Crowded Ports- Too many Ships in Ports!

[TrulyBlonde]

1 minute ago, clo said:

Ah, so "many times" and "usually" sound good.  But when we travel - seven continents so far 🙂 - we far prefer to not only eat the local food but to hang with the locals.  Perhaps especially on an Oceania cruise where 'higher end' food is de rigueur even more so.  Ever have feijoada in Brazil?

 

We have also been to all 7 Continents. Enjoy your travels because we are enjoying all of ours. We generally travel in the off season because our skiing is very important to us. Also, fewer crowds, no kiddies etc. Have not had that dish but it looks quite good. Enjoy 🙂

[clo]

1 minute ago, TrulyBlonde said:

We have also been to all 7 Continents. Enjoy your travels because we are enjoying all of ours. We generally travel in the off season because our skiing is very important to us. Also, fewer crowds, no kiddies etc. Have not had that dish but it looks quite good. Enjoy 🙂

It's all parts of the pig.  Feet, ears, etc.

sss

We live near Lake Tahoe so yes regarding skiing.  700 inches at Squaw Valley this past season...and it's still open.

[TrulyBlonde]

1 minute ago, clo said:

It's all parts of the pig.  Feet, ears, etc.

sss

We live near Lake Tahoe so yes regarding skiing.  700 inches at Squaw Valley this past season...and it's still open.

We live in Aspen and best snow in over 20 years. Aspen Mountain closed a week ago and unfortunately I was dusting off snow from my newly planted flowers this weekend. The never ending Winter this year. I am ready for Summer. 

[CintiPam]

We have rented a car for the day on our two visits to St. Barts, driven around the island and tried several of its very beautiful beaches. Very narrow well-maintained steep roads with lots of fun curves and hills.

[Hawaiidan]

On 6/24/2019 at 7:18 PM, clo said:

Ah, so "many times" and "usually" sound good.  But when we travel - seven continents so far 🙂 - we far prefer to not only eat the local food but to hang with the locals.  Perhaps especially on an Oceania cruise where 'higher end' food is de rigueur even more so.  Ever have feijoada in Brazil?

 

 

I understand..... looks like something Anthony Borduain  would  enjoy.      I have a  passion for good  food and experiences but like to experience those  in perspective.   Why am I paying $500 a day for meals on the ship?    

  On a cruise which has a myriad of wonderful cuisine variety, I travel to see stuff on the shore  not stuff my self on foods of questionable origin and composition like finding goat hair in your stew . 

 Seen too many people come back to the ship sick on some shore side meals.    Even on shore ex  I avoid  the provided meals.    On the ship you do know....  on the shore  you can only hope.

When I do road trips I steer clear of luxury places as with the exception of Michelin places seem to pander to the tastes of foreign tourists...  Its not what the locals eat because the locals dont stay at lux places 

 While I enjoy A michelin *** I do so having experienced the other end of the spectrum and can enjoy a  beautiful french dish    as well as a chilidog or corn dog.

 

 

[clo]

29 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

 

I understand..... looks like something Anthony Borduain  would  enjoy.      I have a  passion for good  food and experiences but like to experience those  in perspective.   Why am I paying $500 a day for meals on the ship?    

  On a cruise which has a myriad of wonderful cuisine variety, I travel to see stuff on the shore  not stuff my self on foods of questionable origin and composition like finding goat hair in your stew . 

 Seen too many people come back to the ship sick on some shore side meals.    Even on shore ex  I avoid  the provided meals.    On the ship you do know....  on the shore  you can only hope.

When I do road trips I steer clear of luxury places as with the exception of Michelin places seem to pander to the tastes of foreign tourists...  Its not what the locals eat because the locals dont stay at lux places 

 While I enjoy A michelin *** I do so having experienced the other end of the spectrum and can enjoy a  beautiful french dish    as well as a chilidog or corn dog.

 

 

We travel a lot and would hate to not eat the local food...with the locals.  The only time I've gotten sick was from salmonella-tainted peanut butter from the US that hadn't been removed from the shelves.  I also drink tap water almost all over the world.  As I've mentioned we get as far as possible away from the touristy areas for eating, shopping, whatever.

 

And forgot to mention that photo above is feijoada, a dish of various 'pig parts' and you can pick and choose which you want 🙂  We would have it generally two Saturdays out of three along with caipirnhas and then go sleep it off 🙂

Edited June 26, 2019 by clo

[Hawaiidan]

8 minutes ago, clo said:

We travel a lot and would hate to not eat the local food...with the locals.  The only time I've gotten sick was from salmonella-tainted peanut butter from the US that hadn't been removed from the shelves.  I also drink tap water almost all over the world.  As I've mentioned we get as far as possible away from the touristy areas for eating, shopping, whatever.

