Lima, Peru

What a HUGE city! There are 10 million people here, so guess it would be. But it was a frustrating port because it took a lot of time to get anywhere. There was a shuttle to the Indian Market in the Miraflores area of town. That took 45 minutes. We did some shopping there then grabbed a taxi to the Gold Museum. The driver was a young guy. After 45 minutes, he dropped us off at "a" museum. It was the museum of Peruvian Culture on the opposite side of town from the Gold Museum! We went thru it in about 20 minutes, not very large, then got another taxi to take us to the Gold Museum (another 45 minutes!).

The Gold Museum is in the basement of a building, with vault type doors on the entrance and exit. And what a lot of gold! Apparently the Inca's discovered that it was an easy metal to work with and didn't deteriorate. They used if for everything from bowls to lining their walls with it! There was one piece that looked alike a gold quilt, quite amazing. There were also gold outfits, bowls, figurines, just beautiful things. It wasn't until the Spaniards arrived and declared it valuable, that they stopped using it so freely. The main level of the building was an arms museum. More guns than I'd ever wished to see. Mel thought it was interesting.

From the Gold Museum, another taxi took us back to Miraflores to catch the shuttle back to the ship. It was stopping at the Marriott Hotel. Across the street from the hotel was what looked like a nice park. Once there, you discovered stairs down to a 3 level shopping mall, totally invisible from the street. We found a Peruvian restaurant and had ceviche and fried calamari for lunch. They don't make ceviche like that in the US, it was delicious.

We waited at the Marriott for over an hour for the bus to arrive, then it took us another hour to get to the port! We arrived just in time to go to see Social Network in the Queen's Lounge, the larger theater. Mel went to the Peruvian BBQ on deck.

Day 2 in Lima was another one of a lot of traffic and taxis. We tried to go on a boat ride in the harbor but were told they wouldn't be running until after noon because the president was going to arrive shortly. We returned to the Indian Market for a bit more shopping then returned to the harbor in time to see the president get off a small boat. Not every day you get to see the president of a country in person. The boat we wanted to go on was sold out so we returned to the pier. I swam in my fav pool at the stern of the ship. The water was really warm but the breeze was cold so hard to get out. I went back out on the pier for some last minute shopping, then returned to the ship. We set sail for Easter Island at 10 pm. We'll be at sea for 4 days before getting there. Really looking forward to that one!

At dinner tonight our tablemate said he'd met an interesting man on the shuttle. He gave me a brochure and I instantly said "Sydney Mobell!". He has a store in the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco and is a legend. He makes hour glass jewelry out of gold with cut diamond "sand". He was sitting at a table near us so we went to say hello. He's a very nice man and invited us to his office when we get back home. Nice to meet a legend.

***Many times I take pictures of things that would be nice to buy but just aren't practical. This trip we don't have unlimited free luggage, so we are very limited by size. This picture is off a beautifully framed piece, many typical Peruvian pots, with a carved inner frame. We did buy a much smaller one containing only 2 pots, but this one was a beauty.

Manta, Ecuador

Once again, I had tried to arrange for a tour in Manta before we boarded the ship with no reply. We just got off the ship and hoped for the best. We were at the gate of the port by about 8:15. We are in a commercial port, so had to take a shuttle to the gate. We were not allowed to walk. We asked about a taxi to take us to see the howler monkeys. They said it's about 1 1/2 hrs from Manta, fine. They charge $20/hour for touring, fine. Forty-five minutes later we were at Parque Pacoche, where they are trying to preserve the howler monkey population. The coast of Ecuador is a dry forest, but this small pocket was rain forest. We paid our $5 each and off we went into the jungle. Well, this trail was not flat for more than 10' at a time. It was up and down, up and down. The steps were mud with bamboo on the edge to hold them up and were all different heights and depths. Not an easy trail. After walking this for about 50 minutes, the guide did finally tell us that he hadn't seen monkeys in the area for about 10 days. Oh yea, :( We did get our exercise for the day!

We teased our driver, Alex, that the guide didn't get a tip because there were no monkeys. I think he took it to heart because he told me he was taking us to a zoo. Wasn't quite sure where that might be. Ended up being the National Park. He'd never been so I guess he doesn't realize that zoos would not be found there. Also, this park had a natural beach, and further along, an archeological site within the dry forest. No monkeys. We hadn't opted to go to the National Park because it was over 2 hours from Manta. Oh well. After that, Mel and I both had short naps in the car.

