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Day 5 Hilo Hawaii October 31,2011
Weather: Chance of Showers High 82 Low 65.
Sunrise 6:22 Sunset 5:44
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This morning started with storm clouds all around the ship. Not overcast, but genuine black clouds. This storm passed us by. We are going to have a brilliant sunny morning.
I brought Sue her breakfast and choice from the buffet, scrambled eggs, bacon, corned beef hash, a baked pear adn 3 rolls with butter.
I took the elevator down to the 5th floor piazza, walking through the art gallery and had what they called an bengue (sp?) a french donut. Its really a small doughnut square filled with blackberry filling., a chocolate glazed rolled doughnut and a custard filled doughnut. Add these to a broad rimmed cup and saucer cappuccino and its almost a perfect breakfast.
I checked the email. Natalie said that Nigel is in the window all day and is happy to eat the treats.
Today is Mom's birthday!
They have a wild display in the piazza lobby. It had some gruesome carved pumpkins (the cooks with the garnish knives on watermelons could accomplish amazing things with pumpkins). Also in the center was a manikin with green eyes, and bloody shirt. My daily internet use is around 20 minutes per day on a 14 day cruise that works out to be around 300 minutes. I bought a plan that would give me more than the minimum 500. So I guess that spend a little more time in facebook. The connection speed was really good as there were only three others in the internet cafe and people started using their regular cell phones as we rolled into US territory in Hawaii.
I called Wanda (mom) to wish her a happy birthday. Dad was chopping on his peach tree.
I text messaged the Brownie Korbs in Colorado and both girls in the Bay Area.
It was neat to see that breakers as we barreled up the coast to our docking port in Hilo. It was clear enough at this point to see all the way up the mountain to the tiny round knobs that had to be the observatory. It was the only time during the entire day that the mountain was visible. The rest of the time grey and black clouds blocked the view.
I was off the boat about a half and hour after we docked for my 2 mile hike. I thought that it would take longer than that with people being on ship for so long. It was an easy off. So the early exucrsions were off on time. We had arrived about a half an hour late. After that many miles at see its a wonder that we were there so close to our planned arrival,
I walked down toward the town and saw car dealerships and big truck warehouses. After I walked a a mile and a half I decided that the additional mile to the town was not worth it. I had failed to put on my hat, and the sun was making it pretty hot.
I headed back and got Sue up to do the run to Walmart. A shuttle runs form port to Walmart and Hilo Hatties was running the some vans and did not want to waste their space with a wheel chair. (This we found out from another wheelchair couple as they waited to get on. Walmart hired a bus to do the runs and everyone including our two wheelchairs were welcome. The walmart bus held 65 people . It pulled up and we climbed on. It dropped us off at Walmart, and the driver gave us a little local color as we traveled. Hilo has 45,000 people.
Sue and I ate McRibs.. yum. I listened to the post high school students talk in their classic "pidgin" What an interesting linguistic soup.
I bought the Steve Jobs biography. Sue fell in love with the quality and depth of Hawaiian material available in the store. Almost everyone was wearing Hawaiian shirts. Shorts were everywhere.
When we were ready to return, we waited for the bus outside of Walmart. It finally came up but it did not have room for us. We could have waited for the next bus. But....
Our excursion started at 2:20 and I was afraid we were going to miss that one. I flagged down a taxi. It was a mini van. The first question the middle aged female taxi driver asked was,"Are you allergic to dogs?" I said no. Sue said, "find out how much it would cost." She guessed it would be about 14 dollars to the port. It was only 12. by meter. I told her to keep the change of the 20. She almost didn't want to keep the change but she did. She did in honor of her little shitzu dog that was her constant companion. Sue sat up in front with the driver and her little dog that had a tiny gold clip to keep her hair out of her eyes. She rode the transmission hump all day with her master.
Back at the port. I took the Walmart purchases up to the cabin while Sue shopped the merchants set up inside the port building. Some of our family members will be the recipients of the fine shopping environments . There were even some lady selling tropical arrangements for your cabin at 10dollars a throw.
The Botanical Excursion
We were gathered up from the huge indoor port building under the sign. We had the tickets supplied by the ship. We traded them for a big gold sticker for our clothes. 9 of us and the manual wheelchair squeezed into the van and off we went. The driver was equipped with a microphone and a headset so that he could narrate the trip and answer questions that people had before getting to the gardens. Our driver took us sight seeing along the way, showing us some of the public parks beside the sea and some of the flora that makes this place different.
We unloaded at the gardens and Sue went diving into the gift shop. She found the only shirt that had a chance of fitting. We also got some postcards of the place. It had some photos of the beautiful flowers and plants that we would see along the slopes of this vertical garden.
Sue got out her camera and took a large number of photos of the things that impressed her. It is situated on a very steep hillside. They got us down to the area that we had a chance at pushing the wheel chair around and more level walking by moving us down using gas powered golf carts. They were also used to drag the wheelchair and us back up the hill.
Sue sat in the front of the van coming and going. I sat with a newlywed couple from our ship from Oregon. She had long gorgeous red hair.
The driver narrated our journey. He answered the "living"questions. Gas was $4.25 a gallon. Currently in the states its $3.65 a gallon. He pointed out the banyon trees and the umbrella trees.
We were all checked thoroughly for identity four times this day just getting into the area that had the ship. Sue was hurting and wiped out. I was just wiped out from what felt like working in a warm sauna all day long.
It took 6 glasses of water at the buffet for me to feel I had caught up with the water I had lost.
Dinner:
Sue: hot dog with extra mustard with cheese and rolls form the buffet.
Pat: Double hamburger with cheese, handful of fries, a scoop of garlic shrimp form the buffet and a desert sampler (for use to share) small slices of pumpkin pie squares, cheesecake, and choc. layer cake
I watched the last quarter of the Monday night game that pitted the San Diego Chargers and the K.C. Chiefs. It was on the big outdoor screen as we headed out of port in the evening headed to Honolulu.
The kids on the ship, all six of them did some trick or treating through the buffet with the Princess mascot.. the pelican. Its the first and probably the only time that I have ever seen the Princess mascot.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Day 4 Hawaiian Cruise
_________________________________________
Day 4 October 30, 2011
Forecast High 79 Low 62 Sunrise 6:50 Sunset 6:29
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Checked email: had responses from the girls. Also Natalie. The cleaning ladies were back. Natalie liked them. Connection speed slowed way down.
At breakfast I ate in the formal dinning room and was served a very strange version of Huevos Rancherios. Chopped tomato fresh salsa on the side. Eggs serced over a quesadila filled with green peppers and a large dollop of refried black beans accompanied.
Breakfast dinners included a couple from Pennsylvania. The wife had a white mennonite prayer cap. The husband a trimmed beard. Also there was a couple from Florida interested in horses, with the husband a police attorney. A couple from Rockford Illinois and an insurance salesman from Bakersfield completed the table. He was rather outspoken regarding California politics and its solvency. I let him have his right wing platform. It died without a second.