Drinking the tap water in Normandy  can have some real problems...  between the huge population of  cows and  the 100,000,000 tons of lead thrown in the 1940's   you can get extremely sick  the water  has acquired extra kick......   The locals wont drink it and told me  not to.... that was a clue I failed to heed....   Id skip Borneo too.

Glad you like to eat with the locals..... who may have developed an immunity to the local bio problems.   Like  eating reef fish in the south pacific !     Happy to take pictures.   I think you need to know in advance  what the locals eat  and not just blindly  say  Whoo boy  that looks interesting.     

[TrulyBlonde]

14 minutes ago, clo said:

We travel a lot and would hate to not eat the local food...with the locals.  The only time I've gotten sick was from salmonella-tainted peanut butter from the US that hadn't been removed from the shelves.  I also drink tap water almost all over the world.  As I've mentioned we get as far as possible away from the touristy areas for eating, shopping, whatever.

You stated prior you prefer hanging out in back alleys of the locations you visit. That could be quite dangerous and happy you have been fortunate to not have had an incident. Drinking tap water almost all over the world is equally dangerous (most places issue warnings for bottled water).

We choose not to eat off of the ship in many places if we can help it. Example: S. America, however have no problem in Europe. Maybe we are paranoid, but after having a home in Cabo San Lucas we are well aware of Montezuma's Revenge. 

At least you have the safety of your knife 😉

[clo]

3 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

Drinking the tap water in Normandy  can have some real problems...  between the huge population of  cows and  the 100,000,000 tons of lead thrown in the 1940's   you can get extremely sick  the water  has acquired extra kick......   The locals wont drink it and told me  not to.... that was a clue I failed to heed....   Id skip Borneo too.

Glad you like to eat with the locals..... who may have developed an immunity to the local bio problems.   Like  eating reef fish in the south pacific !     Happy to take pictures.   I think you need to know in advance  what the locals eat  and not just blindly  say  Whoo boy  that looks interesting.     

That looks GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!  

 

In Brazil the "white" people don't drink the water but the "brown" and "black" people do.

 

Thanks for the info about other places.

[clo]

1 minute ago, TrulyBlonde said:

You stated prior you prefer hanging out in back alleys of the locations you visit. That could be quite dangerous and happy you have been fortunate to not have had an incident. Drinking tap water almost all over the world is equally dangerous (most places issue warnings for bottled water).

We choose not to eat off of the ship in many places if we can help it. Example: S. America, however have no problem in Europe. Maybe we are paranoid, but after having a home in Cabo San Lucas we are well aware of Montezuma's Revenge. 

At least you have the safety of your knife 😉

I've had a personal motto since I moved to SF while still in my 20s: don't be where you shouldn't be when you shouldn't be there.  We used to have a condo in Rio and spent weeks and months there at a time.  The only time I didn't drink tap water was by must-have water by the side of the bed.  The water is heavily chlorinated and I didn't like it at room temp during the night.  So I had bottled water then.  We've been to may ten countries in Central and South America and the only place I didn't drink water was in Cusco, Peru.  There was particulate floating in it!

[TrulyBlonde]

38 minutes ago, clo said:

I've had a personal motto since I moved to SF while still in my 20s: don't be where you shouldn't be when you shouldn't be there.  We used to have a condo in Rio and spent weeks and months there at a time.  The only time I didn't drink tap water was by must-have water by the side of the bed.  The water is heavily chlorinated and I didn't like it at room temp during the night.  So I had bottled water then.  We've been to may ten countries in Central and South America and the only place I didn't drink water was in Cusco, Peru.  There was particulate floating in it!

We love Rio and think it is one of the most beautiful places in the world. They also have that lovely drink, the "Caipirinha".

Cusco is interesting and we took the O tour from Lima to MP and stayed in the most beautiful hotel there. Many people leaving from port in Lima seem to come down with a nasty bug and assume it is from food poisoning.

Therefore, we have been extra cautious and mainly ate on board the ship unless we were staying in a pre or post hotel.

[clo]

10 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

We love Rio and think it is one of the most beautiful places in the world. They also have that lovely drink, the "Caipirinha".

Cusco is interesting and we took the O tour from Lima to MP and stayed in the most beautiful hotel there. Many people leaving from port in Lima seem to come down with a nasty bug and assume it is from food poisoning.

Therefore, we have been extra cautious and mainly ate on board the ship unless we were staying in a pre or post hotel.

Many people on our coach tour through Patagonia got sick but we didn't blame it on anything other than bad luck.

