Scroll down to see Mike's posts ...  To see more photos, click here.

 

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Margaret's Posts:

 

May 24, Tuesday

 

Just a typical day at sea -- although I did not work out this morning.  Mike did, but, in spite of the fact that I've been taking probiotics, my tummy was a bit out of sorts.  I hope it wasn't a result of the amazing dinner we had at Wonderland.  The hostess was dressed like Alice and the waiters wore red velvet jackets.  The menu was blank until we brushed it with water.  I have a video of the first course I hope I can post.

 

We had fun at dance -- cha cha part 2 -- went to lunch, then attended a lecture about Dubai.  Later there was a nice reception for us Global Cruisers.  There are 279 of us sailing from Southampton to Beijing.

 

The heat and humidity have arrived.  

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May 23, Monday

 

These are definitely relaxing days.  Except for the morning workouts and dance lessons.  Whew.    I’m posting some photos of places we frequent – the food court, the dance floor…

 

Our stateroom attendant Darwin continues to entertain us with animals made out of towels.  Be sure to check out the photos.  I’m also posting a photo of the map we see every day on our TV.  It shows exactly where the ship is located, the temperature, etc.  The TV selection is somewhat limited, and for the last few days the internet was out so we didn’t get any news.  We did watch a movie last night, Mr. Holmes.

 

Tonight we will have dinner in a restaurant called Wonderland.  It’s billed as an experience, and people who’ve been say there are no words to describe it.  Will we see Alice?  After dinner we’ll go to a comedy show.  I’m enjoying the shows; I think they are really good. We saw a great violinist, Analiza Ching, who has been on Britain’s Got Talent and America’s Got Talent.  Mike the Grump didn’t like her choice of songs.  Geesh, she played everything from Yankee Doodle Dandee to Mozart.  And with the Ovation of the Seas Orchestra backing her up, it was terrific. 

 

May 20 and 21, Friday and Saturday

 

We are at sea until May 26, Thursday, when we arrive in Dubai.  There is something eerie about being within 100 miles of Sudan, Yemen, Somalia.  The captain has assured us that no incidents are expected, but we are being cautious.  Deck lights out from dusk to dawn, stateroom curtains pulled closed....  

 

Life on board is relaxing, but we keep busy with normal routine things like going to the gym and washing clothes (by hand in the tiny bathroom sink).  The ship pools are quite nice, and reading while stretched out on a chaise on the pool deck is truly a vacation.  Over the next few days, I will be taking photos of the ship and updating the Life on Board page.

 

If you read our blogs, let us know.  You can email us from the Contact Us page.  

 

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May 19, Thursday

 

Since we arrived an hour late to Aqaba, the tours also were delayed an hour.  So we finally took off in our bus, bus #4, about 10:00 a.m.  Being one of the first buses, we’ve learned, is a both an advantage and a disadvantage.  We were among the first groups to tour Petra that day, but also one of the last to have lunch.  Lesson learned:  always take food on a tour, even though we were strictly told to not take food off of the ship.  What happens is that the later buses take their passengers to lunch first, then to the site.  So the early buses don’t get lunch until about 3:00 in the afternoon.  I was almost crawling in to the hotel for lunch, exhausted and very hungry.

 

Looking out from the bus along the highway, I was in awe at the striking differences in life styles that are situated so close to each other. There are beautiful homes sitting next a vacant lot covered with garbage.  Dry desert next to fertile oases.  Stone houses and Bedouin tents.  Aqaba is a vibrant city with beautiful beaches and lots of shopping.  It seems to be where the action is on the weekend, as we learned from our guide, Hamzeh, that every hotel in Aqaba on the weekends is full.  People come from all over to celebrate the weekend.  Security is very tight, with check points on the roads entering and leaving the city.

 

Hamzeh was an interesting person.  He provided us with much information on the history of Jordan, expounding the virtues of the King, but objectively relating the history of political and religious conflicts in the area.  We are not sure about the accuracy, but his stories were definitely interesting.

