“the Big One”! World Cruise on Sojourn

[shark b8]

lots to report about Benoa, but here’s a few shots to start with.   (“with which to start”.  dammit.  my Herald-proofreader aspirations take a hit)

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Oh, the peppers in the market!  ❤️😍

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Oh, the…..umm…the peppers!

 

[shark b8]

yeah, umm……the pepper thing.

 

 

 

[shark b8]

12 hours ago, shark b8 said:

….my Herald-proofreader aspirations take a hit)

 

 

 

 

And just when they’re needed, too.

 

[shark b8]

So, with the “legs” ending and starting here in Benoa, last night there was another big ‘do at a fancy hotel (brain-fart, I’m blanking on the name of the property).  It was all going nicely, cocktails, Indonesian buffet, and entertainment.  Here’s video, but isn’t it always awkward to go to a nice event and find that somebody there is dressed the same as you are?   😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Anyway, as I said, it was all going nicely, then….Mother Nature decided to assert herself.  Lightning, huge crashes of thunder, and the heavens opened up - a “frog-strangler” as Andy Griffith would have said, back in the day. Of course it was all covered, but covers have seams, and besides, it was blowing in horizontally too.  The poor guy at the large open grill (in the background), doing his satays, was caught completely off guard.  Pretty messy, but we all somehow soldiered on.  (the peanut sauce for those satays was remarkable - really dark and rich)

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

The Hindu holy man sprinkled water on our heads as we entered a temple area…..

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

…..but only after he took iPhone pics of us.    

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Wonderful CD Ross is never far from the spotlight, and even from a distance…..it’s not hard to pick him out.  Namaste!

 

 

 

[shark b8]

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

(roosters & chickens in the basket/cages.  No idea what was in the shore excursion snack pic #2, but tasty)

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 28, 2023 by shark b8

[Flamin_June]

Ahhhh……Indonesia……..

nice pics, sharko,  full of the essence of the place. 

[shark b8]

Love the markets, warts and all. 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

We drove by a school, just as it was letting out for the day.  A lot of waving took place.  🥰

 

[shark b8]

Local dancing for our benefit when we disembarked the bus.   But, one couldn’t help but notice…..

 

[shark b8]

….an adorable little girl off to the side, dressed to the hilt for Ramadan (which started several days ago), who wanted to go dance with them, and otherwise wanted to get into most anything & everything around.  She’s gonna be trouble, I betcha, at least I hope so.  Really rocked the pink sneakers.  

 

 

 

[shark b8]

We have our share of pineapples at home, might want to learn how to do this.   (Look at the size of those papayas!)

 

 

 

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by shark b8

[cadburysmom]

10 minutes ago, shark b8 said:

….an adorable little girl off to the side, dressed to the hilt for Ramadan (which started several days ago), who wanted to go dance with them, and otherwise wanted to get into most anything & everything around.  She’s gonna be trouble, I betcha, at least I hope so.  Really rocked the pink sneakers.  

 

Totally agree, she is completely adorable.

...and yep, you got me, must admit I scoured the photo of the dancers wondering what I was missing😉

 

[shark b8]

Forgot to post this yesterday, we traveled between a few of the stops by pedi-cab.  Our guide said “there is only one traffic rule in Probolinggo, and that is… there are no rules”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

There was a welcoming committee this morning (Surabaya), even as the gangway was placed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Trowulan archaeological sites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Since our arrival in Indonesia, there have been several instances along the way, where short local/ethnic music and dance have been presented for us.  At the Trowulan sites, these 12 year old girls danced….and the little sweetie at left was utterly entranced. 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Aaaaaaaand….well, we’ve all been there.  The more remote the location, the less “elegance” one can expect to find.  I understood maybe 10-12 words our guide said, throughout the day.  The A/C on our bus spurted water out of the ceiling vents on 5-6 seats.  (yes, I hear you say, “hey, at least you had a/c”, which is exactly correct, not always the case).  It was horribly hot, I think I do better on cold-cruises rather than hot-ones, but here we are.  And, no surprise, the facilities were, um, modest. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

On the other, other hand - lots of waving to be found in Indonesia.  And…this is a first - our two buses had lights-flashing police escort, for the whole day.