Two Dogs???

Well disembarkation was a mess. The US government decided to check every person and every one of the over 7000 pieces of luggage for drugs.To do this they had 2 drug sniffing dogs. You can imagine the bottleneck that created. I felt so sorry for the Princess staff because they were getting all of the flack from the passengers when it was not their fault. We did manage to get off of the ship, BUT the Quick shuttle that had been ordered and paid for decided not to wait and left. To get them to return we were going to have to pay all over again and wait 45 minutes which would have made us miss our plane. Fortunately there was another shuttle service available and we got to the airport on time. So be careful about ordering quick shuttle in San Francisco... they are not reliable!! Wayne and Carol met us and we had a wonderful ride home , talking non stop all of the way. The four of us had supper together and then they dropped us off. We were really tired and so we went to bed very early. However, we missed the rocking motion of the ship and did not sleep at all well. Hopefully tonight will be better. So cruise number 16 and 17 have come to an end and we can't wait to go again. Unfortunately that will be a year from now. Can't wait!!!

Whales in Cabo

Cabo San Lucas The captain announced that we would be trying to get ahead of a big weather system so we would arrive here early and we would leave here 2 hours early, giving us a little more time. He figures we might end of ahead of the system or if not we will at least be able to slow down and not have to go so quickly into gale force winds and 20 foot seas. Because of this our tour was changed. At first we thought there would be a stop at Lovers Beach but there was not. We boarded the tenders and they headed for the Eco Cat. It is a huge catamaran and it would take us around the point into the Sea of Cortez to hunt for whales. We saw many of them. There were great gray whales and hump back whales. The guide told us that local folklore says they having a gray whale wave its tail at you brings 7 years of good luck. If that is indeed the case we have 35 years of good luck coming. The catamaran was great, very stable and maneuverable as well as quick. While on board they served all of the drinks you wanted. There was tequila sunrise and tequila sours as well as pina colatas and beer and whatever you wanted. It was really quite exceptional. We boarded the vessel at 9:30 and we disembarked at noon so it was wonderful. The weather co-operated which was very nice. We roamed around and finally found a place where I could shop for the new baby. I bought 2 very pretty sun dresses. I love to shop for little girls. We returned to the ship for lunch and now we are travelling at full steam, determined to make it to San Francisco in time for everyone including the captain to make their connections. This will be the last entry because our next port is San Francisco and I am quickly running out of minutes. The connections have not been good and I have been using a lot of time continually checking on the arrival of the newest family member. She arrived on March 13, she is well and so is Mom. She weighed 8lbs 5 ounces and she was 21 inches long. We can’t wait to meet her.

Volcanoes

San Juan del Sur, This was a great day. The entire cruise critic group gathered in the Casino and away we went to meet our bus. It was almost too small and I ended up sitting on the fold out jump seat. It was very uncomfortable but it was my fault for letting people get in front of me. Anyway our first stop was to see the inland sea. It is really large and I guess the early explorers thought it was the ocean. Next we went to a crater lake. It has 2 volcanic islands inside and it is very similar to Crater Lake in the US. There were vendors here and I saw a wonderful pashima and I didn’t buy it. Big mistake!! Our next stop was Masaya Volcano National Park. The caldera here is large and deep and it is still steaming. There is a faint sulphur smell. I guess the early people thought it was the home of the devil and they sacrificed virgins and children here. There is a large cross at the edge of the volcano and there are stairs you can climb to look deep into it. There was no time for us to climb this but we could see it and take pictures. We began our trip back and we stopped at a very nice place for lunch. I was really impressed. The food was delicious and the service was fast. We went to an Indian market on this trip. When we arrived there a guide suddenly appeared. He shadowed us and translated and made sure we were back at the bus on time. This was a strange experience and it had both good and bad things about it. Of course he had to be tipped at the end of our 20 minutes here. Ken got a belt and I bought a pair of really cute leather sandals for Leo. We had to hustle back to the ship because time had flown. We were concerned that we might not make it in time but when we passed a Princess bus we relaxed. The ship will not leave without a Princess tour. All in all it was a very good day.

Valparasio

Amazing Architecture around the city.

