Port Arthur, Tasmania, I was going to call this post “The English Gulag” because Britain operated a string of penal colonies and labor camps throughout Australia to rid itself of criminals. Some of the “Convicts” were convicted of, essentially being … Continue reading Despair in a Beautiful Place
The sail out happened in afternoon daylight, giving us the views of the harbor we were denied on the sail in. Our last sail out was right at sunset, this one was a little earlier. Everyone held their breaths as … Continue reading Sydney Sailout 2023
We went by a certain corner near Circular Quay in Sydney several times. Suzi mentioned the interesting angles of the buildings, almost like architects were trying to outdo each other. It is what Dr. Arnie Flaten, my architecture prof at … Continue reading Remember me to Herald Square
We got to bed after midnight. We don’t even do that on New Year’s Eve, but we wanted to enjoy a little Sydney nightlife, which for us was mainly people watching. From Darling Harbor we waked to the light rail … Continue reading A Night on the Town
Sydney almost cannot help but make a good first impression when you sail into her harbor. It is one of the world’s magnificent sights. It’s a complex harbor with bays and inlets, small ferries dart about dodging sailboats. The sails … Continue reading Sydney, Main Post
After four concentrated days in New Zealand, it’s nice go get three sea days to rest, sort out memories, do a little writing, download pictures, play some dominos and just plain chill out. Suzi and I are trying to get … Continue reading Check Multiple Sources
The Wellington docks are industrial, lots of logs in the round going to China. You can’t walk away from the ship, you need to take a bus to one of two stops in the center of Wellington. The problem is … Continue reading Carpenter Gothic and Cable Cars — Wellington
“…Locomotive 165 returning your call, Gisborne Air Traffic Control.” Locomotive 165 is a WA class steam locomotive built in the Dunedin railway workshop on New Zealand’s South Island in 1897, 6 years before the Wright Brothers first flight at kitty … Continue reading “This is Gisborne Air Traffic Control Calling Locomotive 165…”
We set the alarm for 6 AM. We had a tour booked to the thermal area around Lake Rotorua. Normally we don’t take ship tours but this one was a “freebee” for booking early (nothing on a cruise is really … Continue reading We Celebrate Our Certificates of Recovery by Exhausting Ourselves.
One thing you should know about me. I hate shopping, especially clothes shopping. It probably goes back to when my mother took me to Robert Hall (low overhead) and made me try on all sorts of things that I couldn’t … Continue reading Shopping in Devonport
Alaska Airlines lost one of our bags on the way to Fort Lauderdale (FLL). The agent in FLL said it would be on the next plane and we should get it later that evening. That evening they called to tell … Continue reading St. Anthony or St. Jude?
The police met our ship in Tonga enmass. They unpacked their weapons… lined up… on command of the officer… they greeted us with “Stars and Stripes Forever.” Welcome to Tonga. The young women in faux grass skirts clapped along before … Continue reading Posted Postcards
For months I’ve been reading newspaper accounts and blogs of people isolated in staterooms because of COVID. Some couples get along well, some don’t wear so well in close quarters. Some people spend time watching TV, some reading, and some … Continue reading Splendid Isolation
I’m “confined to quarters bt Suzi is free to come and go. The last two days she was able to get off the ship to visit Ra’iatea. For me it was going to be a snorkeling stop but Suzi took … Continue reading Ra’iatea Through Suzi’s Eyes
When we got back to the ship after a day of sightseeing on Tahiti I had a mild sore throat, a runny nose, and a cough, nothing unusual for me, especially on a blossom filled island. But since we were … Continue reading Day Zero
Stacy owns her own KIA cab and is proud of being an independent businesswoman, her own boss. After the shops had closed at noon in Papeete, I talked to the tourist office to see how much a cab would cost … Continue reading To Venus and Beyond!
Sometimes you set out looking for something, and when you find it, it was not what you started out looking for. We went ashore in Papeete, Tahiti looking for a shirt shop with shirts my size. (Some of our baggage … Continue reading Chinese New Year with Ukuleles
Today as pulled into Taiocha’e bay in Nuka Hiva in the Marquesas Islands I could almost hear cell phones awaken after 8 days’ sleep, pinging the presence of texts, lots of texts, collectively probably thousands of texts as we sailed … Continue reading Nuka Hiva Redux
We’ve been on the ship two weeks. Most cruises will have ended by now. We’ve just started, still establishing the rhythm of a long cruise, shedding the tensions of packing, air travel and the holidays. We are ending our first … Continue reading Sea Interludes (first movement)
In Sitka I walk most days. I walk because, Penny, the Public Health Nurse told me I needed to. I went into the “Backdoor” coffee shop (The backdoor of the local bookstore) and announced that I would walk every day … Continue reading Shadows on Teak
Pete wrote, in his blog “The Inside Cabin,” (theinsidecabin.com) about his briefcase of good intentions. The things he planned do on sea days that never get done. For him it is catching up on reading books. That is also one … Continue reading Devices
In the Panama City’s old city there are a lot of murals. Some depict local heroes like boxer Roberto Druan or Salsa and Latin Jazz master Ruben Blades (who is also a politician and former minister of tourism.) Some depict … Continue reading Pictures on a Wall in Panama
A few blog posts ago I made fun of Potemkin Jamacia, a cruise port made to look like the real port, only cleaned up and safe. Visitors like old towns, especially when they are neat, clean and freshly painted. Our … Continue reading Two Faces of Panama
We have never actually been in Panama City’s new town, but we’ve seen it three times from three perspectives, from the deck of a ship, from the causeway connecting it with the cruise port, and from the perspective of the … Continue reading Panama City, From a Distance