Peace Arch
Monday, September 27, 2004
A Bit of Color from the Market
The Redmond Farmers market is just great. Amazing flowers like this for $5 to $10 bucks a bouquet! Crafts, crepes, popcorn....Oh, and produce! Not to mention free roaming meats, eggs, and artisan cheese. November through April I mourn the lack.
Friday, September 24, 2004
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
The Floor is Moving....
I'm back in Seattle safe and sound, except that the floor is moving. Yesterday it was really only noticeable when I walked: the gentle rise and fall of the ship's undulation. Today I'm feeling slightly off balance even sitting still. I'd been warned that getting used to be on dry land takes longer than getting used to the ship, but the reality is somewhat disconcerting.
Now for the good news. I hit the gym yesterday and was only up 2 pounds from my pre-cruise weight. I think I've probabaly lost a little muscle and gained a little fat, but that should be easily reversable with a return to my gym schedule and normal eating habits.
Anyway, back to the grind.
Now for the good news. I hit the gym yesterday and was only up 2 pounds from my pre-cruise weight. I think I've probabaly lost a little muscle and gained a little fat, but that should be easily reversable with a return to my gym schedule and normal eating habits.
Anyway, back to the grind.
Saturday, September 18, 2004
And So It Ends
I'm getting ready for the last dinner. The bags have to be out before midnight tonight, as does the modem. We're out of our cabin at 8 am tomorrow, and off the ship at 11-ish. It's been an adventure, to say the least.
Oh, and I've hung a monkey in my closet. Pictures forthcoming.
Oh, and I've hung a monkey in my closet. Pictures forthcoming.
Friday, September 17, 2004
And No Tropical Vacation Would Be Complete without....
A SUNBURN, of course!
On my last tropical trip(to Hawaii), I burned fairly severely on my shoulders while snorkeling. Yes I was wearing sunscreen, but either my hair or suit rubbed it off. I solve this problem by wacking 27 inches of hair off and wearing a heavy cotton shirt to swim in. Ok, I didn't wack the hair specifically for snorkeling, but the effect is the same. I applied SPF 45 sunscreen to every inch of exposed skin, and even some that weren't. I thought I had escaped unscathed, until my seat started to prickle this evening. Yep, I burned my ass. Or rather, the tops of the back of my thighs. Not badly, and I have aloe along. It should fade out by tomorrow or the next day.
We took a Catamaran/Hyrdrofoil thing out to an island the size of a postage stamp. Or rather, I think they call it a Caye. I'll be generous and size it out at 50 by 30. It was surrounded by reefs. But, I was there with 50 other people and the water is still churned up from the storms. We jumped off the boat and snorkled around the island from there. I quickly decided that I had to get away from the madding crowds if I was going to see anything.
Indeed, once the thrashing newbies were in the distance, the fish came back out to play. I still couldn't see more than abut 15 feet, but there were quite a few fish, and more coral than I've seen before. Some of the usual suspects (A Humunukunukuapuaa and a parrot fish) were around, along with others I hadn't seen before. At one point I drifted and watched a school of about 50 yellow and black striped guys dart around their reef. I stayed in the water as long as they would let me, and quite enjoyed it. The trip completely validated borrowing Mom's gear and hauling it across country. Now they're 2 ocean fins ;>
I do wish this trip had been Tuesday as scheduled, it would have been a great way to start the week. Grand Cayman is closed until further notice, apparently the damage from Ivan is massive.
I also got some lovely Henna work done on my back in advance of the backless dinner dress.
Tomorrow will be a day at sea as we head back around to Miami. According to the captain's update this evening we'll be in at 6 am or so on Sunday. I have to be out of the room 8, and they should let us off the ship at about 10:30 or 11. No, we're still determining what to do with the rest of the day, as the flights don't leave until 6. Yes, those of you waiting for phone calls will get them, put I'll be nice and wait until a decent hour.
Ta.
On my last tropical trip(to Hawaii), I burned fairly severely on my shoulders while snorkeling. Yes I was wearing sunscreen, but either my hair or suit rubbed it off. I solve this problem by wacking 27 inches of hair off and wearing a heavy cotton shirt to swim in. Ok, I didn't wack the hair specifically for snorkeling, but the effect is the same. I applied SPF 45 sunscreen to every inch of exposed skin, and even some that weren't. I thought I had escaped unscathed, until my seat started to prickle this evening. Yep, I burned my ass. Or rather, the tops of the back of my thighs. Not badly, and I have aloe along. It should fade out by tomorrow or the next day.
We took a Catamaran/Hyrdrofoil thing out to an island the size of a postage stamp. Or rather, I think they call it a Caye. I'll be generous and size it out at 50 by 30. It was surrounded by reefs. But, I was there with 50 other people and the water is still churned up from the storms. We jumped off the boat and snorkled around the island from there. I quickly decided that I had to get away from the madding crowds if I was going to see anything.
Indeed, once the thrashing newbies were in the distance, the fish came back out to play. I still couldn't see more than abut 15 feet, but there were quite a few fish, and more coral than I've seen before. Some of the usual suspects (A Humunukunukuapuaa and a parrot fish) were around, along with others I hadn't seen before. At one point I drifted and watched a school of about 50 yellow and black striped guys dart around their reef. I stayed in the water as long as they would let me, and quite enjoyed it. The trip completely validated borrowing Mom's gear and hauling it across country. Now they're 2 ocean fins ;>
I do wish this trip had been Tuesday as scheduled, it would have been a great way to start the week. Grand Cayman is closed until further notice, apparently the damage from Ivan is massive.