Costa Rica

Puntarenas, Costa Rica This is a walk off port and so we don’t need to be concerned about a tender. There is a long dock, about 500 meters long. We gathered with the Cruise Critic group in the Casino and as soon as everyone is there we head out. It is hot already. As we are exiting this long pier we see a line of potential tour guides. We check them out and sure enough we see Daniel. He was our guide a year and a half ago. He took us to meet his family and it was him that we gave the school supplies to. We hugged and said hello. I am sure he remembered us as soon as we mentioned the school supplies his smile changed to one of recognition. We couldn’t stop long because our buses were loading. We hoped to see him on our return but it didn’t happen. Our guide for this tour is quite funny. He laughs and tells jokes etc. His tours are called “Okey Dokey Tours” So if and when we agreed we are to say Okey Dokey Charlie. Soon we were being divided into groups depending on what our choice of activity was for this excursion. Ken and I decided on the boat tour to see the Crocodiles. Others choose the zip line or the canopy bridge over the jungle. We drove around a little and then we headed off to the Roca Forest to feed the capuchin monkeys. I am almost certain that it was the same place that Daniel took us but I will have to compare pictures to be sure. It was fun. As usual the monkeys were very tame and they came and ate right out of our hands. Next we went for an hour and 15 minutes to see the crocodiles in Crocodile river. Apparently our guide was a stand in for the man who was the crocodile hunter on that television series. Ken got some amazing photos. We alo saw many species of birds. We hadhopped to see the scarlet Macaw on this excursion but it was not to be. We went to a mango plantation and we were treated to a demonstration of how they extract the juice from Sugar cane and ginger root. We had a great lunch at Jaco Beach. On the return trip the bus stopped at a bridge where dozens of large crocodiles were sunning themselves. Soon we were back at the dock but it was too late to see Daniel again. Our third visit to Puntarenas, Costa Rica had come to an end.

Sunday March 11

We are waiting for room service to arrive with our breakfast and we are all set to head out on o shore excursion into Puntarenas Costa Rica. We are scheduled to go with the Cruise Critic group. It will be a treck into the rainforest to see monkeys and feed them, hopefully. We will have a boat ride, see crocadiles and have a Costa Rican lunch. They have allowed time for shopping. Hope that I don't see anything I like because our suitcases are full. I will try again to send pictures but I am having no luck with that. Each picture is still downloading after 5 minutes so that makes it very costly and it requires more patience than I have. I have heard from a couple of you and it was great to be in touch with home. More later

The Funicular in Valparaiso, Chile

Manta Equador, This is the last of our tours that have been arranged by Sarah. We gather at the casino and all disembark together. It is a piece of cake. This is a port where they fish for tuna and the large tuna fleet is in port off loading their catch. They enjoy looking at the tourists and the tourists enjoy looking at them. Soon the bus arrives and away we go. The guide tells us that we will be given a short tour of the city itself before we head for the Hacienda San Antonio. We drive around and we see a place where they are ship building. The drive pulls a uie in the middle of the road and we stop so people can get out and take pictures. The ships are being built from native woods and bamboo. The methods are very primitive but they seem to be working well. We continue on our way and the bus climbs a thousand feet. It is not long before we discover that this is an older bus and the air conditioning is not working. The windows don’t seem to open either so we are not very comfortable. But it is not too far and within an hour we arrive. We are greeted with smiles and one of those artificial leis you get at home. They are passing out a really delicious passion fruit cocktail. We are ushered into a courtyard which has sun shades and soon a group of costumed young people begin to perform the local folk dances for us. They are very good and we enjoy the breeze even though it is very warm. After the dancing we are given a demonstration of how the Panama hat is made. The genuine article is amazing and very labor intensive. Next we are served a lunch, it is buffet style. After lunch and before we shopped for hats and for carvings made from the Ivory Nut. The workmanship is very special and the prices are not bad at all. We soon learn that the guide has contacted the company and requested a different bus and it will not be here for an hour. To fill the time the driver has decided to take us to a nearby fishing village where we can walk on the beach and enjoy a cool breeze. I wonder about this hill climbing with a not too great bus. But we climb aboard and discover that they have managed to use a hammer to loosen the catches on the windows on the left side of the bus so we at least have a breeze. The village was quaint and the seaside was magnificent. Several small children came out to look at us and before long each was wearing a plastic Lei that the passengers had given them. They certainly were a lot more impressed with them than we were. We made our way back up the mountain and as soon as we pulled into the Hacienda the new bus pulled in behind us. We returned to port in comfort. Because time had been used waiting for the bus there was no time to go to the market. I think most were tired and hot and hungry and were just as happy to return to the comfort and luxury of the ship. The day ended in the usual manner with a wonderful gourmet meal and a show in the Princess theatre. I think this group of singers has the best voices of any company that we have had the pleasure of listening to.