 

I'd rather take a beating than return to the ship to eat.  Our cruise from Rio to BA has only one sea day and we'll be in ports for eight to ten hours.  Time for at least lunch with one or two caipirinhas.  

 

[clo]

23 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

We love Rio and think it is one of the most beautiful places in the world. They also have that lovely drink, the "Caipirinha".

Cusco is interesting and we took the O tour from Lima to MP and stayed in the most beautiful hotel there. Many people leaving from port in Lima seem to come down with a nasty bug and assume it is from food poisoning.

Therefore, we have been extra cautious and mainly ate on board the ship unless we were staying in a pre or post hotel.

So you wouldn't eat these dishes?  This is where we go on Saturdays for feijoada.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/deckrestaurante/photos/?ref=page_internal

[TrulyBlonde]

7 minutes ago, clo said:

Many people on our coach tour through Patagonia got sick but we didn't blame it on anything other than bad luck.

 

I'd rather take a beating than return to the ship to eat.  Our cruise from Rio to BA has only one sea day and we'll be in ports for eight to ten hours.  Time for at least lunch with one or two caipirinhas.  

 

We disembarked in BA and flew to Rio to have time on our own there for a few days. Happy we did because able to explore so much more vs having to return back on time to the cruise ship. Having been to BA prior on our own years ago, the time did not matter as much. I personally prefer Rio to BA.  Cheers!

[TrulyBlonde]

2 minutes ago, clo said:

So you wouldn't eat these dishes?  This is where we go on Saturdays for feijoada.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/deckrestaurante/photos/?ref=page_internal

I am not on FB anymore..too much advertising. You were familiar with the area and where to eat due to a home there. When just a tourist for a few days we wanted to be more cautious. I just follow the rules of traveling abroad  when in certain countries such as no salads, unpeeled fruit, bottled water etc. I suppose I could change my screen name to "NervousNellie" 🤔

[clo]

10 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

"NervousNellie"

Perhaps.  We do that everywhere and are now in our 70s with no plans to change.  We take public transpo also.  lol.

[Hawaiidan]

59 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

I am not on FB anymore..too much advertising. You were familiar with the area and where to eat due to a home there. When just a tourist for a few days we wanted to be more cautious. I just follow the rules of traveling abroad  when in certain countries such as no salads, unpeeled fruit, bottled water etc. I suppose I could change my screen name to "NervousNellie" 🤔

No  your making an intelligent decision.   You realize that you really know nothing of the place  except from reading stuff..   Dont know the political, criminal and social problems that no one talks about,  Don't know sanitation or local  health risks. 

   You realize you do not know a lot no matter how you study till you have been there a while.     

 

 Being a pollyana  and because your a cool outgoing  kind soul  your karma will get you by !   I  had friend   visit mexico touting that... they got their throats cut....    

It wont ... it can get you in deep trouble.... you can wake up in a alley naked or dead  or both !     

South America is  interesting but filled with historical crime, unrest, and problems.... once was enough.   

I am a risk taker, scuba diver  pilot, rock climber mountaineer, motorcycle rider... and soldier.      I am smart enough to know how dumb I am and  how fast  what you think is under control can blow up to something you never dreamed.     When I go on vacation  I  do not want to  push the  envelope..   

 

 When you go off the beaten track   you become a standout and a potential target to folks who see you as prey.   Not every local who befriends you  is your friend..  Visiting the slums in lima,  Rio , Manila or Bueno Aires has a  flip side.

Edited June 26, 2019 by Hawaiidan

[DeeniEncinitas]

27 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

No  your making an intelligent decision.   You realize that you really know nothing of the place  except from reading stuff..   Dont know the political, criminal and social problems that no one talks about,  Don't know sanitation or local  health risks. 

   You realize you do not know a lot no matter how you study till you have been there a while.     

 

 Being a pollyana  and because your a cool outgoing  kind soul  your karma will get you by !   I  had friend   visit mexico touting that... they got their throats cut....    

It wont ... it can get you in deep trouble.... you can wake up in a alley naked or dead  or both !     

South America is  interesting but filled with historical crime, unrest, and problems.... once was enough.   

I am a risk taker, scuba diver  pilot, rock climber mountaineer, motorcycle rider... and soldier.      I am smart enough to know how dumb I am and  how fast  what you think is under control can blow up to something you never dreamed.     When I go on vacation  I  do not want to  push the  envelope..   

 

 When you go off the beaten track   you become a standout and a potential target to folks who see you as prey.   Not every local who befriends you  is your friend..  Visiting the slums in lima,  Rio , Manila or Bueno Aires has a  flip side.

Hi Dan!!! 

With your last quote I wanted to chime in!