I also got some lovely Henna work done on my back in advance of the backless dinner dress.
Tomorrow will be a day at sea as we head back around to Miami. According to the captain's update this evening we'll be in at 6 am or so on Sunday. I have to be out of the room 8, and they should let us off the ship at about 10:30 or 11. No, we're still determining what to do with the rest of the day, as the flights don't leave until 6. Yes, those of you waiting for phone calls will get them, put I'll be nice and wait until a decent hour.
Ta.
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Deja Vu all over again
We've been here before. Ivan has gone north, but there's another hurricane coming, and potentially one behind that. Pick up the National Geographic this month, it's facinating reading on Global Warming.
On another repeating pattern front, I didn't see much of Cozumel today but I did see a bit of Playa del Carmen. More urban than where we were yesterday, but still showing the huge disparity between the haves and have nots. We paid 80-some for the tour today, including ferry out to the mainland and back, and the entrance tickets into the Excaret Eco-park. It is a combination zoo, botanical park, and beach, with a few entertainment and museum elements thrown in. To my mind it did none of these things well, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. But back to the tour cost. There were 20-some people on the tour, each paying over $80, and the tour guide made $13 for the day. That's less than $.50 from each ticket. I'm sure the tips increase that income exponentially, but it still irked me a bit.
Oh, a Sun and Sea update -- I did fine yesterday, which was the first day I was really concerned about from a Sun perspective. Today my head feels a little pink, despite having worn a hat the whole time I've been here. Oh well, it would be much worse without the hat, I know. It's going to be truly amusing when I go home the same color that I arrived...SPF 45 is your friend. I tried taking my Sea Bands off this evening, but after a few hours I felt like I had no equalibrium, so back on they went. They were quite useful today, the ferry ride over to the mainland was quite rolling and I was fine. I'll have to remember these for future boat excursion.
I took another run at the climbing wall tonight. Still didn't make it to the top, but did make it another 10 feet or so. I'll keep trying. And this time I didn't flee in a near panic.
The Kohunlich pictures are going up now. I took some pics at Xcaret, but have not downloaded them yet. I'm not going to take the camera on the catamaran tomorrow. Just too big a risk, especially when Jenna is taking hers. But perhaps if we go into Belize City in the afternoon I'll take it along then.
It occurs to me that I did not actually say much yesterday about the Mayan ruins we saw. They were completely amazing. I have one picture of our guide explaining how there are 6 or 8 levels of building revealed in a crumbling corner. The guide was phenomenal. He presented a wide range of facts on every subject, and would appropriately caveat items that required it. His explination of where the Mayans came from spanned from UFOS to Kon Tiki to the current accepted theory that they were an Asiatic people.
Kohunlich now goes on my list of 'astronomical calendar' sites that I've visited, along with Stonehenge and New Grange. In the main plaza at Kohunlich the sun comes through east the building in April, and through the west building in August. But wait, you say, those aren't solstice dates. No, but they are 52 days either side of the Summer Solstice in June. 52 was a significant, mystical number to the Mayans.
As mentioned before, this is hardly my first trip to Mexico. But what I didn't know is that Spanish is not the primary language all over the country. It's the official language, but Mayan is more prevalent in some areas, namely Quintana Roo.
There's the quick and dirty lecture, fair warning that you'll get more if you ask.
*yawn* Ok, beddy bye time.
On another repeating pattern front, I didn't see much of Cozumel today but I did see a bit of Playa del Carmen. More urban than where we were yesterday, but still showing the huge disparity between the haves and have nots. We paid 80-some for the tour today, including ferry out to the mainland and back, and the entrance tickets into the Excaret Eco-park. It is a combination zoo, botanical park, and beach, with a few entertainment and museum elements thrown in. To my mind it did none of these things well, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. But back to the tour cost. There were 20-some people on the tour, each paying over $80, and the tour guide made $13 for the day. That's less than $.50 from each ticket. I'm sure the tips increase that income exponentially, but it still irked me a bit.
Oh, a Sun and Sea update -- I did fine yesterday, which was the first day I was really concerned about from a Sun perspective. Today my head feels a little pink, despite having worn a hat the whole time I've been here. Oh well, it would be much worse without the hat, I know. It's going to be truly amusing when I go home the same color that I arrived...SPF 45 is your friend. I tried taking my Sea Bands off this evening, but after a few hours I felt like I had no equalibrium, so back on they went. They were quite useful today, the ferry ride over to the mainland was quite rolling and I was fine. I'll have to remember these for future boat excursion.
I took another run at the climbing wall tonight. Still didn't make it to the top, but did make it another 10 feet or so. I'll keep trying. And this time I didn't flee in a near panic.
The Kohunlich pictures are going up now. I took some pics at Xcaret, but have not downloaded them yet. I'm not going to take the camera on the catamaran tomorrow. Just too big a risk, especially when Jenna is taking hers. But perhaps if we go into Belize City in the afternoon I'll take it along then.