I met a truck driver from Hemit. He and his wife cashed in their LA home and bought a brand new one from the proceeds in Hemit. Hemit is a high desert city east of LA. He helps cook for the American Legion . He grills hamburgers and hot dogs with fries... price $4.00. Even then some of the members don't want to buy. The American Legion supports itself with bingo but no bar.
Sue and I booked the botanical gardens excursion for the next day when we dock on the big Island of Hawaii at Hilo. It is scheduled to leave the port at 2:30. Its the last one of the day. There were 4 other times. They use a van to transport the people to the location. The excursion office called ahead to see if there would be room for the wheelchair. They said that they could accommodate it.
The ship's naturalist was selling her own book after her lectures in the big theatre. It is all photos she took herself of natural Hawaii. She autographed it for us. She is selling it off to pay for her college loans. She is form Portland. She was a naturalist for the park service in Alaska before doing the princess boats. She was up on the Kenea peninsula. She was also stationed for 2 years in Ketchikan.
Dinner:
Pat: Carbmeat in a martini glass with pieces of orange
Cold coconut soup in a hurricane glass
Surf and Turf- Filet with four large Shrimp -tails on
Cherries Jubulee- Flambe with vanilla ice cream
Sue: Two hamburgers from the terrace via Pat's room service
We set our clocks back again for tomorrow wake up . We are supposed to be dockside at 9am in Hilo.
Day 4 October 30, 2011
Forecast High 79 Low 62 Sunrise 6:50 Sunset 6:29
_________________________________________
Checked email: had responses from the girls. Also Natalie. The cleaning ladies were back. Natalie liked them. Connection speed slowed way down.
At breakfast I ate in the formal dinning room and was served a very strange version of Huevos Rancherios. Chopped tomato fresh salsa on the side. Eggs serced over a quesadila filled with green peppers and a large dollop of refried black beans accompanied.
Breakfast dinners included a couple from Pennsylvania. The wife had a white mennonite prayer cap. The husband a trimmed beard. Also there was a couple from Florida interested in horses, with the husband a police attorney. A couple from Rockford Illinois and an insurance salesman from Bakersfield completed the table. He was rather outspoken regarding California politics and its solvency. I let him have his right wing platform. It died without a second.
I met a truck driver from Hemit. He and his wife cashed in their LA home and bought a brand new one from the proceeds in Hemit. Hemit is a high desert city east of LA. He helps cook for the American Legion . He grills hamburgers and hot dogs with fries... price $4.00. Even then some of the members don't want to buy. The American Legion supports itself with bingo but no bar.
Sue and I booked the botanical gardens excursion for the next day when we dock on the big Island of Hawaii at Hilo. It is scheduled to leave the port at 2:30. Its the last one of the day. There were 4 other times. They use a van to transport the people to the location. The excursion office called ahead to see if there would be room for the wheelchair. They said that they could accommodate it.
The ship's naturalist was selling her own book after her lectures in the big theatre. It is all photos she took herself of natural Hawaii. She autographed it for us. She is selling it off to pay for her college loans. She is form Portland. She was a naturalist for the park service in Alaska before doing the princess boats. She was up on the Kenea peninsula. She was also stationed for 2 years in Ketchikan.
Dinner:
Pat: Carbmeat in a martini glass with pieces of orange
Cold coconut soup in a hurricane glass
Surf and Turf- Filet with four large Shrimp -tails on
Cherries Jubulee- Flambe with vanilla ice cream
Sue: Two hamburgers from the terrace via Pat's room service
We set our clocks back again for tomorrow wake up . We are supposed to be dockside at 9am in Hilo.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Day 3 Hawaiian Cruise
___________________________________
Day 3 Saturday October 29,2011
Forecast: Partly Cloudy, High 78 Low 63
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I was up this morning at 5. We lost another hour as we headed West today. Its supposed to be in the high 70's and low 80's maybe. There was very little rock in the boat last night or this morning. The Eastern coast passengers were up very early this morning- their heads have yet to join the game.
There was a swimmer in the Neptune pool this morning at 8:15. I asked about the water temp. She said that is was good. Out of port they have have been repairing this pool. with some plaster patches and some re- lighting projects. Last night it was ready for occupation. Today.. a swimmer.
This morning the internet connection was a little slower but still acceptable. Received an update on the Merced cats and Kelly with a cold.
This morning attended a slide show on Kaui. Lots of insight plus a nice map was provided for his talk in the Princess Theater. Luckily, no Diamonds International. It was genuine and his references were authentic.I also had a chance to listen to the captain circle talk. I was able to get another Pacific Island stamp. Back in the room the idea to use the stamp as a take point for some watercolor got the paints out.
I bought a couple of moleskine notebooks with watercolor paper inside of them. I made the first variation with the Caran de Arche watercolor pencils then wet them down. The second variation was made with watercolor sticks . The third variation was done with the pilot pigment pen to start and then watercolors, primarily Mayan colors for the rest. Its a little different working with the hot pressed paper that was in the notebook rather than the cold pressed paper that I have mostly used in my painting, Cold pressed is much rougher in texture. I also opened a pack of artist trading cards and made a variation on them from the travel kit.
We met some London Brits at lunch. His job was controlling the air and heat inside of the building.
Sue got ready for her massage
Dinner:
Pat: Escargot
cold cucumber soup
duck ala orange
raspberry creme brulee
Sue: fruit
green Ceasar salad
fettuccine
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Day 2 Hawaiian Cruise
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Day 2 Friday, October 28, 2011- attire Formal
At Sea: Partly cloudy High 68 Low 55
________________________________________
Sunrise 6:50 Sunset 6:20
Breakfast -Lox and Danish (pear) canned apricots prunes, and figs
Morning broke with a string of clouds headed East- We are headed South west. Ship hours lose another hour tonight.
At 6 am I was in the internet cafe to get the latest update from Natalie, the house overseer. Paul (doing the cat and mail thing) left the front door unlocked but Natalie closed it and locked it within 10 minutes of his leaving. Natalie was headed over to him to remind Paul about it after he arrived home from school.
I sent emails to our daughters this am. As frequent travelers on Princess, (Platinum level) we get 250 minutes of internet time free. I bought another 500 minutes for 67 dollars. This should be enough. Its a one time offer that has to be done the first day that you are on the ship.
I had cappuccino service in the Piazza (the center of the ship on the deck 5. It was nice to have the card so that I didn't have to sign a slip to be added at the end with all of the others documenting our purchases.
2 Retired H.S Secretaries
As I looked for an easy chair to pass some time 2 retired High School secretaries couldn't seem to leave the active life alone. "Just because I am retiring this year doesn't mean that I am going to sluff off my duties," One of them stated.
Then there surfaced Angst expressed over a summer typed "purchased order... "I wasn't the one that typed that purchase order... It wasn't hers."I would have known not to use maintenance funds.
New personnel was taking over their jobs. And a new principal.. only 28. How could he think he could do the job? The counselors are coming back to schedule summer school with no knowledge of what they did in the spring.
"I told them they had the best staff of any High School could have. So he didn't talk to me the first 3 weeks just before school started, I pointed it out." He said that he was sorry, what can I do to make it better, he said. Just ask me when you need help. I will do it she said. Then there was the keys. Many teachers had lost their keys.. and round up.