We stopped in the small town of Pila to look at the arts and crafts markets. It was mostly ceramics, painted a gaudy gold and black. We didn't buy anything. Further on was Monticristi, home of the Panama Hat. Turns out, workers from Ecuador who worked on the Panama Canal always wore those hats, so they became known as Panama Hats. Having lived in Panama, I know they also make them in Panama! We stopped at the cathedral and a small factory where they make hats (supposedly) and burlap type bags. By this time it was almost 2, so we were eager to get back to where we could at least see the ship! We had Alex drop us at a local arts and crafts market, then walked back to the port.

The markets we find all over the world have such beautiful things, at such inexpensive prices that we can't help but buy things. We are limiting ourselves somewhat though since we don't have unlimited luggage like in 09. This time we will be dragging anything we buy with us in Hong Kong, then on to Bangkok. Be both bought hats as well as a couple of trinkets. We just had an announcement from the Capt that everyone is onboard and we'll be setting sail as soon as we are cleared by the harbor master. On to Lima, Peru! We'll have one sea day before spending 2 days in port.

The picture is of a giant tuna! Manta is a big fishing port, lots of tuna.

Transit Thru the Canal

Our last trip, in '09, was our first time thru the Panama Canal so we were up before dawn to see everything. This time we slept in. There wasn't much on the schedule since there was so much to see off the ship, so we didn't do much at all. It was a nice lazy day with views. It rained off and on all day, so we would go out on the bow, then back inside when it started to pour. I was hoping to see one of my step sons at the Visitors Center by the last locks. The place was packed since it was a holiday in Panama. I searched all the faces thru our binoculars, with no luck. Sorry I wasn't able to see him. Hopefully we'll make a trip where we actually stop in Panama for at least a day, or even just a land trip to visit for a week.

Panama City is amazing to me. When I lived there about 30 years ago, there were maybe 2 or 3 high rise buildings. Now there are dozens, many under construction. They have one shaped like a sail like in Dubai and a spiral like in London (I think that's where I've seen a spiral shaped building?). Quite modern looking. It will be an interesting visit when we finally get there.

Today, Wed, was a sea day, on our way to Manta, Ecuador. We went to Tai Chi then to the port talk. These talks aren't like on cruises in the Caribbean where they tell you what store to go to in order to get the best deal. Barbara, the port speaker, tells about the history of the country, what to see and do once in port. She'll tell us what me might find in the markets and where some shopping is, but doesn't get a cut of that recommendation. We hope to get out of town to see some wildlife. Hopefully we'll find someone to take us.

This afternoon Bruce, the Cruise Director, interviewed Mitzi Gaynor. She was delightful, telling about her experiences w/Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly, etc. She was on the same Ed Sullivan show as the Beatles way back then. She's still friends with Paul. We told her that we'd seen Marge Champion (live model for Snow White) at the Disney Family Museum. She said she's good friends with her also. Much more entertaining than her show. She did say that she's recently had knee replacement surgery which would account for her shuffling walk. She'd never been on a cruise ship before either so was a bit weary about the movement. Of course we barely feel it, it's so calm out here.

We're still feeling out our dinner table. One couple is leaving the ship to go to Manchu Picchu tomorrow so won't be dining w/us for 4 days. We're taking the other couple and moving to a table we sat at for a month in 09. The nice lady we called a wrong name for weeks is still a that table without many to keep her company. It's a table for 12!

I'll try to post pictures tomorrow after our day in Ecuador. Thanks for following along!

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

I had emailed several weeks ago about taking a tour of a Sloth Rescue Center at this port. They never replied. We assumed we could grab a cab or something once we were off the ship, and were right. They were lined up with about 10 different tours to choose from. For $30 each, the cab took us about 50 minutes south of the port, along the coastal highway. The Center was originally set up as a bed & breakfast. Someone brought the owners an injured sloth, and there it began. People just kept bring sloths to them so they started the rescue center. If a sloth can be rehabilitated, it will be returned to the wild. If not, it lives out it's life at the Center. They had about 6 adults and a dozen babies there. One of our guides was the grandson of the owners. He had grown up in the USA, visiting his grandparents in summers. As an adult he decided to stay in Costa Rica to study the sloths and help our his grandparents.