It occurs to me that I did not actually say much yesterday about the Mayan ruins we saw. They were completely amazing. I have one picture of our guide explaining how there are 6 or 8 levels of building revealed in a crumbling corner. The guide was phenomenal. He presented a wide range of facts on every subject, and would appropriately caveat items that required it. His explination of where the Mayans came from spanned from UFOS to Kon Tiki to the current accepted theory that they were an Asiatic people.
Kohunlich now goes on my list of 'astronomical calendar' sites that I've visited, along with Stonehenge and New Grange. In the main plaza at Kohunlich the sun comes through east the building in April, and through the west building in August. But wait, you say, those aren't solstice dates. No, but they are 52 days either side of the Summer Solstice in June. 52 was a significant, mystical number to the Mayans.
As mentioned before, this is hardly my first trip to Mexico. But what I didn't know is that Spanish is not the primary language all over the country. It's the official language, but Mayan is more prevalent in some areas, namely Quintana Roo.
There's the quick and dirty lecture, fair warning that you'll get more if you ask.
*yawn* Ok, beddy bye time.
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
A Tale of Two Mexicos
Today we stopped at Costa Maya in the province of Quintana Roo Mexico. Don't bother to look for it on a map, you won't find it. It's port constructed just for the cruise ships. There are about 20 shops, a couple of restaraunts, and a couple of pools.
This was not my first visit to Mexico. I spent every family vacation for I think a decade or so in Sonora, at another town constructed for the Americans: San Carlos, outside Guaymas. It's on the Sea of Cortez. My grandmother and grandfather built a house there.
This was just a bit different: Sonora is desert, Quintana Roo is jungle. But one thing was the same: the staggering incongruity in lifestyles between the locals and visitors.
We drove two hours out to the Kohunlich Mayan ruins. On the way, we passed a number of small settlements. Since the two collections of people closest to Costa Maya number about 400 people, I hesitate to use the word Town. Our guide assured us that people do still live in 12x12 thatch huts. I saw some cinder block construction, but not much. Still, multiple generations of local families live in a space smaller than my state room. I wondered if I was the only one on the bus to consider that juxtoposition.
I'm cruising around on a floating pleasure palace for a week while people in the Caribbean are losing their lives and homes, and the local standard of living in Mexico is...significantly lower than that in the US. I won't even try to consider how many people all the food on board would feed, or how the clothes shelter. Or the wealth house! I'm conflicted about this whole thing. I'm not sure whether I feel lucky or guilty, probabably both.
The fact sheet for Costa Maya informs me that in 1999, 36% of the Tourist income for all of Mexico came from Quintana Roo. I have no idea how many people my grandmother employed in her time in Mexico -- the construction crews on the houses, gardeners, maids, craftsmen, the list goes on.
So I'm another in a line of Gringos coming down to take my pleasure and spend my money in Mexico. I have to wonder what the locals think of me. They probably don't. They're too busy living.
I bought a book today. It's an explination of the Mayan Calendar, and they printed a page for me that is a reconstruction of an existing text, with information about the date of my birth. The cover is stucco, and the page is hand made Banyan paper that took a month of manual labor to make. I paid 25 bucks for the whole package. Since it is a joint project of a couple of schools in Mexico and Miami, and at least part of the funds go to the locals, it seemed a good purchase.
Now I'm off to a 4 course dinner. Later tonight we plan to go sit in the pools under the stars, where they'll be having a midnight buffet. I will enjoy it, but I hope with a fuller understanding of how different my life could be.
Pax.
This was not my first visit to Mexico. I spent every family vacation for I think a decade or so in Sonora, at another town constructed for the Americans: San Carlos, outside Guaymas. It's on the Sea of Cortez. My grandmother and grandfather built a house there.
This was just a bit different: Sonora is desert, Quintana Roo is jungle. But one thing was the same: the staggering incongruity in lifestyles between the locals and visitors.
We drove two hours out to the Kohunlich Mayan ruins. On the way, we passed a number of small settlements. Since the two collections of people closest to Costa Maya number about 400 people, I hesitate to use the word Town. Our guide assured us that people do still live in 12x12 thatch huts. I saw some cinder block construction, but not much. Still, multiple generations of local families live in a space smaller than my state room. I wondered if I was the only one on the bus to consider that juxtoposition.
I'm cruising around on a floating pleasure palace for a week while people in the Caribbean are losing their lives and homes, and the local standard of living in Mexico is...significantly lower than that in the US. I won't even try to consider how many people all the food on board would feed, or how the clothes shelter. Or the wealth house! I'm conflicted about this whole thing. I'm not sure whether I feel lucky or guilty, probabably both.
The fact sheet for Costa Maya informs me that in 1999, 36% of the Tourist income for all of Mexico came from Quintana Roo. I have no idea how many people my grandmother employed in her time in Mexico -- the construction crews on the houses, gardeners, maids, craftsmen, the list goes on.
So I'm another in a line of Gringos coming down to take my pleasure and spend my money in Mexico. I have to wonder what the locals think of me. They probably don't. They're too busy living.
I bought a book today. It's an explination of the Mayan Calendar, and they printed a page for me that is a reconstruction of an existing text, with information about the date of my birth. The cover is stucco, and the page is hand made Banyan paper that took a month of manual labor to make. I paid 25 bucks for the whole package. Since it is a joint project of a couple of schools in Mexico and Miami, and at least part of the funds go to the locals, it seemed a good purchase.