So much angst so hard to let it go.
Looking out to Sea
See you are in the middle of the sea
No land to see for days
Would you look out the window to see?
Or find pattern in the waves?
If a tree were to fall in the sea
would there be anyone there to see?
Looking for the slightest breeze
To cap the waves and lighten the sea
Push on ship of wonder ship of the sea
Pat's book in hand.
Everyday in Tuscany-Seasons of an Italian life by Frances Mays (author of Under the Tuscan Sun)
Much of it is a quest for viewing paintings by Signorelli. I believe that he was the painter that we saw in Orvieto..an Umbrian hill town in Italy.
Canadian Bakers
At lunch Sue was helped through the buffet line by a Princess employee. She held the tray and Sue pointed out what she wanted. At the end she found a partially occupied table nearby. The Princess employee asked the couple if we could join them. No problem.
He was a retired bakery owner in Winnepeg. His company made thousands of cakes each day to be shipped out to Canadian safeways among other places. He said that they imported the flour for the cakes from the US as well as the fat. He preferred the soya fat over the only one made in Canada, canola. I asked him what he thought of the cake boss on T.V. He said that he likes watching the techniques but felt there was way too much drama in it. He watches it with the volume off.
In the afternoon I sat in the start of a movie in the Princess Theater. I realized that it was the same as the one I had seen the night before up on the Stars outdoor big screen.
In the meantime the workman had fixed the Neptune pool, probably why the workmen were drilling something in our hall the first night. 100 or so passengers were waiting to watch the test screen that said, MLB.
It was the 7th game of the World Series between the Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals. Each group had it own cheering section as movies under the stars screen was bright enough to broadcast the game to the cheering audience in their swimming suits and buckets of beer. Nearby was the free hot dogs, hamburgers and pizza.. order up and enjoy. After the fourth inning the crowd slowly disappeared to get ready for the first fancy dress night on the ship for the 6 o'clock seating. A few passengers were enjoying the free soft serve ice cream (served until 11pm each night). Since our dinner was at 8 I was able to see the last of the game from St. Louis.
Dinner:
Sue: Grapefruit and Kiwi slices
Caesar salad
Pan flashed Shrimp
Chocolate Mousse
Pat: Slices of smoked Duck breast with salad greens
Yogurt Tamarind cold soup
New York Steak with veggies (asparagus and green beans)
Pear browned on Puff pastry
Even though we loved our table from yesterday with our Disney Imagineer Exec, Sue felt uncomfortable having everyone move as she passed by to get to our table especially on the way out. Sue always likes to leave a little earlier than most people at the table. We talked to the matre de, and in Italian fashion he tried not to take blame for the original seat. We of course absolved him of intent and he found us an outstanding table.
This table had thee people from Philly and one couple from Santa Monica. The Philly people were involved with the power grid and safety one of them retired form Eslon. The Santa Monica people took care of rich people's money the official title... Financial Advisor. They are a lively conversationalist interested in sports and personal experience. They were mostly sympathetic to a more liberal brand of politics.. good.
Tonight was "formal night". Just a few tuxes were out there. Men mostly wore sport jackets and ties. Women got out their sparkly dresses.
Earlier in the day, the red hat ladies posed for a photo . Two pro photographers were there as they "posed on the curved railings." These were all ladies were over 50 years old. They just met up when they got to the ship. When they were all set and standing sideways (there were about 40) one of them yelled out "Say Sex!"Huge giggles emanated from the assembled crowd.
Also on the Piazza was a "street performer" His last name was Rossi. He came in dressed like a chef with a tall white hat. Then he walked or jumped on one hand across the plaza on one hand (a moving one hand handstand) Then he did the same dribbling a basketball.
There was a demo and a sushi station at lunch. People descended on the sushi but they kept up with the demand. There were even a couple of big trays left over after lunch.
It was a pretty great day even if it didn't turn out exactly like we had planned.
Day 2 Friday, October 28, 2011- attire Formal
At Sea: Partly cloudy High 68 Low 55
________________________________________
Sunrise 6:50 Sunset 6:20
Breakfast -Lox and Danish (pear) canned apricots prunes, and figs
Morning broke with a string of clouds headed East- We are headed South west. Ship hours lose another hour tonight.
At 6 am I was in the internet cafe to get the latest update from Natalie, the house overseer. Paul (doing the cat and mail thing) left the front door unlocked but Natalie closed it and locked it within 10 minutes of his leaving. Natalie was headed over to him to remind Paul about it after he arrived home from school.
I sent emails to our daughters this am. As frequent travelers on Princess, (Platinum level) we get 250 minutes of internet time free. I bought another 500 minutes for 67 dollars. This should be enough. Its a one time offer that has to be done the first day that you are on the ship.
I had cappuccino service in the Piazza (the center of the ship on the deck 5. It was nice to have the card so that I didn't have to sign a slip to be added at the end with all of the others documenting our purchases.
2 Retired H.S Secretaries
As I looked for an easy chair to pass some time 2 retired High School secretaries couldn't seem to leave the active life alone. "Just because I am retiring this year doesn't mean that I am going to sluff off my duties," One of them stated.
Then there surfaced Angst expressed over a summer typed "purchased order... "I wasn't the one that typed that purchase order... It wasn't hers."I would have known not to use maintenance funds.
New personnel was taking over their jobs. And a new principal.. only 28. How could he think he could do the job? The counselors are coming back to schedule summer school with no knowledge of what they did in the spring.
"I told them they had the best staff of any High School could have. So he didn't talk to me the first 3 weeks just before school started, I pointed it out." He said that he was sorry, what can I do to make it better, he said. Just ask me when you need help. I will do it she said. Then there was the keys. Many teachers had lost their keys.. and round up.
So much angst so hard to let it go.
Looking out to Sea
See you are in the middle of the sea
No land to see for days
Would you look out the window to see?
Or find pattern in the waves?
If a tree were to fall in the sea
would there be anyone there to see?
Looking for the slightest breeze
To cap the waves and lighten the sea
Push on ship of wonder ship of the sea
Pat's book in hand.
Everyday in Tuscany-Seasons of an Italian life by Frances Mays (author of Under the Tuscan Sun)
Much of it is a quest for viewing paintings by Signorelli. I believe that he was the painter that we saw in Orvieto..an Umbrian hill town in Italy.
Canadian Bakers
At lunch Sue was helped through the buffet line by a Princess employee. She held the tray and Sue pointed out what she wanted. At the end she found a partially occupied table nearby. The Princess employee asked the couple if we could join them. No problem.
He was a retired bakery owner in Winnepeg. His company made thousands of cakes each day to be shipped out to Canadian safeways among other places. He said that they imported the flour for the cakes from the US as well as the fat. He preferred the soya fat over the only one made in Canada, canola. I asked him what he thought of the cake boss on T.V. He said that he likes watching the techniques but felt there was way too much drama in it. He watches it with the volume off.
In the afternoon I sat in the start of a movie in the Princess Theater. I realized that it was the same as the one I had seen the night before up on the Stars outdoor big screen.