 

Petra is literally out in the middle of nowhere.  What was the attraction in 300 BC?   It was a 2-hour bus ride from the port, and then an hour’s walk (down hill) from the road.  We did not go all the way back, walking only to the Royal Tombs, as it would have taken another 30 minutes to get to the monastery, and we still had an hour’s walk back (up hill).  The path is very rocky, and part sandy – not an easy hike.  Actually, it took us almost two hours to return because of the climb and hunger.  Water just wasn’t enough.   

 

There are many locals trying to sell jewelry and bottled sand. I bought a book, “Married to a Bedouin” by Marguerite van Geldermalsen, from her son.  They run one of the little shops along the Siq (path).    Men and boys offer donkey, camel and horse rides for free, but then expect a big tip.  You can also rent a horse-drawn buggy.  However, the smell of the horses was too much to bear.  Every time one passed by me I thought I would gag.  Best to tough it out and walk.  Women peddle jewelry that looks similar to that found in Arizona.

No doubt about it, though, the hike was well worth it.  Petra is everything everyone says it is.  Breathtaking. 

 

We returned to the ship at about 8:00 p.m. dumped our bags, changed shoes, and, dirty as we were, headed for the food court.  Then, a hot shower and sleep. 

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May 18, Wednesday

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The ship entered Port Said about 6:30 this morning and we began our 11 hour glide through the Suez Canal.  Our ship was a member of a convoy of several ships, but the only cruise ship  (also the largest currently at sea anywhere).  We were as much a novelty to the locals as they and their landscapes were to us.  Horns honked, hands waved, and everyone was taking selfies.  It was quite a day.  

 

And how many times can you learn to dance the Jive while sailing the Suez Canal?  Yes, we did attend dance class today,  but then opted to spend the rest of the day taking in the sights and snapping photos.  I actually took 176 photos; not all are posted, but most are.  I will take some time over the next few days to change the labels, but if you look at them now, you should get a good idea of this fabulous experience.

 

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May 16, Monday

 

A day at sea.  We slept a little late, went to dance class and learned a version of the Rumba that is quite different from our American version.  The instructors are really good.  I hope we can remember the steps….

 

We watched a presentation  on Petra that was very interesting.  Did not realize how large and complex it is.  I think we will probably not attempt to go up the 800 steps to the Monastery (there is debate about whether is really was a monastery).  

 

Back at our stateroom, we washed out a few clothes, and I took off for a workshop in color analysis.  No surprise to me, I should wear only warm Fall colors. 

 

In the evening we attended a reception for Royal Caribbean Gold members (us), dancing (practice for all of us students), and had a late dinner. 

 

After dinner, we went to a concert performed by a group called Fourever.  If you can you should Google them  They are as good as Il Divo.  I really enjoyed them.  Mike, not so much.

 

Tomorrow we pass through the Suez Canal. 

 

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May 15, Sunday

 

Another group tour today, this one took us through Piraeus to Athens, and a walk up a rocky, slippery hill to the Acropolis of Athens (because the word mean “high city”, there are 600 acropolises in Greece).  We wasted an annoying amount of time trying to get everyone's radios to work so that we could hear our guide.  The main industries in Athens are tourism and shipping, with gold, silver, and marble being the primary products.

 

The walk up to the site took about 20 minutes along some really rocky paths and slippery marble stones.  And it was very crowded.  What breathtaking views of the city and harbor!  I have no words to describe the ruins.  The engineering of the times built temples that withstood earthquakes, but not humans.  Please look at the photos and try to image what life was like from 3,000 BC and through the centuries. 

 

We had free time to wander around, then had to meet our group near the tallest tree, which also happened to be near a “recommended” gift shop.  Of course, we obliged. 

 

We walked another 20 minutes to the museum, which holds the originals of many artifacts.  I highly recommend a visit.