Now I'm off to a 4 course dinner. Later tonight we plan to go sit in the pools under the stars, where they'll be having a midnight buffet. I will enjoy it, but I hope with a fuller understanding of how different my life could be.
Pax.
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Of Adrenaline and Alcohol
It was quite the rollicking day at sea. The winds may have decreased, but the swells were worse today and the ship was rolling quite a bit. I was fine, but others were not as lucky.
I wandered all over today. No pictures, that will probably be Saturday's task. I figured out how to get to the helipad on the front of the ship, and up to the chapel on the 15th floor and everything in between. I also won 3 paintings(each valued at about $500), and bought Andrew's Birthday present :> Don't worry, I actually like the 3 I won, or at least 2 of them. The third is one that Mick liked and will be her Christmas present. Being a loud know it all did me some good for once.
Wow, the rolling of the ship has increased again. I must be storm swell from Ivan. We're well to the south, but J&C commented that the ocean is much darker than the last time they were here.
Anyway, after hitting the art auction, I decided I wanted to try the climbing wall. Drew, don't laugh. They fitted me for gear, and I watched the first set of people scale the surface. They can do about 5 cross at once. I'm sure it's not a terribly difficult climb. There were probably 20 people waiting to climb, and eventually all the gung-ho types were done and I was the next one with the least amount of hesitation. I really had tried not to think about what I was doing here. I got about a quarter of the way up and slipped off. The rope is tensioned, so I didn't go far. I swung back to the wall and tried again. I now have plenty of strength, which is a nice surprise. Second time, I made it about half way up before I reached a spot I couldn't get out of, and didn't feel secure it. I swung out and they lowered me back down. Needless to say, they had to prompt me to release the rope. I took off the shoes, helmet and harness and skedaddled. My heart was going a mile a minute and I didn't really realize until I got back to my cabin how much I was shaking. I sat out on the balcony until everything calmed down, then hit a yoga class. Doing Yoga on a moving ship is quite the experience. Luckily, we stayed on the floor most of the class.
After dinner C&J and I wandered around the ship again. Out onto the back deck, then up to the Helipad. Talk about windy! We stood in the dark and watched the sheet lightening of in the west/northwest for a few minutes.
J and I wandered up to the bar on the 14th deck, which overlooks the pool decks. It probably has a great view during the day, but at night it's mostly just dark. I sipped part of a Cosmopolitian. Not nearly as nummy as the non-alcoholic version at Cascadia.
My dinner companions have proved to be quite entertaining. In addition to J&C&M, there's a 40-ish couple from Phoenix, he's a Contractor, and a late 20's couple from Massachusetts. Tonight we spiraled down into a bad joke contest after dessert. It will be interesting to hear tomorrow how people's excursions went.
But now, my pillow awaits.
I wandered all over today. No pictures, that will probably be Saturday's task. I figured out how to get to the helipad on the front of the ship, and up to the chapel on the 15th floor and everything in between. I also won 3 paintings(each valued at about $500), and bought Andrew's Birthday present :> Don't worry, I actually like the 3 I won, or at least 2 of them. The third is one that Mick liked and will be her Christmas present. Being a loud know it all did me some good for once.
Wow, the rolling of the ship has increased again. I must be storm swell from Ivan. We're well to the south, but J&C commented that the ocean is much darker than the last time they were here.
Anyway, after hitting the art auction, I decided I wanted to try the climbing wall. Drew, don't laugh. They fitted me for gear, and I watched the first set of people scale the surface. They can do about 5 cross at once. I'm sure it's not a terribly difficult climb. There were probably 20 people waiting to climb, and eventually all the gung-ho types were done and I was the next one with the least amount of hesitation. I really had tried not to think about what I was doing here. I got about a quarter of the way up and slipped off. The rope is tensioned, so I didn't go far. I swung back to the wall and tried again. I now have plenty of strength, which is a nice surprise. Second time, I made it about half way up before I reached a spot I couldn't get out of, and didn't feel secure it. I swung out and they lowered me back down. Needless to say, they had to prompt me to release the rope. I took off the shoes, helmet and harness and skedaddled. My heart was going a mile a minute and I didn't really realize until I got back to my cabin how much I was shaking. I sat out on the balcony until everything calmed down, then hit a yoga class. Doing Yoga on a moving ship is quite the experience. Luckily, we stayed on the floor most of the class.
After dinner C&J and I wandered around the ship again. Out onto the back deck, then up to the Helipad. Talk about windy! We stood in the dark and watched the sheet lightening of in the west/northwest for a few minutes.
J and I wandered up to the bar on the 14th deck, which overlooks the pool decks. It probably has a great view during the day, but at night it's mostly just dark. I sipped part of a Cosmopolitian. Not nearly as nummy as the non-alcoholic version at Cascadia.
My dinner companions have proved to be quite entertaining. In addition to J&C&M, there's a 40-ish couple from Phoenix, he's a Contractor, and a late 20's couple from Massachusetts. Tonight we spiraled down into a bad joke contest after dessert. It will be interesting to hear tomorrow how people's excursions went.
But now, my pillow awaits.
