In January 1881, during the War of the Pacific, also known as the the Saltpeter war, or the 10 cent war (it had a lot of names), Chile occupied Lima. The war was fought over control of nitrates and a … Continue reading Magic Fountains
Downtown Lima is about 9 kilometers from its port Callao. This is intentional. The Spaniards feared English and French Pirates, so they located their major towns, Trujillo, Pisco and Lima some distance from the port. When the pirates (or privateers … Continue reading Lima Streets.
When you first see the Costa Verde Cliffs in Lima, they look almost sculpted. The cliffs run for about 16 kilometers (10 miles) along the Pacific Coast. They are 50 to 60 meters (160 to 190 feet) high and consist … Continue reading Miraflores’ Sculpted Cliffs.
When we crossed the equator new and different wildlife began appearing. And when I went out for my walk on the promenade deck folks were walking in a clockwise direction rather than the usual flow on the deck which is … Continue reading Sea Days in the Humboldt Current
At 6:00 AM I woke with a stuffy nose and sinus headache. Outside I could hear loud metallic bangs. We had docked at Salaverry, the port for Trujillo. I went to the balcony and saw a cloud of gray dust … Continue reading Port Sudafed
Ten years ago, we thought we could have it all. We were on the Prinsendam and booked a tour to Chan Chan, the largest adobe city in the world. The tour was supposed to end in time for us to … Continue reading Finally Trujillo
As we sailed into Manta I saw a church tower in front of what looked like an arched roof quasit style sports arena. I was curious about what it was. When I got into town in the afternoon, after I … Continue reading Manta Sidebar
250205 Wooden Botes in Manta We pulled up to the pier in Manta at 5 AM. A group was leaving the ship for an early flight to the Gallipolis Islands. Suzi and I were still in isolation, and I was … Continue reading Wooden Botes in Manta
Head Note: (Because people usually don’t bother to read footnotes.) Suzi and I are out of isolation and feeling better. I wrote this yesterday but didn’t want to send it until we were “free as a bird” as our room … Continue reading A Fist Full of Sea Days
I spent the day before we transited the Panama Canal charging batteries. This would be my fourth transit of the canal. While I had promised myself that I would put the camera down and just enjoy the transit I knew … Continue reading Panama Post
We pulled into Puerto Limón with a band on the dock playing an eclectic mix of music including reggae, salsa, hapa Houle Hawaiian music, and the Never on Sunday Cha Cha Cha. That was just to whet our musical appetite. … Continue reading Saturday in the Park — Puerto Limon
As we sailed into Santa Marta I recognized the headland. In 1970 we spent a week here during spring break with Suzi’s parents, sister and friends of Suzi’s folks. I also remembered the cactus came down to the water’s edge. … Continue reading A Lump of Coal
Victoria, our tour guide in Santa Marta, Colombia, wanted us to know where she stood. “I love Colombia, but I don’t love Columbus. We do not celebrate Columbus Day. Why would we celebrate THAT man who stole our land, killed … Continue reading Goodbye Columbus (Santa Marta)
He founded an order called “The Hounds of the Lord,” also known as the “Black Friers.” They were foot soldiers in the Inquisition. I am not sure I would want to live in a town honoring St. Dominic. Santo Domingo … Continue reading Hound of the Lord
My dad and his buddy, who I called Uncle Ed, built a 16-foot cabin cruiser in Ed’s garage one winter. In the spring they took “Laural” out on a trailer, with me tagging along, slid it into the water and … Continue reading Peanut
As we sailed off in the opposite direction of the sunset, I looked at the receding shoreline and said “Goodbye little red suitcase, I hope we can meet again somewhere.” Once more we were sailing out of Ft. Lauderdale with … Continue reading St Anthony — Again?
This is the landing page for the 2025 Pole to Pole (P2P) cruise on Holland America’s MV Volendam. It is a 133 day Grand Voyage. Let’s see how the itinerary will change in the next four months. The map is … Continue reading 2025 Pole to Pole, MS Volendam
Getting to the beginning of each cruise is chaotic but each chaos is different. This year the chaos was uncertainty. Suzi broke her arm just before Christmas. She went to the ER, and they set up an appointment with the … Continue reading Chaos
I almost canceled this cruise. We booked it because friends had booked it. We used our booking to set a marker for Raven Radio, to let the board know that we had a fixed end point to our commitment. But … Continue reading Cruise Coda — Japan
I seldom sleep well on days before I fly. It’s the combination of fear and excitement. I have a fear of flying dating back to a day in 1978 when I was sitting in an exit row, landing gear on … Continue reading Home
They went by quickly Between a few last swims before we got north into the colder weather, a few last games of Mexican train dominoes, some final dinners (for a while) with friends, and packing the five sea days flew … Continue reading Five Days at Sea
The closest state to Hawaii is Alaska. Just go straight north, closer than California. You can win a bar bet with that. It becomes evident if you visit Hilo’s Tsunami Museum, set in an old bank on the town’s main … Continue reading Hilo, Last Port
After a long day on Kauai yesterday we slept in because we didn’t have anything on tap until noonish when we had lunch with our Sitka friend Fred. Fred has a place on the other side of Oahu and came … Continue reading Pineapple is ok on pizza in Hawaii.
It isn’t easy to find Fort Elizabeth just outside of Waimea on the island of Kauai. It used to be named “Fort Elizabeth Historical State Park.” That is still on the maps handed out by car rental companies and the … Continue reading Русский Форт