Here and There Blog

It's been a good cruise, even with the wipeout on the river!

Yesterday I wiped out inner tubing down river Rapids and body slammed into a rock. It was painful in multiple areas but nothing seemed broken. After my finger swelled up I decided to go to Medical. X-rays showed no breaks but extreme bruising. Left with this fancy splint, instructions to take Aleve and continue to ice pack the finger. I left Medical in time to say goodbye to Martinique. Next stop - St. Kitts.

Took the Galley Tour of the ship today. It was interesting to see the behind the scenes operations. The ship's F&B staff is over 50% of the crew. An average of 10K meals are prepared daily for passengers and crew. Today I helped make a dent in the 175 gallons of ice cream that is made weekly. I would have guessed higher as people are always at the ice cream station. I didn't realize they made their own ice cream. The team we saw was at work preparing our lunch salads. The produce was all being hand diced, even the olives. The tomatoes and lettuce were fresh and everything was clean. I didn't get a photo but the breads and bakery items are all cooked fresh. Today's lunch was fresh bread and cobb salad and both were good. If you find yourself bored on a sea day and a ship's galley tour is offered, I recommend taking it.

First port after leaving San Juan was Tortola. We went straight from the ship to the dock and onto the boat to take us out to Virgin Gorda. This was a fun and active trip with a 300 yard swim from the boat to the beach, then going through the caves (ropes, steps, and scrambling involved) before going into a  semi protected area for snorkeling.  This part of the cave was great. Other parts small and narrow to get through. Once out we were able to snorkel fairly free of the ocean current.  Photos of fish are hard to get. Aim, click, and hope for the best. 

This is a first - I'm going on a cruise and it's not a Star Trek cruise. This year's Trek cruise is currently in South America and the Falkland Islands. While my friend's photos look fantastic (penguins!) the many sea days and rough waters made that a no-go. Instead I tagged on to OB's vacation in the Caribbean. After a super easy flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico, I woke up this morning and walked over to look at the ship. It's a few hours before we can board and I'm already planning the day of eating!

July 2006. Crossing the street to go to a pub. Not a speck of green on any of us although we somehow managed to color coordinate without realizing it. Only Becky is following the street instructions to Look Right. I haven't looked at this photo in 10 years and now it cracks me up. Cheers and good fortune to all!

Winter isn't ready to let go of Japan. The first cherry trees are trying to blossom. You can see them starting along the streets but full bloom is weeks away. It's still almost cold enough to snow and the icy wind keeps temperatures down. Still, Spring is only a short time away and the blossoms will begin. I'm glad to be leaving tonight but would have liked to have seen the celebration to come.

Winter isn't ready to let go of Japan. The first cherry trees are trying to blossom. You can see them starting along the streets but full bloom is weeks away. It's still almost cold enough to snow and the icy wind keeps temperatures down. Still, Spring is only a short time away and the blossoms will begin. I'm glad to be leaving tonight but would have liked to have seen the celebration to come.

Akihabara closes the street to traffic on Sundays between 12 and 5. It's like your own parade!  Shibuya has the busiest street crossing in the world (I'm told) and today was dodge the umbrellas.  With The Dog

Sunny afternoon, a couple hours free from work and I was out the door. This is near the Imperial Palace and Gardens complex.  Building on the outskirts of the complex.    Sculpture near an office building.

These things show up randomly. Walk fast and look straight ahead and you won't even notice the statues all lined up. This shrine was all in Japanese and no clue as to what it represents.  Looking up you see the elephants indicating something is here.  Right on a busy street as the city sprouted up around the shrine.

At long last I had an afternoon free of work. I decided to wander the urban streets of Tokyo in hope of finding street art. The chances were slim to none since it is not allowed and highly monitored. Instead there are lots of stickers and small cornered pockets of art to discover. Like Astroboy. And this Rabbit. Not much so I walked a bit longer down the street, turned the corner and ended up here. For a city with little open space and I wasn't even trying, it was a surprise to end up in a park. It's a shrine to a former Emperor. Offerings are still made in the form of sake and wine.