 

Then, back to the bus to take us to Plaka, the old part of town.  Very crowded and every restaurant was bustling.  Finally, at 2:30 we had lunch. Then more “shopping”, and you can read Mike’s comments about our return to the ship.

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May 14, Saturday

 

Today is a day at sea.  We watched a presentation on Aqaba, Petra, Wadi Rum, and the Red Sea.  We’ll attend ballroom dance class, then hopefully stream Kate’s graduation.  Not sure yet what’s in store for the evening.

 

5:00 pm, Athens time:  YES! We were able to watch Kate graduate.  How great it is that technology enabled this, and many thanks to Quinnipiac University for the live webcast.  

 

Tonight there will be ballroom dancing for a couple of hours.  I guess enough people questioned why they provided lessons but no venue. to practice ...  

 

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May 13, Friday

 

I panicked because I couldn’t find my hat (a necessary piece of clothing).  A trip to the lost and found was unsuccessful, and Mike and I got separated.  But, we still were able to connect with our tour group and set off to Pompeii.  Our tour guide, Vito, was a veteran, had even worked in Chicago, and had led tours in many parts of the world. 

 

Naples is a city under construction.  They are tearing down many buildings that detract from historical buildings.  Quite a few of them are tenements.  I was not impressed with how dirty the streets are and the graffiti everywhere.  But there is much beauty and many very interesting buildings.   

 

Our group was the first to enter the gates of Pompeii.  I highly recommend this.  The weather was cooler, and we were ahead of the crowds.  Please check out the photos, click here. 

 

Some notes about Pompeii, that may or may not make it to the photos page:

Roman baths split into 3 areas (check spellings) with separate areas for men and women.  Used by all classes

1. Fridgedarium – normal outside temperature, open to sky.  Pompeii’s held locker niches in wall for personal stuff, water filled

2. Tepidarium – dry room, used steam, water poured over hot rocks

3. Caldarium – Hot water using central heating.  Most important of the 3 areas

Baths used double wall construction as insulation, terra cotta channels in ceiling kept condensation away from bathers

 

Lead pipes – Romans used lead pipes to deliver drinking water from the aqueducts for drinking.  Lead leaching out caused brain damage, called “Saturnalia” (an affliction of the gods).  Over time calcium build up on the inside of the lead pipes stopped the lead from leaching out and fixed a problem the romans never knew they had.  New settlements were inherently less healthy than older established ones.

 

Rain water retention – The dancing faun house built by wealthy merchants (brothers I think from Rick Steves notes) had the entire base of the house lined with a lead slab to control moisture.  This extended up the sides of the house as a moisture barrier and was then covered with plaster and ceramic.  There was very large rainwater retention catch basin under the floor of the atrium.  Trap door in atrium allowed access to the water for water the garden, washing floors, etc.  Not for drinking.  Eels were kept in the catch basis to agitate the water and consume stuff growing in the basin

 

Stores – Pompeii was a sea port and commerce was its primary purpose.  Shops were inserted along the streets.  If the shop was owner run, there was a door at the back of the store to the residence behind.  If the store was leased the back wall of the store was solid with no access to living areas in the back.

 

We left Pompeii and were taken to another small town to visit a jewelry shop that makes cameos.  As Venice is known for glass and Florence for its gold, Naples is known for its cameos.  We learned of the different shells used to make them, and watched a jeweler at work.  We returned to the ship for a quick bite to eat, then set out for a walk around the town.  We poked our noses in at the castle, found a beautiful arcade which is being restored, had some gelato.  Back at the ship we realized we had logged over 15,000 steps.  What a day!

 

So, after a short nap, we dressed for dinner (nice, huh?), which again was delightful.  Then to a comedy show at the 270 Lounge.  The comedian was British and quite good, although I did miss some of the humor about the UK.  Maureen would probably have laughed hysterically.  I must tell you, though, that among his first remarks was a plea that the US doesn’t elect that idiot.  Something to think about.