In the meantime the workman had fixed the Neptune pool, probably why the workmen were drilling something in our hall the first night. 100 or so passengers were waiting to watch the test screen that said, MLB.
It was the 7th game of the World Series between the Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals. Each group had it own cheering section as movies under the stars screen was bright enough to broadcast the game to the cheering audience in their swimming suits and buckets of beer. Nearby was the free hot dogs, hamburgers and pizza.. order up and enjoy. After the fourth inning the crowd slowly disappeared to get ready for the first fancy dress night on the ship for the 6 o'clock seating. A few passengers were enjoying the free soft serve ice cream (served until 11pm each night). Since our dinner was at 8 I was able to see the last of the game from St. Louis.
Dinner:
Sue: Grapefruit and Kiwi slices
Caesar salad
Pan flashed Shrimp
Chocolate Mousse
Pat: Slices of smoked Duck breast with salad greens
Yogurt Tamarind cold soup
New York Steak with veggies (asparagus and green beans)
Pear browned on Puff pastry
Even though we loved our table from yesterday with our Disney Imagineer Exec, Sue felt uncomfortable having everyone move as she passed by to get to our table especially on the way out. Sue always likes to leave a little earlier than most people at the table. We talked to the matre de, and in Italian fashion he tried not to take blame for the original seat. We of course absolved him of intent and he found us an outstanding table.
This table had thee people from Philly and one couple from Santa Monica. The Philly people were involved with the power grid and safety one of them retired form Eslon. The Santa Monica people took care of rich people's money the official title... Financial Advisor. They are a lively conversationalist interested in sports and personal experience. They were mostly sympathetic to a more liberal brand of politics.. good.
Tonight was "formal night". Just a few tuxes were out there. Men mostly wore sport jackets and ties. Women got out their sparkly dresses.
Earlier in the day, the red hat ladies posed for a photo . Two pro photographers were there as they "posed on the curved railings." These were all ladies were over 50 years old. They just met up when they got to the ship. When they were all set and standing sideways (there were about 40) one of them yelled out "Say Sex!"Huge giggles emanated from the assembled crowd.
Also on the Piazza was a "street performer" His last name was Rossi. He came in dressed like a chef with a tall white hat. Then he walked or jumped on one hand across the plaza on one hand (a moving one hand handstand) Then he did the same dribbling a basketball.
There was a demo and a sushi station at lunch. People descended on the sushi but they kept up with the demand. There were even a couple of big trays left over after lunch.
It was a pretty great day even if it didn't turn out exactly like we had planned.
Day 1 Hawaiian Cruise
Thursday October 27,2011
At Sea: Forecast: High 71 Low 59 Sunrise 6:25 Sunset 5:41
Awake at 5 AM (as usual)
There seems to be quite a bit of programming lined up for today:
•Sue has yet to find the library- if they are ready for her
•Tickets available for the lei classes with fresh orchids (need to buy a kit)
•Sue is scheduled for a deep tissue massage
•Introduction-orientation to the ukulele lessons
•2:30 Jacqueline Kennedy event (Jackie jewlery)
•ceramics at sea
(none of this happened for us as it turned out except finding the library)
Last night we jostled our way along. Nothing big just the slight feeling that your head may not be working the equilibrium task easily. Its a whole lot different from the sharp jolts we felt coming into northern California on our Alaskan cruises.
Overall the ship has a "big" feel about it. The Golden Princess was constructed in 2001 in Italy. It has been reconditioned since its construction in 2009.
In homage to my daughters that always find new friends at breakfast in the dinning room, I had breakfast there. A nice conversation was had.the ladies were u for talk and their husbands kind of softballed it. One of the husbands was a borderline diabetic and the other one was a diabetic. The wife of the borderline said that it didn't keep him from eating sweets. Fare for breakfast was cheese and mushroom omelette with a small piece of Italian sausage and fresh tomatoes.
I had previously used my coffee card (you can buy one to cover the coffee and tip) to get a cappucinno and a creme filled donut.
One couple at breakfast was from Deleware. They were concerned about a company supported by the state called Bloom. They are investing the people's money without the people becoming stockholders. It uses natural gas to make what sounds like fuel cells. The by product is water.
One lady told me about her daughter. After 45, started out as a PE teacher and went back to school to become a HS counselor so she could help out more.
I met a man who did cross country for 33 years outside of the internet cafe/library.
The internet cafe doubles for the library. This makes mobility on issue for the library folks. Early in the morning only 3 out of 40 pcs were being used.
I checked my g-mail and found a note from Natalie, the house overseer. She reported that the house cleaners were there and she was going to see that the trash cans were put out on the curb Thursday night. The cats were giving her the cold shoulder but she recognized that they probably would come around.
Sue had soda and a couple of donuts for breakfast using my coke card. The coke card allows you to get soda at any bar for 67dollars for the trip. A little sticker is issued on your card and a tumbler is issued. She did some prowling in the library and found a couple of books that will keep her entertained. She bought a light orange pair of pants on"trail" at teh gift shop. (They didn't fit too well so she returned them later in the cruise for credit). We also picked up some postcards .. mostly of the ship.
For lunch the set up of stir fry station outside of the buffet looked good.
The cooks stuffed stir fried veggies (that they did on the spot) with shrimp and a little ham and packed rice on top of it into a small ramkin. They flipped the rambkins upside down and on to a plate for serving. Available with a viable hot and sour soup it made a great lunch.
I ate lunch on the pool deck. A couple asked if I could save their place at my table. I said sure. The wife was widowed and so was the husband. They were both lost their spouses within six months of each other. They live in Sierra Vista part of Southern Arizona. She has a job passing out coupons one day a week at the military commissary. He worked 20 yrs each at the same job both military and civilian When pressed he said it was intel. Russian was his specialty. He was a linguist. It came in handy when they cruised to St Petersburg. He could speak to the natives in their own language. That pretty much floored them.
She now does a lot of travel agency work. Not for the money but for the experience. The first shot at ceramics was a bust... no one showed or they didn't have it. Sue was disappointed.
In the afternoon, I watched a pbs special on the sharks of Co Co Costa Rica on the jumbo outdoor movie screen.
Two Worlds Collide
The two servers in the buffet were busying around their preps. Its easier to "organize" than provide service. So far no complaint about service from me. there seems to be enough servers to do the job so these servers were milling around their support station, both of them Philippine natives.
A middle aged platinum blond approaches them, She says,"I would like some lemonade."
The server says, "Your glass is full."
She said,"I want some lemonade . In wild flourish he grabs a pitcher and says,"here"
He pours her cup from the pitcher. She walks away and and says "That is an Arnold Palmer. "
The server says "Arnold Palmer," with his accent.
"Yes," She said. "When I ask for an Arnold Palmer you can get me an ice tea with lemonade in it."
"An Arnold Palmer, "she repeated.
I asked the servers after she left if they knew who Arnold Palmer was. They ignored me, but were laughing because the server had filled up the glass with more ice tea. The servers were laughing at the big joke they had sprung on the passenger.
That was passing as humor from the server station from server to his server buddies. They all thought it was funny that she didn't get he mix.
So for the servers had no problem with me getting a diet coke in or out of the designated cup.
