Month: December 2014

Saturday, December 20, 2014

At 8:00 this morning the Cruise Director, Dave woke us up to announce that we were anchored off of “Half Moon Cay”, a private island owned by Holland America. I did not need a wake up call to tell me that. So I did not get up until 10:30. I’m retired you know! It is the fourth time I have seen this Island, and between ships, the island is uninhabited except for the horses available for riding and a couple of ranch hands who care for them. It is a pretty place where the waters reflect about five shades of blue with a sugar white beach. This is starting to sound like a wine description. I did go ashore for the Tropical Island Barbecue of short ribs and chicken. … more »

Friday, December 19, 2014

Reluctantly I rolled out of bed in time for the 8:00 am Mass, but no one else seemed reluctant. This is a great singing group even at 8:00 in the morning. There was a Cake Decorating Class this morning. I didn’t see any point in that. It was followed by a Fruit and Veggie Carving demonstration/class. I did not see any point in that either. If you’re going to cut it, eat it! They reported the Steel Drum Seminar. Only on a day when you can’t get off would they think of putting this on. I found a quiet place in the Crow’s Nest and read all morning long. There are Board Games in the Library which is next to and opens into the Crows Nest. … more »

Thursday, December 18, 2014

At 8:00 this morning we docked at St Thomas of the Virgin Islands. Too early to find anything open or any reason to explore Charlotte Amalia. The last time I was here it rained heavily nearly the entire time. The town is at the bottom of some seriously steep hills. The water ran down the hills and flooded the streets at the coast line. I sought shelter in a store, and within fifteen minutes there was an inch of water in the store, and when a car went by through the water, the waves made it all the a mess in the stores. This time, no rain!

I slept through that Abs thing today. What a shame. … more »

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

We crossed a time zone in the night, and arrived at San Juan a little before 1:00 p.m. Since we have been at a port out of the United States jurisdiction, there was a little time spent with customs and “clearance” before they opened the gangway. It was a warm day, and I spent much of the morning with the lady whose husband died last night making arrangements for his body to be removed from the ship by a San Juan Funeral Home. She will remain on board until tomorrow as flights from St Thomas are more convenient to her home than from San Juan. This will also allow time for her children to get to the family home from their homes in Canada. … more »

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Waking up this morning at the island of Grand Turk was pleasant. I was here a year ago about this time, and nothing much has changed. Other than living the culture of a Caribbean Island, and harvesting sea salt there is not much reason to be here. It is a long, low, flat island. The attraction is under the sea, the fish, the coral, and most of all Stingrays which some people pay to pet. I did not pay nor pet. The pier is fairly long walk to shore, and the only way on shore is to walk through the biggest “Duty Free Shop” this side of DFW. There are some beautiful beaches, and there is one near the ship. … more »

Monday, December 15, 2014

I skipped the Pilates group and stayed in bed till the last minute before the 8:00 a.m. Mass. At 8:30 “FAB ABS” met in the Fitness Center. I hurried  up there after Mass, but the guy in charge suggested I wait till 10:00 a.m. for the “Body Sculpt Boot Camp.”  Sure I did. I did attend the talk on the Port Highlights for this cruise even though I’ve been to all these places before. There is always something more to learn, and there was. It was a tough choice because at the same time there was a program called: “The Art of Collecting”. At this stage of my life, collecting is not an art. It is a vice. … more »

Sunday, December 14, 2014 

Msgr Fetcher from St Sebastian drove me over to the ship after the first Mass this morning. I was on board early and spent at least an hour getting reacquainted with this ship. This is the same ship I sailed last December. All the Holland American Ships are just enough alike to get me confused, and just different enough to keep me lost for a day or two. This is one of the larger ships in the fleet. It is full with 2,670 “guests”. For the record, I walked 4 miles today. It was sunny and warm in Ft Lauderdale as we sailed at 4:00 p.m. By dark out of the sight of Miami and Ft Lauderdale skylines, the wind was up and it was not so “warm”. … more »