Monday, September 13, 2004
Oh Batty Night, or Things That Go Sqeak in the night
Most of today was quite windy. According to the atmospheric lab on board, the relative wind was about 40 knots at midafternoon. We were headed straight into the wind, so the speed of the ship was increasing the wind by about 10 knots.
I took advantage of our first day at sea to make use of the jogging track. Running directly into the wind around the front of the ship gives a whole new meaning to 'limited forward mobility'. In all, I ran 1.2 miles and walked another .8. Tomorrow I will try for running 2 and walking another 1. There was no land in sight at that time, and it was quite a feeling to be running around the top of the ship, looking out to the horizon. Just a bit different than running on a treadmill, watching TV.
The winds have calmed now that we've turned around the eastern edge of Cuba. Unfortunately, we made the turn after dark, so I can't tell you what Cuba looks like. I only know we turned the corner because the Ocean and Atmospheric labs post a realtime update of our position on their site .
When I returned from dinner and the evening's entertainment, I stepped out on our balcony to enjoy the night. It's very dark here, aside from the light put off by the ship. I looked up and could see a number of small...things, moving around at a high rate of speed and mobility. They must have been bats, and I could hear some squeeking, even over the water and wind. I guess something this big and bright draws their attention, even out to sea.
All in all, it was a fairly lazy day. We spent a couple of hours at an Art auction. It was quite interesting. I didn't buy anything, but may tomorrow. Mick and Jenna each picked 3 or 4 paintings.
Updated itenerary -- Grand Cayman is closed due to hurricane damage, so we will be going to Belize City on Friday instead. *le sigh* Oh well. So much for 7 Mile Beach.
I took pictures of my dinner tonight, I'll post them up to Webshots.
Sunburn and Seasickness report -- No burn, no quease. Nothing new to report, the wrist bands seem to be working like a charm. I had a bit of a headache at one point, but I'm hoping now that we've turned into calmer seas and winds everything will be happy.
There was a beautiful sunset tonight, I caught it from the hot tub on the pool deck. Very decadent, I know. I haven't checked to see how the pictures came out, perhaps I'll post them.
Ok, that's it, I'm fading. Good Night John Boy.
I took advantage of our first day at sea to make use of the jogging track. Running directly into the wind around the front of the ship gives a whole new meaning to 'limited forward mobility'. In all, I ran 1.2 miles and walked another .8. Tomorrow I will try for running 2 and walking another 1. There was no land in sight at that time, and it was quite a feeling to be running around the top of the ship, looking out to the horizon. Just a bit different than running on a treadmill, watching TV.
The winds have calmed now that we've turned around the eastern edge of Cuba. Unfortunately, we made the turn after dark, so I can't tell you what Cuba looks like. I only know we turned the corner because the Ocean and Atmospheric labs post a realtime update of our position on their site .
When I returned from dinner and the evening's entertainment, I stepped out on our balcony to enjoy the night. It's very dark here, aside from the light put off by the ship. I looked up and could see a number of small...things, moving around at a high rate of speed and mobility. They must have been bats, and I could hear some squeeking, even over the water and wind. I guess something this big and bright draws their attention, even out to sea.
All in all, it was a fairly lazy day. We spent a couple of hours at an Art auction. It was quite interesting. I didn't buy anything, but may tomorrow. Mick and Jenna each picked 3 or 4 paintings.
Updated itenerary -- Grand Cayman is closed due to hurricane damage, so we will be going to Belize City on Friday instead. *le sigh* Oh well. So much for 7 Mile Beach.
I took pictures of my dinner tonight, I'll post them up to Webshots.
Sunburn and Seasickness report -- No burn, no quease. Nothing new to report, the wrist bands seem to be working like a charm. I had a bit of a headache at one point, but I'm hoping now that we've turned into calmer seas and winds everything will be happy.
There was a beautiful sunset tonight, I caught it from the hot tub on the pool deck. Very decadent, I know. I haven't checked to see how the pictures came out, perhaps I'll post them.
Ok, that's it, I'm fading. Good Night John Boy.
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Pulling a Steve Irwin
Credit goes to Jenna for today's title. Before we left Seattle, she had her IM set to (Steve Irwin) Now watch me as I sneak up behind this hurricane (/Steve Irwin) . Believe it or not, that's exactly what we're doing.
Boarding the ship was a breeze. We hit the pier at about 11:30 and were on board by noon straight up. Our cabins were purportedly not ready, so I sat on the Promenade and made some phone calls.
Happy Birthday BRO!
The cabin is a bit smaller than I expected, never having been on a cruise before, but Mick says it's larger than the ones she's been in on other ships, and it should be perfectly functional. The toilet uses water instead of being directly chemical, which I was very glad to see. The shower makes me think of Shower Tubes out of bad futuristic Sci Fi. It was quite functional though, and roomier than it seemed.
So back to the Steve Irwin. Instead of sailing west around Cuba, we're dropping around the east side and basically following in Ivan's path. I'm happy to get the chance to hopefully see Hispanola, but we will miss our stop in Belize and spend a second day at Sea because of the change. Tomorrow I'll have to ask if this gets us an on board credit or a certificate for savings on a future cruise.
I have no idea how many of the 3000 possible passengers are on board. It is certainly possible to get away from people and still be in the common areas.
The food in the dining room was better than I expected. I had Watermelon Gazpacho, a Spinach Salad, and Shrimp ravioli with what was purported to be a coconut-lobster-lime sauce. It was quite good, but I couldn't pick out any of the specified flavors.