Dinner for Day 1
Sue:
Strawberry soup
Lettuce wedge salad
salmon
Pat:
Pinapple chopped up with other tropical fruits
corn chowder (no cream)
Pork shoulder with chimmichuri sauce
warm brownie with vanilla sauce
Our table mates were from Long Beach. They were celebrating their 25th anniversary. He works for Disney in the an executive function for theme parks and cruise ships. He is currently working on modifying the Hong Kong Disney Park. They have two sons in college. One is studying film like father did and the other is hoping to be a screenwriter. They live up by the Long Beach airport.
I am not sure that we will be able to keep our table. Despite so few eating at the 8 o'clock seating, Sue was concerned about getting her powerchair in and out of the table gridlock to the current spot. She also had to climb up a couple of steps to out table in the back.
One of the interesting tales that our table mates told us was about getting the newest Disney ship out of Germany and sailing with it to the Canary Islands and on to the United States before the public had a chance to get on it. It was in the winter and people lined the banks to see Mickey and Minnie at the head of the ship pass through the bridges in the middle of the night. They also came to see the fireworks that the ship set off as they passed under the low bridges. They had to go at low tide to get under some of the bridges.
It was winter clothing to start the trip and shorts as they hit the Canary Islands. The biggest obstacle was dodging the film crews as the ship made its way. They were filming promo spots all across the ocean.
Sue left early before desert .
I watched the movie Arthur on the Movies at see Stars Screen outside our pool deck. It got chilly at 11:15. There seemed to be a significant reduction in swales in the middle of the night.
At Sea: Forecast: High 71 Low 59 Sunrise 6:25 Sunset 5:41
Awake at 5 AM (as usual)
There seems to be quite a bit of programming lined up for today:
•Sue has yet to find the library- if they are ready for her
•Tickets available for the lei classes with fresh orchids (need to buy a kit)
•Sue is scheduled for a deep tissue massage
•Introduction-orientation to the ukulele lessons
•2:30 Jacqueline Kennedy event (Jackie jewlery)
•ceramics at sea
(none of this happened for us as it turned out except finding the library)
Last night we jostled our way along. Nothing big just the slight feeling that your head may not be working the equilibrium task easily. Its a whole lot different from the sharp jolts we felt coming into northern California on our Alaskan cruises.
Overall the ship has a "big" feel about it. The Golden Princess was constructed in 2001 in Italy. It has been reconditioned since its construction in 2009.
In homage to my daughters that always find new friends at breakfast in the dinning room, I had breakfast there. A nice conversation was had.the ladies were u for talk and their husbands kind of softballed it. One of the husbands was a borderline diabetic and the other one was a diabetic. The wife of the borderline said that it didn't keep him from eating sweets. Fare for breakfast was cheese and mushroom omelette with a small piece of Italian sausage and fresh tomatoes.
I had previously used my coffee card (you can buy one to cover the coffee and tip) to get a cappucinno and a creme filled donut.
One couple at breakfast was from Deleware. They were concerned about a company supported by the state called Bloom. They are investing the people's money without the people becoming stockholders. It uses natural gas to make what sounds like fuel cells. The by product is water.
One lady told me about her daughter. After 45, started out as a PE teacher and went back to school to become a HS counselor so she could help out more.
I met a man who did cross country for 33 years outside of the internet cafe/library.
The internet cafe doubles for the library. This makes mobility on issue for the library folks. Early in the morning only 3 out of 40 pcs were being used.
I checked my g-mail and found a note from Natalie, the house overseer. She reported that the house cleaners were there and she was going to see that the trash cans were put out on the curb Thursday night. The cats were giving her the cold shoulder but she recognized that they probably would come around.
Sue had soda and a couple of donuts for breakfast using my coke card. The coke card allows you to get soda at any bar for 67dollars for the trip. A little sticker is issued on your card and a tumbler is issued. She did some prowling in the library and found a couple of books that will keep her entertained. She bought a light orange pair of pants on"trail" at teh gift shop. (They didn't fit too well so she returned them later in the cruise for credit). We also picked up some postcards .. mostly of the ship.
For lunch the set up of stir fry station outside of the buffet looked good.
The cooks stuffed stir fried veggies (that they did on the spot) with shrimp and a little ham and packed rice on top of it into a small ramkin. They flipped the rambkins upside down and on to a plate for serving. Available with a viable hot and sour soup it made a great lunch.
I ate lunch on the pool deck. A couple asked if I could save their place at my table. I said sure. The wife was widowed and so was the husband. They were both lost their spouses within six months of each other. They live in Sierra Vista part of Southern Arizona. She has a job passing out coupons one day a week at the military commissary. He worked 20 yrs each at the same job both military and civilian When pressed he said it was intel. Russian was his specialty. He was a linguist. It came in handy when they cruised to St Petersburg. He could speak to the natives in their own language. That pretty much floored them.
She now does a lot of travel agency work. Not for the money but for the experience. The first shot at ceramics was a bust... no one showed or they didn't have it. Sue was disappointed.
In the afternoon, I watched a pbs special on the sharks of Co Co Costa Rica on the jumbo outdoor movie screen.
Two Worlds Collide
The two servers in the buffet were busying around their preps. Its easier to "organize" than provide service. So far no complaint about service from me. there seems to be enough servers to do the job so these servers were milling around their support station, both of them Philippine natives.
A middle aged platinum blond approaches them, She says,"I would like some lemonade."
The server says, "Your glass is full."
She said,"I want some lemonade . In wild flourish he grabs a pitcher and says,"here"
He pours her cup from the pitcher. She walks away and and says "That is an Arnold Palmer. "
The server says "Arnold Palmer," with his accent.
"Yes," She said. "When I ask for an Arnold Palmer you can get me an ice tea with lemonade in it."
"An Arnold Palmer, "she repeated.
I asked the servers after she left if they knew who Arnold Palmer was. They ignored me, but were laughing because the server had filled up the glass with more ice tea. The servers were laughing at the big joke they had sprung on the passenger.
That was passing as humor from the server station from server to his server buddies. They all thought it was funny that she didn't get he mix.
So for the servers had no problem with me getting a diet coke in or out of the designated cup.
Dinner for Day 1
Sue:
Strawberry soup
Lettuce wedge salad
salmon
Pat:
Pinapple chopped up with other tropical fruits
corn chowder (no cream)
Pork shoulder with chimmichuri sauce
warm brownie with vanilla sauce
Our table mates were from Long Beach. They were celebrating their 25th anniversary. He works for Disney in the an executive function for theme parks and cruise ships. He is currently working on modifying the Hong Kong Disney Park. They have two sons in college. One is studying film like father did and the other is hoping to be a screenwriter. They live up by the Long Beach airport.
I am not sure that we will be able to keep our table. Despite so few eating at the 8 o'clock seating, Sue was concerned about getting her powerchair in and out of the table gridlock to the current spot. She also had to climb up a couple of steps to out table in the back.