 

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May 12, Thursday

 

From the neatness and diversity of London and the vibrant culture of Barcelona, we entered the warm environs of Italy.  I am home. 

 

And it almost didn’t happen.  We arrived at the group meeting point on the ship about 5 minutes late and our group had already left.  A nice crew member escorted us to the elevator, and we were the last to get on the tour bus.  Whew.

 

Driving through the Italian countryside is such a calming experience for me.  How beautiful and rolling and green the hills are.  Our first stop was a small city called Tuscania.  It was early, and most of the shops had not yet opened.  We walked through the main street up a slight hill to the castle with magnificent views of churches built between the 8th  and 13th centuries.  We wandered around the town, had some gelato, and returned to the bus.

 

Our second stop was an olive farm, very typical of Italy.  Besides olives, the farm raised lavender, roses, grapes (for their own wine), and many vegetables.  We had a wine tasting with a light lunch – bread dipped in their olive oil, salami, fresh mozzarella, honey from the farm, and jellies.  Of course, Mike and I bought a bottle of wine and a few other items.    [photos]

 

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May 11, Wednesday

 

It would be nice to be able to sleep in, but can’t.  So, up for a light breakfast, then to the gym.  Back to shower and change, then to Ballroom Dance class (Deck 15 forward).  There was a nice crowd there.  I wonder why the ship doesn’t have more opportunities to practice ballroom dancing.  The dance venues are mostly Latin or rock. The couple teaching the class were quite entertaining.  They’ll be teaching again on days we are at sea.

 

 

 

 

Mike's posts:  

 

Wednesday May 25

 

On Wednesday there were a number of finalizing things to do before Dubai on Thursday.  We finished the scheduled dance lessons.  Margaret was not feeling well so I was sent off on a mission to take notes on the last dance to be taught, the Samba.  My notes dutifully captured the dance moves but also led off with the instructors comment that the Samba needs a constant bounce that is not recommended for people with knee or hip problems.  Not a dance that Margaret and I will be doing, then. 

 

In the 11 days without port calls on this leg (think daily dance lessons for us), I had noticed that a line item had started to appear on the list of daily activities, Thriller Dance lesson 1, 2, 3, etc. On this last day there was a passenger talent show In the afternoon.  Sure enough, the Thriller group performed in makeup and shredded clothes.  It was fun to watch and they had a blast.

 

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Tuesday, May 24

 

Great news! The dance instructors are on board the ship until we get to China.  That means I will end up taking the entire set of dance lessons 3 times.  Just shoot me now (just kidding Margaret, just kidding) 

 

We went to see a “modern comic” last night and it was so bad we left.  I made Margaret cry uncle before we left to make sure I didn’t get called grumpy again.  The comic was in his 30s and his standard “we’re all in our 30s with relationship issues” shtick was a complete miss for this gray haired audience.  Maybe he was used to Caribbean party cruises.  He did get a couple of good lines in when he went off script 

We had a reception (free wine) for all of us who are going the entire 52 days.  We asked one of the ship officers about the ship organization.  There are two captains, the ship captain and the staff captain.  And 3 departments underneath the captains, the Hotel staff, the Engineering staff and the Navigation staff.  The head Hotel officer was nonplussed when I said that this 52 day cruise was my first.  He didn’t say it but I think he thought I was nuts.

 

Tomorrow is our last sea day before Dubai.  We didn’t use our binoculars today since there were no ships to be seen.  Maybe tomorrow as we get closer to Dubai.

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Sunday & Monday, May 22-23

 

Hot and Humid.  Since we've a number of days at sea, there are scheduled dance classes every damn day.  The combination of morning workouts (I backspaced over “early morning” who would believe it anyway) and dance classes are kicking our butts.

 

We’ve been seeing a lot of distant freighters as we sail along between Yemen and Somalia but nothing else.  Just to know we’re not forgotten a Coalition 4 engine patrol plane just buzzed us.  Nice to know we have friends nearby. 