As you, my husband and I are risk takers also! We travel everywhere as I have said to you in past CC’s here and on HAL.

we were not off the beaten track! We have a condo right on Promenade de Angleis 

In Nice. Was my parents home when I was little 🙄 so long ago LOL. We travel there every year as well as cruise before or after. We witnessed the horrific tragedy that happen from our balcony not knowing the circumstances of all those souls that died that night. This is no slum area and even on the Côte de Azur South if France it can happen!

People need to know you are a well traveled soul and know your stuff

Denise 

[su-arizona]

Gosh folks....the subject was crowded cruise ports, wasn't it?  

 

I'm not sure there are any "back alleys" in St. Barts.  We enjoyed it the first time we were there in the 80's and could rent a mini moke - driving was an adventure.  If you spend enough for a fabulous lunch at a fabulous hotel - it ought to be enjoyable and folks ought to be polite.  Unless it's high season of course...

 

As I mentioned before, crowding isn't exclusive to cruise ports, or even remote locations.  

 

[Hawaiidan]

21 hours ago, su-arizona said:

Gosh folks....the subject was crowded cruise ports, wasn't it?  

 

I'm not sure there are any "back alleys" in St. Barts.  We enjoyed it the first time we were there in the 80's and could rent a mini moke - driving was an adventure.  If you spend enough for a fabulous lunch at a fabulous hotel - it ought to be enjoyable and folks ought to be polite.  Unless it's high season of course...

 

As I mentioned before, crowding isn't exclusive to cruise ports, or even remote locations.  

 

 

This is  the  result of commercial insanity  and too much disposable income  where  inexperienced people can buy them selves an adventure   and get a selfie.     Climbing Everest has become ego fodder.     I say this as a long term climber both rock and  mountain.   Climbing/   has become a tool for those wanting adulation in their shallow lives.   

You can buy your way up Everest or El Captain. or a cruise to Antarctica or the Northwest passage...    which is sad and disgusting.   What you motivation,  adulation?      Look at me    see what I did ?

 

 Back in the 60's   we had no such problem in the valley.... no one knew what a carabiner was...

  Thats not the real  climbing  experience and motivation for those of us who are attracted to climbing for its aesthetic value and  personal challenges... it was a both private and personal experience between you and the rock......

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by Hawaiidan

[clo]

1 hour ago, Hawaiidan said:

 

This is  the  result of commercial insanity  and too much disposable income  where  inexperienced people can buy them selves an adventure   and get a selfie.     Climbing Everest has become ego fodder.     I say this as a long term climber both rock and  mountain.   Climbing/   has become a tool for those wanting adulation in their shallow lives.   

You can buy your way up Everest or El Captain. or a cruise to Antarctica or the Northwest passage...    which is sad and disgusting.   What you motivation,  adulation?      Look at me    see what I did ?

 

 Back in the 60's   we had no such problem in the valley.... no one knew what a carabiner was...

  Thats not the real  climbing  experience and motivation for those of us who are attracted to climbing for its aesthetic value and  personal challenges... it was a both private and personal experience between you and the rock......

 

To remain off topic 🙂 you might enjoy our son-in-law's podcast Dirtbag Diaries https://dirtbagdiaries.com/ .  It used to be all about climbing but now lots of outdoor subjects.  Also they make short outdoor films.  See Duct Tape Then Beer  http://www.ducttapethenbeer.com/home  Their major sponsor is Patagonia so they're the real deal.

[Hawaiidan]

17 minutes ago, clo said:

To remain off topic 🙂 you might enjoy our son-in-law's podcast Dirtbag Diaries https://dirtbagdiaries.com/ .  It used to be all about climbing but now lots of outdoor subjects.  Also they make short outdoor films.  See Duct Tape Then Beer  http://www.ducttapethenbeer.com/home  Their major sponsor is Patagonia so they're the real deal.

Thanks...Patagonia... Ha ! I used to climb with Yvonne /Pratt/ Bridwell/Kroft   .....  no selfies however   Then were the days....

[clo]

6 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

Thanks...Patagonia... Ha ! I used to climb with Yvonne /Pratt/ Bridwell/Kroft   .....  no selfies however   Then were the days....

You might especially enjoy Gimp Monkeys.

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

On 6/27/2019 at 12:44 PM, clo said:

You might especially enjoy Gimp Monkeys.

 

PRICELESS!!!! I love this thread!

Denise😊

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

On 6/27/2019 at 12:37 PM, Hawaiidan said:

Thanks...Patagonia... Ha ! I used to climb with Yvonne /Pratt/ Bridwell/Kroft   .....  no selfies however   Then were the days....

WOW DAN LOVE IT! 

Denise😊