One of the interesting tales that our table mates told us was about getting the newest Disney ship out of Germany and sailing with it to the Canary Islands and on to the United States before the public had a chance to get on it. It was in the winter and people lined the banks to see Mickey and Minnie at the head of the ship pass through the bridges in the middle of the night. They also came to see the fireworks that the ship set off as they passed under the low bridges. They had to go at low tide to get under some of the bridges.
It was winter clothing to start the trip and shorts as they hit the Canary Islands. The biggest obstacle was dodging the film crews as the ship made its way. They were filming promo spots all across the ocean.
Sue left early before desert .
I watched the movie Arthur on the Movies at see Stars Screen outside our pool deck. It got chilly at 11:15. There seemed to be a significant reduction in swales in the middle of the night.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
The Hawaii Journal
This is a summary of the blog entries that follow.
The Ship: The Golden Princess, 109,000 tons. Original Cost 405 million dollars 18 passenger decks
Our stateroom: L252 (Lido) or deck 14.
Embarkation:Port of Los Angeles
Disembarkation: Port of Los Angeles
Sailing Date: October 26,2011
Sailing Time: 4 pm
All passengers onboard by 3:00 pm
Arrived Home: November 9th, 2011
Night before cruise: The Westin Long Beach (Hot Wire)
Length of cruise: 14 nights
Itinerary for Cruise:
Wednesday: Los Angeles Pier 93 (October 26,2011)
Day 1 Thursday: At Sea (October 27,2011)
Day 2: Friday: At Sea (October 28,2011)
Day3: Saturday At Sea (October 29,2011)
Day 4: Sunday At Sea (October 30,2011)
Day 5: Monday Hilo, Hawaii, Hawaii (October 31,2011)
Day 6: Tuesday, Honolulu,Oahu, Hawaii (November 1,2011)
Day 7: Wednesday, Naniliwili, Kaui, Hawaii (November2, 2011)
Day8: Thursday, Lanhania, Maui, Hawaii (November3,2011)
Day9: Friday, At Sea (November 4,2011)
Day10: Saturday: At Sea (November5,2011)
Day11: Sunday: At Sea (November 6,2011)
Day 12: Monday: At Sea (November 7,2011)
Day 13: Tuesday: Ensenada, Mx (November8,2011) (4 hours docked)
Day 14: Wednesday: Los Angeles (November 9,2011) disembark.. by 9:30am)
Tues: We left Merced at 3:35. We waited 2 hours to make sure that we could see both cats were inside before we left. Georgie, the white manx cat hid out in the garage for two hours in protest. Nigel was out too, but came right in after waiting on the front patio while I read the newspaper.
At 5:30 we were at the base of the grapevine pass. We had traveled over to Los Banos and whistled down Interstate 5 mostly at 70mph. The cheveron on top of grapevine had a subway sandwich shop. The manager was bemoaning the lack of business.. hoping that it would pick up. We filled up and headed into the basin after dark.
Tuesday night we arrived at the Westin Long Beach for the bed that Sue wanted to take home it was so perfect. The Westin would accommodate her whishes for $4200.
It was almost 10pm when Sue sent me out for "something to eat" Around the corner from the Westin was a crepe house.
The manager said that since it was 10 minutes from closing time, all that I could order was "take out." He offered up the whole menu for take out however. I ordered a scallop and shrimp filled crepe and a vegetarian crepe. 16 for the seafood, 14 for the vegetarian. The seafood one had a delicate lemon sauce. The veggie had potatoes and mushrooms. Both of them were great choices. Sue choose the specialize in the seafood one.. but there was plenty for both of us to share, and we did.
Embarkation Day Wednesday, October 26.
I was up in the morning at 6:30. I tried to capture in digital photos the public art in Long Beach. What was cool was the art deco like mosiac tile art in a couple of blocks around downtown.
The last time we were Long Beach I ran across a restaurant on Atlantic that claimed that it had the best burgers in town, also serving lunch and breakfast. It had a drive through and a blue collar look about it. It looked like a prime spot for a stack of hot cakes, my latest obsession. I was not disappointed. 5 dinner plate sized cakes were delivered to my booth, along with 2 tubs of butter and 2 tubs of syrup. The very thought of syrup would bring Sue a negative reaction.
Back at the hotel room Sue opted for a "naked" coconut/pinapple smoothie and a cinnamon/raisin bagel from the coffee nook across from the hotel.
Sue needed a "hat" for the trip, so after checking out (I checked out for the guy one floor below us first before Sue pointed out my mistake), we fired up the Expedition and hauled over to the nearby Albertson's and then the CVS pharmacy. the hat was found and we made our way across the two bridges from Long Beach to the Port of Los Angeles. Our embarkation was simple and characteristic of Princess form for its preferred customers. It was the easiest of any ship we had traveled upon. Plenty of time to unload the the power chair and the wheelchair and two of the largest suitcases you can buy, a backpack and a carry on. Don't forget the purse too.
On the Ship
We were on the ship and in our cabin by 2:00.
The ubiquitous muster occured at 3:15. What a mess! We have a cabin on the 14th deck-Lido. Our muster station along with everyone else is on the 7th deck. Getting there via the elevator was not difficult. Getting back.. oh my. I climbed the 7 floors to our room but Sue was at the mercy of an elevator that had too many people in it and all of them having to jump or wait for her to get out so they could exit at their floor. I walked/climbed the 7 floors and beat Sue to the room. I did this so that the other people that really needed the elevator could use it.
When I arrived, the 2nd big bag was waiting for me in the hall. They collected them when we got on the ship and delivered them later to each cabin so you didn't have to walk your bags up the floors to your cabin. The wheel chair came soon after.
At 6:30 we still could see the Channel Islands as we moved toward Hawaii. Dad said that the ship travels at 18 miles an hour so still seeing the island 36 miles off the shore is kind of unique. Usually when we leave the port of LA we are headed for Mexico. Its usually a later departure too.
We are on the top deck (our stateroom) with the pools, indoor and outdoor, the horizon buffet, is also on this deck.
Our cabin stewardess is Rosalie. She came in our cabin tonight to drop off a pretty blue Princess bag with our chocolates with a reminder to set our clocks back one hour. Its now a quarter to seven, it is in real time tomorrow a quarter to 6pm.
We are very close to the pizza and hamburger stand. A bar separates them. The pool is between the outdoor pizza stand and the buffet court. No stairs, no elevators, that might not be such a good place to encourage shipboard interaction.
The Golden in the Princess line seems large. Even with its size, this time of the year, yields a very aged group. I did not see any kids at the muster. Sue saw a few preschoolers with their families when we were getting on. We also saw a one couple ahead of us in line that had two fortyish people hauling with them 6 thin oxygen tanks each behind their wheelchairs.
Sue and I choose off the buffet for dinner tonight .. pineapple (fresh) honeydew(fresh) and mixed veggies , about 5 hard rolls each . For me I added the borscht, and the cappra (salami) and Sue ate a slice of pork from the carving station. There was also some really yummy sugarless chocolate cake with fresh stawberries on it for desert.
On Princess, at the buffet, you pick a place to sit down, and the waiter serves you with water, and a cloth napkin and silverware. Sue loves the hard rolls that are from the ship. She also had a slice of cheese pizza.