I took a host of pictures today, I'll try to upload some of them tomorrow.
Now it's very late, and I'm off to sleep.
Sunburn and seasick update -- No burn, No quease! Woohoo! Stayed in the shade or out of the sun most of the day. As soon as we pulled out of port I put on the accupressure bands and while I can feel the motion of the ship, I do not feel anything else.
Boarding the ship was a breeze. We hit the pier at about 11:30 and were on board by noon straight up. Our cabins were purportedly not ready, so I sat on the Promenade and made some phone calls.
Happy Birthday BRO!
The cabin is a bit smaller than I expected, never having been on a cruise before, but Mick says it's larger than the ones she's been in on other ships, and it should be perfectly functional. The toilet uses water instead of being directly chemical, which I was very glad to see. The shower makes me think of Shower Tubes out of bad futuristic Sci Fi. It was quite functional though, and roomier than it seemed.
So back to the Steve Irwin. Instead of sailing west around Cuba, we're dropping around the east side and basically following in Ivan's path. I'm happy to get the chance to hopefully see Hispanola, but we will miss our stop in Belize and spend a second day at Sea because of the change. Tomorrow I'll have to ask if this gets us an on board credit or a certificate for savings on a future cruise.
I have no idea how many of the 3000 possible passengers are on board. It is certainly possible to get away from people and still be in the common areas.
The food in the dining room was better than I expected. I had Watermelon Gazpacho, a Spinach Salad, and Shrimp ravioli with what was purported to be a coconut-lobster-lime sauce. It was quite good, but I couldn't pick out any of the specified flavors.
I took a host of pictures today, I'll try to upload some of them tomorrow.
Now it's very late, and I'm off to sleep.
Sunburn and seasick update -- No burn, No quease! Woohoo! Stayed in the shade or out of the sun most of the day. As soon as we pulled out of port I put on the accupressure bands and while I can feel the motion of the ship, I do not feel anything else.
Saturday, September 11, 2004
Sand in their Shorts and Demented Carnivore Dimsum
Miami is....warm. Very warm. There was often enough of a breeze today to keep it bearable. Parasailing just didn't happen today, unfortunately. We lunched, shopped, swam, and had dinner. A quite busy day in all, but nice.
I have a new, original design top and skirt. It's a black with red defining lines. I'll post a picture of something similar. Mick, Jenna and Charles very nicely humored me while I tried on every red and black item in the store.
Mick somehow got here without sandals. How she can live in Southern California and not own sandals completely escapes me. But then again, I wear sandals year round in Seattle. Anyway, Mick and Jenna bought shoes. I bought the basics for my Halloween costume, but you'll have to come to the Fairy Party to see it.
After a long afternoon of shopping, we took a dip in the pool and then went out to the beach. I discovered in New Orleans a few years ago that taking an dip in the pool once the sun is down can make the evening vastly more comfortable. I expect it's something we'll do on the ship as well. Jenna and Mick had fun sitting in the surf, but this resulted in them having large quantities of sand in their suits when they got back to their rooms.
It's truly amazing how few people were around on the beach. I was expecting a sea of people out there. Not so. I'll be curious to see if many have cancelled from the cruise. Speaking of, Ivan is well south and west, and looks to be headed north into the gulf. We should not have any problems getting on the ship and out, but it probably won't head west around Cuba as originally planned. More as I know. We saw a cruise ship sailing off over the horizon this evening. I grabbed a couple of pictures and we can tell it's a Royal Caribbean ship of the same size/class as the one we will be on, but can't make out the name.
Check out the WebShots, I'm planning to post some pictures when I finish this. I have a great deal of fun playing with the camera. I took a bunch of texture shots today, and pics of the bottle.
The entire reason for coming into Miami early was to visit PORCAO . It's a Brazilian restaraunt over in Miami. There's a salad and appetizer bar, but mostly it involves the waiters carrying large skewers of meat around the dining room. If you have your chit turned green side up, they will stop by and ask you if you want some of what every the are carrying. I think I had -- Turkey, 2 kinds of sausage, salmon, and 5 kinds of steak. Plus fried yuca (tasted just like potato), black beans with yuca flour, and brazilian cheese puffs. Jenna and Mick were quite taken with the breaded bananas. Blecht.
So if any of you are actually reading this, let me know.
Oh, and the sunburn report -- Day One in the tropics, and no burn yet. 45 sunscreen is your friend.
I have a new, original design top and skirt. It's a black with red defining lines. I'll post a picture of something similar. Mick, Jenna and Charles very nicely humored me while I tried on every red and black item in the store.
Mick somehow got here without sandals. How she can live in Southern California and not own sandals completely escapes me. But then again, I wear sandals year round in Seattle. Anyway, Mick and Jenna bought shoes. I bought the basics for my Halloween costume, but you'll have to come to the Fairy Party to see it.
After a long afternoon of shopping, we took a dip in the pool and then went out to the beach. I discovered in New Orleans a few years ago that taking an dip in the pool once the sun is down can make the evening vastly more comfortable. I expect it's something we'll do on the ship as well. Jenna and Mick had fun sitting in the surf, but this resulted in them having large quantities of sand in their suits when they got back to their rooms.