Dum,Dum Da Dum;Dum Dum Da Dum

Thursday March 8th is a sea day and a lot is happening. We have signed up for the Ultimate Ship’s tour and today is the day. We received a letter telling us when and where to meet and giving us instructions to not wear open toe shoes or skirts or shorts and to not bring a camera or a cell phone. Or course there was one couple who arrived breaking all of the rules so we had to wait for them to come back wearing the proper footwear. It seems as if there is always someone who doesn’t read or who believes the rules do not apply to them. The tour was great. We toured the hospital, one of the many gallies, back stage and the dressing rooms, the laundry, the engine control room, the anchor area, the photo lab, the printing area, and the bridge. We were welcomed with beverages and canapés and we had champagne and more canapés on the bridge. In each location the person in charge of the department met us and answered questions. A member of the photo department came with us and took group photos in most areas. Later we each had a gift bag delivered to us. It contained a princess deluxe robe, a chef’s coat, five special group photos and we also received a personalized tablet with our name and The Star Princess imprinted on each page. We really enjoyed our 3 hour tour and we both would do it again and we recommend it to others. Then we had a quick lunch and got ready to go to the CROSSING the EQUATOR ceremony. We went topside over an hour early and we were already too late to get one of the best viewing spots. It was a riot! There were 4 who were chosen to go through the ceremony on our behalf. Passengers put their names in a box and names were chosen, supposedly at random. The fact that Vickie was one of the poly wogs made us think it was not so random. Everyone was a good sport and didn’t object to having all sorts of food stuffs dumped on them. This time it was done with the participants standing in a child’s wading pool and they simply went back to their rooms to shower off. Other years I am told it was done of the side of one of the pools and the participants were thrown in the pool afterwards. But that made a terrible mess and a lot of work for the staff to clean it all up. This was much better. After that ceremony we had to go back to our stateroom to change and get ready for another ceremony…. A more serious one this time. Connie and Derrick are renewing their wedding vows after 32 years of marriage. The captain will perform the ceremony and so it will be very special and we had the honor of being on the guest list. To make it more fun and a bit silly it was decided that we would all wear our boas and we would all bring gifts. Each couple was assigned a gift to bring. Our assigned gift was a set of 4 princess cereal bowls from Horizon court. Each bride needs to have china and crystal and silver so we each smuggled items out of the dining rooms and wrapped them appropriately. It was so much fun. The lucky couple also received napkins and towels as well as a do not disturb sign and bath products. After the ceremony the gifts were brought to their stateroom and Connie unwrapped them to a chorus of oohs and awes. Lots of laughs to be sure. But I am getting ahead of myself. The bride wore a lovely print sundress and the groom wore a tropical print shirt. The bride’s bouquet and the groom’s boutonniere were of dusty pink roses. The chapel was decorated with tulle and taper candles. I am assuming that there were about 24 invited guests. The service was very touching and was performed by the captain who looked so dashing. The bride and the groom both spoke of their love and commitment to each other. There was hardly a dry eye in the place. After the receiving line we all headed for Connie and Derrick’s stateroom. Fortunately they had a BA balcony so there was plenty of room. As we headed down the hallway Connie and Derrick were in the lead and we were all dum dum da duming at the top of our voices to the tune of”Here Comes the Bride”. The people in the staterooms we passed must have thought that we were all under the influence of too much wine. There was champagne and wine and canapés and lots of visiting and congratulating took place. The sun was shining and the sea was calm, all in all it was a perfect afternoon. This was so perfect that Ken and I are thinking that it might be a good way to celebrate 10 years of marriage for us. Something to dream about. We had time to change for dinner. We took in a show afterward and all too soon a perfect day came to a close. Great memories of a great day!!