I let Sue rest in the cabin while I brought her the dinner mentioned above in "take out" form.
Our room is really large. Its one of 25 accessible rooms on the ship. The bathroom is large. I bought two extra cords for the charging of the powerchair, my cpap machine and the recharging of our cameras and phones. There are only two outlets for the room and they are way into the corner of the room. Many of the other ships we have been on only have one outlet.
There is a nice writing table and a small flat screen TV over the mini fridge.
Tonight there already has been some mechanic drilling holes in the panel in our hall. This is not a very good sign.
I went to the "Welcome Aboard Show" in the main theatre.
Dancers and Singers (sampler: we are family)
Cruise Director-Introduced Staff
Filmed "fly over" of various parts of the ship video
Black comedian from San Diego, did part of his show
Cruise Director's "gag":
His wife called him to tell him that she bought curtains that were pink.
He asked,"Where are they going?"
She answered,"they had to be big enough to cover the computer monitor.
Why?
They use "Windows"
Everyone groaned on that one.
The slot machines are now using cruise cards to spend gambling and to collect the winnings. What winnings? No one seemed to be winning.
I bought a mojoito at the piano bar. They were running a "fill the card" scam with the completed cards having a chance at having your complete bar bill paid for at the end of the cruise. You need to have the equivalent of 30 beers (the lowest valued) to get your card into the drawing. This bar has olives with mystery fillings as its draw. Some olives are stuffed with garlic cloves, others with pimentos, others with almond slivers. I was assured that they were the only bar on the ship that had them. Mojito was good. Was a little more on the lime side than the mint side in flavor.
I am looking forward to Lox in the morning. They had a start for that on the deck sandwich bar today. No bagels, however.
The Ship: The Golden Princess, 109,000 tons. Original Cost 405 million dollars 18 passenger decks
Our stateroom: L252 (Lido) or deck 14.
Embarkation:Port of Los Angeles
Disembarkation: Port of Los Angeles
Sailing Date: October 26,2011
Sailing Time: 4 pm
All passengers onboard by 3:00 pm
Arrived Home: November 9th, 2011
Night before cruise: The Westin Long Beach (Hot Wire)
Length of cruise: 14 nights
Itinerary for Cruise:
Wednesday: Los Angeles Pier 93 (October 26,2011)
Day 1 Thursday: At Sea (October 27,2011)
Day 2: Friday: At Sea (October 28,2011)
Day3: Saturday At Sea (October 29,2011)
Day 4: Sunday At Sea (October 30,2011)
Day 5: Monday Hilo, Hawaii, Hawaii (October 31,2011)
Day 6: Tuesday, Honolulu,Oahu, Hawaii (November 1,2011)
Day 7: Wednesday, Naniliwili, Kaui, Hawaii (November2, 2011)
Day8: Thursday, Lanhania, Maui, Hawaii (November3,2011)
Day9: Friday, At Sea (November 4,2011)
Day10: Saturday: At Sea (November5,2011)
Day11: Sunday: At Sea (November 6,2011)
Day 12: Monday: At Sea (November 7,2011)
Day 13: Tuesday: Ensenada, Mx (November8,2011) (4 hours docked)
Day 14: Wednesday: Los Angeles (November 9,2011) disembark.. by 9:30am)
Tues: We left Merced at 3:35. We waited 2 hours to make sure that we could see both cats were inside before we left. Georgie, the white manx cat hid out in the garage for two hours in protest. Nigel was out too, but came right in after waiting on the front patio while I read the newspaper.
At 5:30 we were at the base of the grapevine pass. We had traveled over to Los Banos and whistled down Interstate 5 mostly at 70mph. The cheveron on top of grapevine had a subway sandwich shop. The manager was bemoaning the lack of business.. hoping that it would pick up. We filled up and headed into the basin after dark.
Tuesday night we arrived at the Westin Long Beach for the bed that Sue wanted to take home it was so perfect. The Westin would accommodate her whishes for $4200.
It was almost 10pm when Sue sent me out for "something to eat" Around the corner from the Westin was a crepe house.
The manager said that since it was 10 minutes from closing time, all that I could order was "take out." He offered up the whole menu for take out however. I ordered a scallop and shrimp filled crepe and a vegetarian crepe. 16 for the seafood, 14 for the vegetarian. The seafood one had a delicate lemon sauce. The veggie had potatoes and mushrooms. Both of them were great choices. Sue choose the specialize in the seafood one.. but there was plenty for both of us to share, and we did.
Embarkation Day Wednesday, October 26.
I was up in the morning at 6:30. I tried to capture in digital photos the public art in Long Beach. What was cool was the art deco like mosiac tile art in a couple of blocks around downtown.
The last time we were Long Beach I ran across a restaurant on Atlantic that claimed that it had the best burgers in town, also serving lunch and breakfast. It had a drive through and a blue collar look about it. It looked like a prime spot for a stack of hot cakes, my latest obsession. I was not disappointed. 5 dinner plate sized cakes were delivered to my booth, along with 2 tubs of butter and 2 tubs of syrup. The very thought of syrup would bring Sue a negative reaction.
Back at the hotel room Sue opted for a "naked" coconut/pinapple smoothie and a cinnamon/raisin bagel from the coffee nook across from the hotel.
Sue needed a "hat" for the trip, so after checking out (I checked out for the guy one floor below us first before Sue pointed out my mistake), we fired up the Expedition and hauled over to the nearby Albertson's and then the CVS pharmacy. the hat was found and we made our way across the two bridges from Long Beach to the Port of Los Angeles. Our embarkation was simple and characteristic of Princess form for its preferred customers. It was the easiest of any ship we had traveled upon. Plenty of time to unload the the power chair and the wheelchair and two of the largest suitcases you can buy, a backpack and a carry on. Don't forget the purse too.
On the Ship
We were on the ship and in our cabin by 2:00.
The ubiquitous muster occured at 3:15. What a mess! We have a cabin on the 14th deck-Lido. Our muster station along with everyone else is on the 7th deck. Getting there via the elevator was not difficult. Getting back.. oh my. I climbed the 7 floors to our room but Sue was at the mercy of an elevator that had too many people in it and all of them having to jump or wait for her to get out so they could exit at their floor. I walked/climbed the 7 floors and beat Sue to the room. I did this so that the other people that really needed the elevator could use it.
When I arrived, the 2nd big bag was waiting for me in the hall. They collected them when we got on the ship and delivered them later to each cabin so you didn't have to walk your bags up the floors to your cabin. The wheel chair came soon after.
At 6:30 we still could see the Channel Islands as we moved toward Hawaii. Dad said that the ship travels at 18 miles an hour so still seeing the island 36 miles off the shore is kind of unique. Usually when we leave the port of LA we are headed for Mexico. Its usually a later departure too.
We are on the top deck (our stateroom) with the pools, indoor and outdoor, the horizon buffet, is also on this deck.
Our cabin stewardess is Rosalie. She came in our cabin tonight to drop off a pretty blue Princess bag with our chocolates with a reminder to set our clocks back one hour. Its now a quarter to seven, it is in real time tomorrow a quarter to 6pm.