 

Margaret and I may have underpacked a  bit and we are looking forward to adding some clothing when we get to Dubai in 3 more days.  We have gotten some good use out of our Tilley hats and LL Bean hot weather clothing.  LL Bean has become my new favorite brand replacing REI, Columbia and Lands End

 

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Friday & Saturday, May 20-21

 

Start of 6 straight days at sea as we head for Dubai.  We are passing Sudan and will be coming up to the Yemen and Somalia coasts.  We will have special rules for these six sea days, balcony shades drawn at night, most exterior ship lights off, certain decks closed and lookouts posted.

 

It is hot and humid but nice and cool inside our rooms.  I took the binoculars outside to look at a passing ship and they fogged up immediately.

 

We have used these two days to wash clothes, pay bills online and do a lot of reading with some pool time. 

 

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Thursday, May 19

 

Petra was a long day, 5 hours on a bus plus the walking at Petra.  To sell their Royal Caribbean (RC) sponsored tours, RC says that if you are on a RC tour and it is delayed, the ship will not sail without you.  That was a deciding point in our choice of the RC tour of Petra and the long bus ride.  So we weren’t worried when we were stuck in traffic in a mountain road on the way back waiting to inch around an overturned semi.  Of course, there was no chance the ship would sail since there were a 1,000+ passengers and crew somewhere behind us that would also have to get past the blockage. 

 

Margaret was a trouper balancing her stamina with the demands of walking Petra (17,000 steps).  I packed in enough water but we did not expect to miss lunch.  There is only one way in and the long downhill walk is much worse when you are tired and walking uphill to leave.  Not that you necessarily had to walk it.  There are donkeys, horse carts, camels and we even saw one private tour that used golf carts.  We both bounced back quickly after some food and a hot shower. 

 

The ship is providing a lecture series on our surroundings and we were well prepared for our trip.  I hadn’t realized that the Greeks and Romans were part of the Petra history.  I had thought Petra had been lost in pre-history. 

 

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Wednesday, May 18

 

Suez Canal!  I woke up at 5:30 ready to go.  I bumped my way around the cabin until I was dressed enough to sit on the balcony.  Margaret was happy for the resulting quiet so she could go back to sleep.  Our entry into the canal with the other ships in our convoy was delayed several hours but it was DAWN OVER THE SUEZ!

 

Our new, shiny, robin’s egg blue ship towered over everything in the canal and we were waved and honked at the entire length of the transit.  We abandoned our plans for the day and were completely mesmerized by the day long passage through the canal.  Neither one of us expected to be as absorbed as we were as we glided through the dessert.

 

What I thought was interesting was the strong military presence along the canal.  Margaret has several pictures showing single person sentry posts.  I’m not sure what one guy in a telephone sized box is supposed to do but there they were.  As we passed by one military post, there were several soldiers outside their barracks horsing around and taking pictures and selfies of the ship.  We heard a whistle blowing and it must have been their sergeant looking for them and they scattered, jumping through windows and making themselves scarce.

 

In the 1973 Yom Kippur war, Egypt attacked and seized the canal back from the Israelis.  You can still see the Israeli defensive wall and the gullies blasted into the sand berms by the Egyptians.  The entire transit felt like a tour of a battlefield.  Egypt has pontoon bridge sections staged all along the canal.

 

It will be a Lawrence of Arabia day today and tomorrow.  I kept thinking about the two scenes in the movie, the first when he attacks Aqaba and the second when he is trekking back to Cairo and at the point of collapse sees a ship crossing in front of him in the canal.  Tomorrow Aqaba and Petra!

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Sunday, May 15

Athens was interesting.  Contrast of the serene Acropolis and the gritty urban city.  I didn’t realize that 50% of the population of Greece lives in the greater Athens metro area.