We got into Port!!

We made it into the port of Callao. This is pronounced like KI with a long I sound and ow like the word for pain , So Callo is pronounced Ki Ow. It looked dicy for awhile but because this was a fuel stop the captain had no choice. I could not believe how thick the fog was. There were times when the web camera could not show the princess flag flying from the front o f the ship, only a few feet away. The fog did finally lift and we were able to disembark around 1:30. The buses were waiting and they had been there since seven o’clock. Away we went into the city of Lima. Along the way we were shown different areas of the city. In Callo there is a law that you don’t pay property tax until you finish building your home. For this reason many of the homes do not have a roof on the top floor. This is not the great disadvantage you might think because it NEVER rains here and with the heat the breeze on that top floor is welcomed. We visited the square and saw many amazing government buildings. The architecture here is very special. The baroque style buildings are oftern hundreds of years old. Our English speaking guide took us to The Lima Catacombs which are located at San Francisco Church at the Plaza de Armas. The church was build in the 17th century. It is believed that there are close to 70,000 deceased here. The ceilings were low and it was dark and musky smelling because of the high humidity. We also saw the library which holds texts from the time that the church was built. I would have loved to actually search the stacks here but we were kept behind ropes. Our last stop on this shortened day was at the Museo Rafael Larco Hererra. This museum is known for having the largest collection of pre Columbian exhibits in the world. It offers incredible Paracas textiles, and a huge selection of pottery. We boarded our buses and returned to the port. We took a few minutes to check out the craft vendors. I bought a wonderful red cape of Alpaca which I can wear to some of the Red Hat functions. We got back in time to have dinner and after dinner we went to the hot tub. What a great day this was. There was some fog as we sailed out of the port but it was passable. We have lost 4 hours so the captain will have the petal to the metal all day tomorrow.

On Hold in Peru

This is March 7th we are supposed to be in Peru on a tour but the fog is so thick that you can’t see 10 feet in front of your face let alone the end of the ship. We are at anchor waiting for the fog to lift. We won’t be surprised if the tours are cancelled, but we will see what happens. This port is actually a 45 minute drive from Lima. I have tried several times to download pictures of Valparaiso with no success so I will try again later. The next port after that was Coquimbo, which is also in Chile. We had another tour planned through the Cruise Critic group. Buses picked us up and away we went. This area has a permanent morning fog. It always lifts around noon, so there was no concern. We travelled up into the hills and our first stop was the Tabali winery. This is a huge operation; we could not believe the size of the vats... The wine was good and the tour was cultural as well as informative about the wine making process. They were very busy because the harvest had just begun. Next we headed further into the hills to visit the site of the Petroglyphs. They are located in the Enchanted valley and they range from stone carvings to engravings. It was really fascinating. Of special interest were the carvings that showed what appeared to be Martians with antennas. Our last stop was the Hacienda Santa Christina. The bus wound its way over dirt roads that went up and down and around through poor hot countryside and suddenly there appeared an amazing 5 star resort. It was beautiful. We were first lead to a Patio enclosure with wonderful covered seating areas. There were magnificent rose gardens and a pool and a type of accommodations on the hill above the restaurant. We were seated and waiters arrived with trays of beverages. There were Pisco sours, (these are the local specialty), and a passion fruit drink and diet cokes. You were able to have as many drinks as you wanted. They served a cheese empanada at the same time. These were unbelievably tasty. The crust was very flaky, not at all doughy. After about 25 minutes we were ushered into a wonderful dining room. We were told to sit at the tables with the flowers because they were reserved for us. The room looked as if it has been set up for a very high end wedding. There was wine and silver and china and an amazing salad of shrimp and chicken and avocado and abalone and greens. The second course was a chicken dish, a lot like a cordon blue but it was asparagus instead of ham. For dessert there was a papaya and ice cream dish. This was amazing and they continued to fill wine glasses as we dined. When it was time to go we all loaded into the busses to begin our 45 minute drive back to the pier. What an amazing day this was. No one believed they could even consider eating supper. The scenery was completely different on the way back because the fog had lifted and we could see the beautiful beaches and all of the beauty of the city as it lay before us as we made our way back down the hills.

