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.