turquoise waters of the reef, this smaller island wascreated by a volcano a million years ago. The heart-shaped island is 38 miles around, with a population of 16,000people. It is the perfect destinationfor those vacationers looking for a restful trip, away from the city lights,and heavy traffic. For that reason, mostof the islanders are involved with tourism.

Two bays are located on the northern part of theisland. Opunohu Bay is where we normallydrop anchor, while the more famous bay, Cook’s, is what you may have seen inmany movie scenes. Originally, Cook’sBay was to be our destination, but that changed sometime recently to the otherbay. In or opinion, Opunohu is the bestspot, because where we tender, there are new facilities, and access to moreoptions. This messed up some of theindependent plans people had arranged prior to sailing, as we heard later atthe sail away.

Some of the things to do on this island are a visit to theTiki Village. Many years ago, our firstvisit here was to this Polynesian culture complex. They have a typical Tahitian village with artisans,craftspeople, wood carvers, and natives making handicrafts. There is pareo dying, a tattoo demo, andtraditional songs and dances. We had thechance to meet Mr. Tahiti, a most tattooed fellow.

There are strips of white sand beaches, isolated anduncrowded. 4x4 vehicles will take youinto the deep valleys and the highest of peaks. There is a fruit juice factory called MooreaFruit Juice Factory.

There are 10 tours offered here today. There are three island tours for 3 ½ hours for$100 to $180 per person. Seven waterrelated tours run 2 to 5 hours for $100 to $230 per person. One of these excursions give you a chance tosee humpback whales, if you were visiting from July to November. We’ve done them all. Alternate excursions offered by the localswere about the same itinerary, only their price was in half.

Taking the later tender boat ride over to shore was a goodidea. Henk M was still helping peopleboarding. Today a notice in thenewsletter stated that getting on and off of the tender boat may be difficultwith those who were not sure-footed. Guestsrequiring mobility assistance (using a cane, walker, wheelchair, or scooter)were advised the tender operation may present challenges. All mobility devices, except those that couldbe lifted by a single person, would not be allowed ashore. And still a sore spot for many, the regretthat they can no longer feature Priority Tender Service for 4 and 5 starMariners, has 800 folks unhappy campers.

We got to the tender landing to find that we were nowallowed to go into the tiny cove, and debark on the inside of thebreakwater. Greeted by several native-cladguys and gals, we made our way to the souvenir tables. There is a sweet lady who makes her own designs with seashell jewelry. We found her at the nearest table, and endedup buying two necklaces and earrings. Therewere way more tables of treasures here today compared to two years ago when wewere here last. Black pearls are a bigitem sold here. Some of the collectionswere from the local high end shops, and were pricey. So we continued walking until we passed thelittle church and found the main drive.

It was another hot day, with little hope of rain, althoughit was in the forecast. It would have been good if the sky opened up,however, it never did.

We headed for the Intercontinental Hotel, about 3 miles upthe road. It’s such a scenic walk, especiallynow that the road has been widened since the last time we were here. They have added a dedicated bike lane andgutters. Many homes line this road…..somemodern and others basic huts. All haveopened windows so the island breeze can blow through them. Every yard had at lea st one dog, and severalchickens.

There are few birds here. We spotted one frigate, and two herons. More doves and white terns live on this island. And a few brown noddys.

The locals selling fruit at the roadside stands make forgood photos. Fresh mangoes, coconuts,bananas, and a wide assortment of vegetables can be bought for a small amountof francs. It is obvious that the kidslike sugar sodas, beer, juice, and water, as we followed a trail of themdiscarded along the shoulders.

Finally, after an hour, we arrived at the hotel, just intime for lunch. We sat in the central outdoorpatio, and were the only ones there. This time of year happens to be the low season, so nothing iscrowded. A few of the hotel guests werein the pool, while some sat at the bar. Every so often, passengers from the Amsterdam strolled by to the bar. As far as we know, this hotel does not sell aday pass. Unless you are a paying guest,you are not allowed to use the pools, and perhaps not the beachfront too.

The hour we spent there flew by while we enjoyed yet anotherexcellent ham and cheese pizza with Hinano beers. A shared dessert was a brownie with vanillaice cream. Expensive? Yes, but when in paradise, you pay the priceand savor every minute.

The breeze was in our face as we hiked back to theship. Yes, we could have taken the freeshuttle that brought some folks to the pearl shop on the road across the streetfrom the hotel. But we did not want tocheat. The only necessity were thebottles of water we lugged with us. It was downhill all the way back.

The tender boat was waiting, so we rode back, and spent therest of the afternoon doing our homework. The cooler temps on the ship were most welcomed. Much to our delight, a vase of fresh flowerswas waiting for us, a gift from Orlando Ashford for our President’s Club everyother week delivery. We had alreadyreceived some vitamin water bottles, but had to wait until the new flowerdelivery in Papeete.

All aboard was 4:30pm, and the sail away was held at the aftpool deck once again. It wasn’t until wecleared the bay, that we looked back and saw that the Europa was in Cook’s Baytoday. Smaller ships seem to get priorityfor that bay. Don’t tell anyone, butOpunohu is much better. Anyway, theEuropa is a 5 plus Berlitz star rated vessel. Built in 1999 for Hapag-Lloyd, it is 28,890 gross ton with rooms for 450very lucky passengers. It is describedas a ship for stylish internationals, particularly the German-speakingguests. Several years ago while in thearea of Fiji, we happened to get acquainted with a couple that were on thatship. At that time, they told us thatthe passengers voted for their ports, and the majority ruled. Can you imagine doing that here? It would never work.

We stayed at the back railing, visiting with a nice couplefrom Canada, who had pre-rented their car for the day. They ended up losing some time, due to thefact they were not informed until this morning that the landing spot had beenchanged. We wonder how many other independentpassengers ran into the same problem. Noreason why an announcement could not have been made shipwide before 8 or 9pmlast night. Funny that the currencyconversion cards were pre-printed with Opunohu Bay as our tender drop offpoint. These had been left on our bedlast night, but few people noticed that.

Sharing all of our day’s activities today made dinner timefly by. The menu was a mixed bag, withsome new items. One was spaghetti andmeatless meatballs. One of us said holdthe meatballs, and add sliced pork loin. Martha has ordered steamed vegetables for the table, so adding some ofthose, made the dish complete. Tastytoo. Then there is always the alternatechicken dinner, which is consistently good.

Entertainment was provided by a pianist Hyperion Knight,another former guest performer on the world voyage. Classical is his specialty and he is verytalented, and one of the shows we enjoy.

Tomorrow will be our final French Polynesian port and thefinest tropical island in existence – Bora Bora.

Quote of the day: Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. Anonymous.

Bill & Mary Ann

Quote of the day: Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. Anonymous.

What a wonderful thought!

Another great report from paradise.