The tour started with a video about the animals. After that we took a ride in a canoe for about an hour. We saw 2 sloths in the wild, way up in the trees. Also saw many pretty birds and lots of tiny crabs in the mud along the shore. After the canoe ride, we went to see the sloths in their "zoo". I reached out my hand to one little guy, the only one that was awake, and he immediately came closer and grabbed my finger. Very cute. The babies were being kept in cat carriers or plastic tubs. One hissed at me. They had one that was very tiny. Most of the babies had lost their mothers. In the store, everything was sloth of course. Grand Cayman was rays, Puerto Limon, sloths.

On the way back to town, I asked the driver to stop so we could walk down to the beach. It was really nice. Would have been nice to swim. The sand was almost black. Once in town, the driver dropped us at the market set up on the pier. We made a couple of purchases then returned to the ship for lunch.

After lunch we returned to the town. There wasn't much to see. The church is a very modern, cement building. On one side was an old tower, most likely the only part to remain standing after their large earthquake in 1991. Our driver had pointed out all the old bridges on our ride. All of the bridges had fallen during that earthquake also. There was a concert on a different pier so all the towns people were headed that way. Very small town, with only a few of the shops open since it is Sunday. Not a great stop, but we did really enjoy seeing and learning about the sloths.

Grand Cayman

It's been an entire day since we were at Grand Cayman. Just too many things going on to get to posting. My computer has been acting up, giving me a lot of script errors, so I spent yesterday evening with the Microsoft guy onboard to see if he could help. Not much help at all. Hopefully it'll get over itself and work!

We were expected to arrive in Georgetown, Grand Cayman, at 8 a.m. I had booked an onshore excursion for snorkeling, meeting in town at 8:30 - 8:45. Well, I'd forgotten that it was a tender port, which takes more time to disembark. Also, they announced that the swells were too large to tender into Georgetown so we'd be gong to Spots Bay, about 3 miles south. We were waiting to board the tender by just after 7 a.m. We didn't get to go to the tender until after 8. I figured we would miss the tour. We got on the free shuttle into Georgetown. On the way, the guide on the bus called the tour company for us. They said we could go on the next tour, to meet them at 11:30. Guess that worked. In the meantime, Georgetown is a Free Port, so we shopped!

Grand Cayman is known for it's "Sting Ray City", so they sold ray items in every store. Both Lalique and Lladro made ray figurines, exclusive to the Caymans. There were ray ornaments, jewelry, you name it. We made a few purchases then went to meet our tour.

A nice young girl picked us up and drove us to the boat. We stopped for "paties", a typical Cayman food, pretty much like empanadas. They were delicious. Glad I had that to eat. I would have been really hungry by the time we got back to the ship. The boat was pretty old and run down, but ran, so fine. There were about 10 others with us. We were taken to Sting Ray City where about 7 boats were already anchored. Some were much larger than ours. There must have been 200 people out on that sand bar in the middle of the bay! I guess years ago fisherman used to clean their fish in that area, so the rays started coming to eat the waste. Then they started feeding them for tourists and they just never left. There were a lot swimming in about 3' deep water, most over 2' in diameter, a few smaller ones. Our guide caught one so we could hold it, kiss it and get a back rub, with pictures being taken of course for an extra cost. It was fun to be up that close to them. We moved from there to deeper water for snorkeling. It wasn't the best we've seen but there were many colorful fish, some brain coral, and some sea fans. The water is crystal clear and warm. We remembered to bring our swim shirts this trip, so our backs didn't get fired like they did on our last trip!

While on the boat one of my free replica coins fell out of my pocket and disappeared in a hole. I wanted to return to the store to get another one. When we got back to the dock, it was after 3. The last tender was to leave for the ship at 4. We still had to get from Georgetown to the tenders! I was sure we'd have time, so had the driver drop us off in Georgetown. We went back to the store, got 4 more coins, then did a fast walk to the shuttle to the pier. We were on the last shuttle, boarded the last tender, and were back onboard at about 4:45. Nice day.