Valparaiso

I am so far behind that I don’t know where to start but I will try to catch up. The reason I am behind is because I caught a cold and it took the stuffing out of me. I am feeling much better today, so I will try to blog a little. The last port I reported on was Punta Arenas. Our last and first port of call was Valparaiso, which is also in Chile. This city is at about the same latitude south as San Diego is North. It is Chile’s second largest city and it was founded in 1536. The bus picked us up and we were driven round the city. We stopped at the city center and took pictures. The city is built on very steep hills and so they have what they call funiculars. Actually they are like a cross between a cable car and an elevator. They transport people from the bottom of the hill to the top. At one time there were 39 of them, now there are only 4. As they break down or need repair they are not replaced. The bus stopped at the foot of one and we rode to the top and then we got out and our guide led us back to the bottom. There is a lot of construction happening in the down town area. This has been declared a UNESCO heritage site and so the old buildings are being restored. There is a curious mix of the old and the new because of this. On our way down we passed many many buildings with ugly graffiti and some with rather beautiful street art. The guide explained that the owners of buildings that are constantly being defaced by ugly tags eventually give up and they hire someone to do street art on their building. Apparently there is a code and taggers do not mark on someone else’s art work. So if you hire someone to decorate you building your worries with graffiti are over. A lot of it was really quite beautiful. We wound our way along the narrow street and we came to a home where the owners were selling a local cookie called Alfajores. The guide knocked on the door and a lay emerged with a try of these specialties. The lady spoke only Spanish but the guide purchased a cookie for each of us and then we continued on our way. They cookie had a kind of shortbread biscuit covered in chocolate with some kind of a tropical fruit filling. Her sign said 150 was the cost so that would be around 30 cents Canadian. They reminded me of a wagon wheel with fruit instead of marshmallow. We walked along the financial district and I was surprised to see the Scotiabank. They have been in all of the South American countries. This was Saturday and here like it is in so many countries they have a type of flea market and farmers market. It goes for what seems like miles down the center of the city. It is outside in the blazing sun. I really don’t know how they do it. The sun would really do me in. We left the city and our next stop was for lunch and wine tasting at the William Cole winery. It was about a 45 minute drive and it was in a beautiful setting. It was a massive operation but I can’t say that I was terribly impressed with the wine. We had lunch here; it consisted of several kinds of finger food with a very nice dessert assortment. After lunch we headed back to the ship. Our tour had come to an end. Because it was the beginning of the second cruise we expected a lot of delay in boarding but that was not the case. We were able to just walk on with no dely.

First Cruise is over.

The First one is Over!! It is hard to believe but the first cruise is about to come to an end. Tomorrow the people who are not continuing on will be disembarking in the morning and we will be going on a tour of Valparaiso. This has been a great cruise. There were lots of wonderful shows, great meals and fantastic places to visit. We have made many new friends and most surprising of all my jeans still fit comfortably.

8640 Chilean Pesos

This is what 8640 Chilean Pesos would have bought.

It Costs How Much?!

Crafts seem to be almost universal, Roaming around the square in Punta Arenas I came across a lady selling scarves identical to the ones that the Harmony unit made and sold at the Xmas Craft Fayre in November. We sold the scarves for 20 Canadian Dollars. Here they are selling for 8640 Chilean Pesos. Doesn’t that sound expensive?? Actually it was less because the current exchange rate is 480 pesos equals one US dollar.

Black Card

We get free laundry service!! We are certainly enjoying our black card. We had a great mini bar set up in our room when we arrived. There were small bottles of cognac and gin and vodka as well as soda and water and coke and beer. We received special toiletries . The steward delivered 2 pair of slippers with the princess logo. We have invitations to free wine tasting. Canapés are delivered to our room on formal nights We get priority boarding on the tenders. We get 500 free internet minutes. But most enjoyable of all is the free laundry service. I simply put the laundry into a bag, checked off what it contained, put on our room number and away it went. The next day it is returned, clean and pressed and hung on hangers and placed in our closet. I love our black card.

March means new door decorations!! I removed all of the Carnival decorations and replaced them with shamrocks. March is St. Patrick’s Day.