It's truly amazing how few people were around on the beach. I was expecting a sea of people out there. Not so. I'll be curious to see if many have cancelled from the cruise. Speaking of, Ivan is well south and west, and looks to be headed north into the gulf. We should not have any problems getting on the ship and out, but it probably won't head west around Cuba as originally planned. More as I know. We saw a cruise ship sailing off over the horizon this evening. I grabbed a couple of pictures and we can tell it's a Royal Caribbean ship of the same size/class as the one we will be on, but can't make out the name.
Check out the WebShots, I'm planning to post some pictures when I finish this. I have a great deal of fun playing with the camera. I took a bunch of texture shots today, and pics of the bottle.
The entire reason for coming into Miami early was to visit PORCAO . It's a Brazilian restaraunt over in Miami. There's a salad and appetizer bar, but mostly it involves the waiters carrying large skewers of meat around the dining room. If you have your chit turned green side up, they will stop by and ask you if you want some of what every the are carrying. I think I had -- Turkey, 2 kinds of sausage, salmon, and 5 kinds of steak. Plus fried yuca (tasted just like potato), black beans with yuca flour, and brazilian cheese puffs. Jenna and Mick were quite taken with the breaded bananas. Blecht.
So if any of you are actually reading this, let me know.
Oh, and the sunburn report -- Day One in the tropics, and no burn yet. 45 sunscreen is your friend.
Friday, September 10, 2004
A Long Day Comes to a Good End
I'm here to tell you that 3:40 comes early. Black dark early. Why so early for a 9 am flight? Traffic in LA gets bad starting at 5. So by leaving at 4:15, we made it the 40 miles to the airport in 45 minutes instead of 2 hours. But why not wait and leave at 5? Surely even getting to the airport at 7 still leaves you 2 hours to get checked in and through security? Based on our experience this morning, that would potentially not have been enough. We clearly made the right decision leaving at 4:15.
First the one kudo for the LA airport system. Mick is parked at the LAX satellite lot. For $8 a day. I dare you to find a single lot at SeaTac for $8 a day. Instead, in Seattle we pay $10 and up, plus the city taxes. Governmental control is occasionally a good thing.
1st LAX rant of the day -- Security. There were 4 stations for the entire American concourse, probably 20 gates. In Seattle, they have 8-12 stations per concourse. We were lucky to be in early, and it still took us most of an hour to get through. The line continued to grow and grow behind us. So yes, apparently you do have to leave 5 hours ahead to make a flight in LAX.
2nd LAX rant -- No recycling bins. Anywhere.
3rd LAX rant of the day -- No wireless. Well there was a network, but it seemed not to have a signal.
So this can all be summed up in the fact that while it touts itself as the busiest airport on in the country, LAX is ugly, old, and technologically inferior.
The flight was fairly uneventful. It was only about half full and I was able to switch to a better seat. The highlight was one of the audio channels. NASA has long transmitted a song up to the space shuttle to 'wake up the Astronauts'. They continued this habit with the Spirit and Opportunity rover teams, although the songs were just played for the control crew here on earth, not transmitted to the Rover. Anyway, one of the audio channels on the flight was a collection of the songs they used for these crews, with introductions by one of the project managers. It was quite fun to listen to.
We made our way through the airport and downstairs to get the bags. Only the conveyor eventually stopped and we had no bags. We checked with the agent who looked up our numbers and said 'There is no record of your bags'. He referred us to another baggage agent. Who repeated that there was no record of our bags. So we started paper work for lost bags, and eventually caught a cab to our hotel in Miami Beach. Mick called American at that point and the bags had already been found, and would be sent on to the hotel. We never did find out where they got lost, but they're here safe and sound.
We have view of the beach and ocean from our room, which you can see below. Quite nice, really. I'm planning to go down and walk on the beach in the morning.
We consulted the concierge about a restaurant, and he suggested several down in South beach. One even sent a limo to pick us up. No, I'm not kidding. We rode in a stretch limo down to Lincoln Center at no cost. I had a quite good Seafood risotto for dinner, including Clams, Shrimp, Mussels, and Calamari. We sat outdoors and watched the locals wander by. There was certainly a significant amount of ....mobile female anatomy on display. A street musician played for us at our table.
Afterward we wandered down the row of shops toward the ocean, and then down through the Art Deco district. I think we'll go back tomorrow for lunch and some more shopping and pictures of the very neat buildings. We stopped to have drinks and dessert and listen to some jazz. Charles and Jenna had been here before, and were quite surprised at how empty the streets were. Some buildings are still covered with Plywood, but all are marked 'Open'. A street artist gave me a rose made of palm fronds, also below. Eventually I'll figure out how to include these in the post. But that's for later.
Now I'm for sleep.
First the one kudo for the LA airport system. Mick is parked at the LAX satellite lot. For $8 a day. I dare you to find a single lot at SeaTac for $8 a day. Instead, in Seattle we pay $10 and up, plus the city taxes. Governmental control is occasionally a good thing.
1st LAX rant of the day -- Security. There were 4 stations for the entire American concourse, probably 20 gates. In Seattle, they have 8-12 stations per concourse. We were lucky to be in early, and it still took us most of an hour to get through. The line continued to grow and grow behind us. So yes, apparently you do have to leave 5 hours ahead to make a flight in LAX.