Today was another day at sea. We did Tai Chi in the morning. We made friends with the instructors from Australia on our last World Cruise. I told Robert I would attend his class on 25 hour days, when we turn the clocks back and I get an extra hour of sleep. The class was good. I hope we'll be able to attend a few times. Nothing scheduled for the afternoon that we wanted to attend, but tonight was a formal night. We dressed for the Captain's reception before dinner. On the way, passing by the jewelry store we talked to the emerald rep whom we'd met 2 years ago when Mel bought me an emerald ring. I asked if I could model something, she asked what I wanted to wear. Of course I chose the $55,000 emerald necklace with $7500 matching earrings! Fun to go to dinner wearing that much jewelry. We had escargot, lobster and chocolate souffle for dinner. Yum! Of course Mel had THREE lobster tails. Nice.

The show was Mitzi Gaynor. The younguns out there will have to Google her, but most my age and up will remember her. She starred in South Pacific as well as other films and did many shows in Las Vegas. It was fun to see her in person but I think she should have retired a few years ago.

Tomorrow is Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. Not sure what we are going to do since the tour company I emailed never replied. I'm sure we'll find something interesting to do.

On Board and Settled In

We had breakfast this morning with our friends from the 2009 World Cruise. Very nice to see them again. Wish they were on our ship. At breakfast we also saw a lot of familiar faces. People go on these cruise year after year, amazing.
There was a Publix (grocery store) right behind our hotel so we walked over to buy last minute incidentals like bottled water. We also bought a case of soda, so it was quite heavy. As you can see in the picture, we just brought the shopping cart all the way to our room! Mel did return it to the store parking lot.
We arrived at the port before 11. We were greeted by the Capt who gave me a kiss. Nice to be remembered. Great Captain. Glad he's with us for this cruise again. We also saw several others that we knew. In 2009 we didn't know anyone but each other when we boarded. This feels much different. We were great ed warmly by a number of crew as well as fellow passengers. The Amsterdam is the sister ship to the Rotterdam so we even know our way around. Makes things a lot easier. Feels like home already.
Most of our luggage was in the room once we finished lunch, so we were able to unpack. I must say, it's MUCH easier unpacking 2 suitcases vs the 7 or 8 I had last time. Everything easily fits in the available drawers and cabinets. Much better. The ship was in dry dock just before this cruise, so all the carpets, furniture, etc is new. Very spiffy looking.
One lady who I did not want to see on the ship is here. She's the one who told me that I have ugly feet on the last trip. Hope she's not at our table for dinner tonight, that would be awful. Well, not really, we'd just ask to move. So far so good! Sail away is in an hour, and we'll be off. I'm happy to be in warmer weather already. My computer is saying it's 44 degrees back home. Brrrrrrrrrrrr..................

Smooth Sailing For Departure....I Thought?

Yesterday I did all the last selecting of items that go in the suitcases. I have everything packed except for shoes (how do I narrow it down to 4 pr when last time I took an entire suitcase with JUST shoes???) and toiletries. All I had to do today, our last full day before we fly off to Ft Lauderdale, is polish the nails, install the backup of Quickbooks onto my laptop and update the laptop with miscellaneous bookmarked websites I might find useful while we're away. I turned the laptop on and the internet went down....no access there or on my desktop. All of a sudden my TIVO rebooted also, 3 times! Just to add stress, there was something I wanted to bid on on eBay that was to close in less than an hour. Maybe I didn't need it after all...but thank goodness for cell phones! I had mine ready to bid just in case. :) After unplugging and replugging the wireless network everything came back and all was fine. Or was it? I tried installing the Quickbooks backup. I hadn't used Quickbooks on my laptop since 2009, so it needed to be updated. I updated and updated but kept getting error messages when trying to install the backup. DUH, I had to reboot the computer! FINALLY, after several hours and numerous attempts, success!!! Scary to be on the computer so much as still not know what I'm doing. LOL

Mel is washing the cars. Is that something that needs being done before one leaves for 2 months? He's also finally taking down Christmas from the front porch. I'm going to give up on computers and go finish the packing. It'll be interesting to see how much the suitcases weigh. I may have to do some purging if they're too heavy. Hmmm, how will I bring anything home if my luggage is already overweight. I'm sure I'll figure it out, I always have. We'll be picked up at 11 a.m. to head for the airport tomorrow. I'll probably post again once we're settled and on our way. Our first port is Grand Cayman on Fri. I'm looking forward to some warm sunshine and snorkeling.