 

We definitely picked the right tour.  We went right to the Acropolis and then to the new Acropolis museum.  Longish 7-hour day with a fair amount of non-horizontal walking on slippery Marble walkways and steps.  Our tour had convenient breaks in shopping areas (what a surprise).  We went into a very nice Jewelry store in the Plaka (old town shopping area) but resisted the owner’s sales pitch on a 3,000 Euro necklace for Margaret.  I’m not sure what about our sweaty tourist clothing and Timex travel watches said we had that much money to spend on an impulse buy.  We did buy something for Margaret in his store but were 2 minutes late to meet up with our tour group and they had returned to the ship without us.  We found another tour guide and her group from the ship and hopped a ride back to the ship.  So no harm, no foul. Guess what tour guide got our tip?

 

We led a small group of slightly panicked passengers as we took a last minute shuttle bus (thank you helpful and efficient Athens Port Authority lady) to another part of the port to get our VAT tax refund receipts validated (We needed to get this done before we left Europe) Got them validated (thank you very helpful Greek Customs people), dropped them in the mail in the supplied envelope and we were back aboard the ship in plenty of time.  As we were boarding the ship there was a larger group of definitely panicked passengers rushing to our shuttle bus to do the same VAT refund but with less time to get back to the ship.

 

We were smart enough to anticipate that we would be tired and did not book a dinner reservation on the ship.  We got a bite to eat in the food court and played some cards and crashed.

 

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Saturday, May 14

 

 Most importantly, Kate got her MS today and we got to watch it live from the middle of the Ionian Sea.  Kate, your Mom teared up big time! We are so proud of you.

 

A quiet day at sea.   The Med was as calm as a bathtub all day, could have been a little warmer though. 

 

And be careful what you wish for. After remarking that there didn’t seem to be much opportunity for dancing, this cruise leg has a dedicated teaching pair who have wrangled extra time for us to dance every day we are at sea.  So we have 11 days of lessons, plus extra dance time.  I would be happier about this except it is reinforcing how much I forgot during the first week of cruising.

 

While pulling out stuff for our Athens tour tomorrow, I discovered that the waiter had not given me back my cruise card.  Without that I could not have left the ship.  Good that I noticed it within an hour and could easily go down to the restaurant and get it back. Crises averted.

 

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Friday, May 13

 

Again a good cruise day.  We had a last minute scramble to get on our tour bus for Pompeii but all worked out fine.  Another two or three dozen tours cruise excursions and we will have this down pat.  Our tour guide is a professional tour guide who led tours around the world, retired and then pension cuts put him back in the business.  Always bet on the old crafty pro.  He flipped our itinerary slightly so that we arrived in Pompeii a few minutes before they opened the gates and we were the first people inside.  He then )flipped the normal sequence of stops and we hit the interesting points first while all the other tours were lined up waiting to get into the brothel.  But we did get into the brothel and it was as advertised.  Rick Steves narrative and maps on Pompeii did not prepare me for how large the town was.  Spooky of course, one day they are living their lives, and then we are looking at the result 2,000 years later.

 

We got back to the ship, had a little lunch and walked around Naples.  A little gelato and we were back in the ship after a 15,000 step day.

 

 

Thursday, May 12

 

Today was a good day to cruise.  We got to bed early and got a good nights sleep, had time for breakfast, made our Tuscan hill town/olive farm tour and still had a lazy day on the boat.  In fact, I got too lazy in the afternoon and felt compelled to go work out.  Cool down was a couple of laps on the outside walking track marveling at the number of sunbathers.  

 

Civitavecchia is the main port for Rome and there were 5 large cruise ships in port and I saw several others ghost by our ship this morning.  Our guide mentioned that the Royal Navy completely destroyed the port in 1944.  

 

Margaret and I felt different in Italy than we did in Spain, Portugal or even England.  I felt more relaxed and when I mentioned this to Margaret, she told me she just felt like she was home.  Eeek, what does that mean exactly….? 

 

Margaret will likely post something about the amount of Eucalyptus trees in Spain and Italy that were imported from Australia, who knew?