2nd LAX rant -- No recycling bins. Anywhere.
3rd LAX rant of the day -- No wireless. Well there was a network, but it seemed not to have a signal.
So this can all be summed up in the fact that while it touts itself as the busiest airport on in the country, LAX is ugly, old, and technologically inferior.
The flight was fairly uneventful. It was only about half full and I was able to switch to a better seat. The highlight was one of the audio channels. NASA has long transmitted a song up to the space shuttle to 'wake up the Astronauts'. They continued this habit with the Spirit and Opportunity rover teams, although the songs were just played for the control crew here on earth, not transmitted to the Rover. Anyway, one of the audio channels on the flight was a collection of the songs they used for these crews, with introductions by one of the project managers. It was quite fun to listen to.
We made our way through the airport and downstairs to get the bags. Only the conveyor eventually stopped and we had no bags. We checked with the agent who looked up our numbers and said 'There is no record of your bags'. He referred us to another baggage agent. Who repeated that there was no record of our bags. So we started paper work for lost bags, and eventually caught a cab to our hotel in Miami Beach. Mick called American at that point and the bags had already been found, and would be sent on to the hotel. We never did find out where they got lost, but they're here safe and sound.
We have view of the beach and ocean from our room, which you can see below. Quite nice, really. I'm planning to go down and walk on the beach in the morning.
We consulted the concierge about a restaurant, and he suggested several down in South beach. One even sent a limo to pick us up. No, I'm not kidding. We rode in a stretch limo down to Lincoln Center at no cost. I had a quite good Seafood risotto for dinner, including Clams, Shrimp, Mussels, and Calamari. We sat outdoors and watched the locals wander by. There was certainly a significant amount of ....mobile female anatomy on display. A street musician played for us at our table.
Afterward we wandered down the row of shops toward the ocean, and then down through the Art Deco district. I think we'll go back tomorrow for lunch and some more shopping and pictures of the very neat buildings. We stopped to have drinks and dessert and listen to some jazz. Charles and Jenna had been here before, and were quite surprised at how empty the streets were. Some buildings are still covered with Plywood, but all are marked 'Open'. A street artist gave me a rose made of palm fronds, also below. Eventually I'll figure out how to include these in the post. But that's for later.
Now I'm for sleep.
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Fun with banking security
I'm officially now out of town! I'm in LA at Mickie's house for the next 28 hours or so. The flight down was uneventful. I immersed myself in the new JD Robb and took a little nap. I seem to have conditioned myself to zonk out as soon as I get on a plane. LAX, or at least the terminal Alaska Airlines is in, is the most institutional, 60's looking airport I've been in, rivaled only by the concrete wonder that is Honolulu. Every other airport I've been in recently is undergoing renovations, but there seems to be no sign of that at LAX. Somehow I doubt the new NBC Drama will reflect the reality of this eyesore.
We had dinner at a mediocre Thai place with a friend who just moved to LA and then went to see Vanity Fair. It was certainly visually stunning, but perhaps the story is not as satisfying as some others of this genre.
Anyway, I checked my mail on the way out of town today and received a lovely surprise from my bank. Apparently a charge processor's list of account numbers has been compromised and my Debit card number was one of the ones grabbed. They are being so nice as to send me a new card and cancel the old one, effective September 18th. Since I'm now out of town (and thus won't get the new card) and don't get off the cruise ship until the 19th, this complicates things slightly. Hitting a local bank branch and getting some traveler's checks is first on the agenda for tomorrow. I so appreciate the protective action, but the timing sucks to say the very least.
But now to sleep, perchance to dream.
We had dinner at a mediocre Thai place with a friend who just moved to LA and then went to see Vanity Fair. It was certainly visually stunning, but perhaps the story is not as satisfying as some others of this genre.
Anyway, I checked my mail on the way out of town today and received a lovely surprise from my bank. Apparently a charge processor's list of account numbers has been compromised and my Debit card number was one of the ones grabbed. They are being so nice as to send me a new card and cancel the old one, effective September 18th. Since I'm now out of town (and thus won't get the new card) and don't get off the cruise ship until the 19th, this complicates things slightly. Hitting a local bank branch and getting some traveler's checks is first on the agenda for tomorrow. I so appreciate the protective action, but the timing sucks to say the very least.
But now to sleep, perchance to dream.
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
D-Day -1
I fly out tomorrow and things are rather crazy today. Trying to finish up packing, tie up lots of work items, and keep an eye on the developing hurricane Ivan all at once is a bit wearing. Let's all hope Florida (and my trip) are spared another direct hit this weekend! At this point they really can't say with any certainty where the storm is going to be come Friday or Sunday. You can track the storm on the National Hurricane Center .
In other news, I was greatly honored to receive the Order of the Goutte de Sang this weekend for service to the Kingdom of An Tir. (It's a mid-level service award) I currently have my medallion hanging from my rear view mirror where I can look at it regularly :> If I get extremely industrious, I'll take a picture of my scroll and post it.
Back to the prep work!
In other news, I was greatly honored to receive the Order of the Goutte de Sang this weekend for service to the Kingdom of An Tir. (It's a mid-level service award) I currently have my medallion hanging from my rear view mirror where I can look at it regularly :> If I get extremely industrious, I'll take a picture of my scroll and post it.
Back to the prep work!
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