We are very close to the pizza and hamburger stand. A bar separates them. The pool is between the outdoor pizza stand and the buffet court. No stairs, no elevators, that might not be such a good place to encourage shipboard interaction.
The Golden in the Princess line seems large. Even with its size, this time of the year, yields a very aged group. I did not see any kids at the muster. Sue saw a few preschoolers with their families when we were getting on. We also saw a one couple ahead of us in line that had two fortyish people hauling with them 6 thin oxygen tanks each behind their wheelchairs.
Sue and I choose off the buffet for dinner tonight .. pineapple (fresh) honeydew(fresh) and mixed veggies , about 5 hard rolls each . For me I added the borscht, and the cappra (salami) and Sue ate a slice of pork from the carving station. There was also some really yummy sugarless chocolate cake with fresh stawberries on it for desert.
On Princess, at the buffet, you pick a place to sit down, and the waiter serves you with water, and a cloth napkin and silverware. Sue loves the hard rolls that are from the ship. She also had a slice of cheese pizza.
I let Sue rest in the cabin while I brought her the dinner mentioned above in "take out" form.
Our room is really large. Its one of 25 accessible rooms on the ship. The bathroom is large. I bought two extra cords for the charging of the powerchair, my cpap machine and the recharging of our cameras and phones. There are only two outlets for the room and they are way into the corner of the room. Many of the other ships we have been on only have one outlet.
There is a nice writing table and a small flat screen TV over the mini fridge.
Tonight there already has been some mechanic drilling holes in the panel in our hall. This is not a very good sign.
I went to the "Welcome Aboard Show" in the main theatre.
Dancers and Singers (sampler: we are family)
Cruise Director-Introduced Staff
Filmed "fly over" of various parts of the ship video
Black comedian from San Diego, did part of his show
Cruise Director's "gag":
His wife called him to tell him that she bought curtains that were pink.
He asked,"Where are they going?"
She answered,"they had to be big enough to cover the computer monitor.
Why?
They use "Windows"
Everyone groaned on that one.
The slot machines are now using cruise cards to spend gambling and to collect the winnings. What winnings? No one seemed to be winning.
I bought a mojoito at the piano bar. They were running a "fill the card" scam with the completed cards having a chance at having your complete bar bill paid for at the end of the cruise. You need to have the equivalent of 30 beers (the lowest valued) to get your card into the drawing. This bar has olives with mystery fillings as its draw. Some olives are stuffed with garlic cloves, others with pimentos, others with almond slivers. I was assured that they were the only bar on the ship that had them. Mojito was good. Was a little more on the lime side than the mint side in flavor.
I am looking forward to Lox in the morning. They had a start for that on the deck sandwich bar today. No bagels, however.
Friday, November 11, 2011
On the Sea for Two Weeks and Climate Change
What is your life worth? Can you give two weeks of your life to travel the seas to a tropical island and back? Why not .. if you can.. and we did.
I know that you can get on a jet and zoom over to the Hawaiian islands in roughly 5 hours experience a ton of fun things to do and the weather, zoom back home and life goes on.
We had never done that.. I am not saying that it is bad. Its a little different when you travel and arrive and return via a 109,000 ton ship with 26000 passengers on it like the Golden Princess.
We have been to Alaska a few times of the ship.. Its a great 10 day trip in the summer. You get into the rhythm of sailing and sailing and getting off at a port and enjoying the port for a day and then clambering on board and sailing off to the next port. At night you gather with your intrepid fellow travelers and there is a chance to share with them the adventures of the day. The choices are made and the food is served. Its really a graceful way to travel and develop a community with strangers.
We decided that we could do the same with a cruise to Hawaii. The price was roughly the same.. about 1200 dollars apiece. The journey would be 14 days round trip out of LA.
With some careful scrutiny of travel arrangements and cabin selection.. we needed one of the 25 accessible cabins on the ship, we made plans to sail the end of October and return after the first week of November.
We had warm days in October in the central valley. When we returned in November the warm days are gone, replaced by the rainy cool Fall weather. When we left the afternoons would get into the high 80's. In November there is no such warm. The high temperature is more likely to be in the 60's. What a change. The shorts weather we had were exchanged for the more winter oriented long khakis and tee shirts under short sleeve shirts.
Cat/house sitters were found and bags were packed to arrange an overnight stay in Long Beach with a short no worries, "walk on the ship embarkation" the next afternoon. The ship, The Golden Princess was there as planed and we rolled and walked on with our usual moves when we take the NCL ship at the same harbor to Mexico for 7 days.
The next set of entries to this blog are from the daily diaries of the log I kept every day of the journey. The accounts are not meant to brag or in anyway insult or complement the people or the events contained in them. If you are not interested in this account it is okay and I will not hold you responsible for a test on its contents at its conclusion.
So.. at the top of each day there is an entry that divides it from the previous day. It has a Day number a date and a weather forecast. I used the Princess Patter.. the daily paper delivered to each cabin the night before to gather and insert this information.
I hope you enjoy "Pat's Patter" which this is all about. : ) Pat
I know that you can get on a jet and zoom over to the Hawaiian islands in roughly 5 hours experience a ton of fun things to do and the weather, zoom back home and life goes on.
We had never done that.. I am not saying that it is bad. Its a little different when you travel and arrive and return via a 109,000 ton ship with 26000 passengers on it like the Golden Princess.
We have been to Alaska a few times of the ship.. Its a great 10 day trip in the summer. You get into the rhythm of sailing and sailing and getting off at a port and enjoying the port for a day and then clambering on board and sailing off to the next port. At night you gather with your intrepid fellow travelers and there is a chance to share with them the adventures of the day. The choices are made and the food is served. Its really a graceful way to travel and develop a community with strangers.
We decided that we could do the same with a cruise to Hawaii. The price was roughly the same.. about 1200 dollars apiece. The journey would be 14 days round trip out of LA.
With some careful scrutiny of travel arrangements and cabin selection.. we needed one of the 25 accessible cabins on the ship, we made plans to sail the end of October and return after the first week of November.
We had warm days in October in the central valley. When we returned in November the warm days are gone, replaced by the rainy cool Fall weather. When we left the afternoons would get into the high 80's. In November there is no such warm. The high temperature is more likely to be in the 60's. What a change. The shorts weather we had were exchanged for the more winter oriented long khakis and tee shirts under short sleeve shirts.
Cat/house sitters were found and bags were packed to arrange an overnight stay in Long Beach with a short no worries, "walk on the ship embarkation" the next afternoon. The ship, The Golden Princess was there as planed and we rolled and walked on with our usual moves when we take the NCL ship at the same harbor to Mexico for 7 days.
The next set of entries to this blog are from the daily diaries of the log I kept every day of the journey. The accounts are not meant to brag or in anyway insult or complement the people or the events contained in them. If you are not interested in this account it is okay and I will not hold you responsible for a test on its contents at its conclusion.
So.. at the top of each day there is an entry that divides it from the previous day. It has a Day number a date and a weather forecast. I used the Princess Patter.. the daily paper delivered to each cabin the night before to gather and insert this information.
I hope you enjoy "Pat's Patter" which this is all about. : ) Pat
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