Jamestown, St Helena

Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory and one of the last relics of the colonies in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the most isolated places in the world, located more than 1200 miles from the nearest landmass, Africa. It is of volcanic origin, it's surface is rugged and mountainous, reaching an altitude of 2700 feet in the High Hills of the southwest. The climate is moderate with a mean annual temperature of just over 70 degrees. The entire island is 47 square miles with a population of roughly 6000 people (according to our Program, 3000 according to our taxi driver!). The inhabitants refer to themselves as Saints. It was the place of exile for Napoleon (1815-1821), who died there in 1821.

We had heard that ships are frequently unable to stop at this port because of rough seas. We had pretty smooth sailing across the Atlantic, so figured it would be easy to tender in. There were large rolling waves, which didn't look bad, but when a small boat is trying to get passengers on and off, it was actually quite rough. After trying about 6 or 7 times to moor the tender, we were successfully offloaded onto the island. We headed down the pier and thru the gate. Our first stop was the museum to look at T shirts and find out about Jacobs Ladder. The ladder was built in colonial times to help bring supplies from the port up to the fort. There were 699 big steps going almost straight up. Fortunately there were railings on each side so we could use our arms to pull us up along with our legs. It was a LONG climb. We were passed by a few of the crew and a few fellow passengers, but made it up OK. Once up, there was nothing to do but go back down again. LOL Going down was much easier, but my legs were shaking by the time we reached the bottom. We purchased a certificate that says we climbed Jacobs Ladder then headed out to find a taxi.

Our driver asked for $20 per person to take us around the island. He ended up being with us for about 3 hours, so it was a good deal! Jamestown, and the port, are in a steep valley. We headed up a road on one side of the valley, to Longwood, the residence where Napoleon was kept in exile. It was beautiful! Not a bad place to be while in exile. The residence was full of original antiques and prints. There were also a number of copies of things Napoleon had written while there. The gardens were also beautiful. The home sat on top of the mountain with a beautiful view of the sea.

We then drove to the other side of the island to see the volcanic peaks. It was stark contrast to the interior of the island which was bright green with sometimes dense foliage. The peaks were bare rocks. From there we drove down to Plantation House, the home of the Governor. It is also the home of Jonathan, the 150 year old tortoise and his harem of 3 female tortoises as well as David. We walked onto the grounds to see them. Someone mentioned it might be possible to tour the house, so we asked a guard who told us we just have to ask. We arrived at the house and there on the front porch was the Governor's wife. She was willing to give a tour for $3 which went toward upkeep of the building. She told us her husband was appointed by the British Government for a period of 3 years. He had been Executive Director of the Falkland Islands previously, which they had really enjoyed, so jumped at the chance to be on St Helena for 3 years. She was delightful, telling us about life on the island, in the Plantation House which was full of original antiques, and of being the Governor's Wife. They do quite a lot of entertaining. Apparently military ships come into port frequently so they entertain the officers, as well as any officials who visit the island. It was an interesting visit.

We headed back to town, going down the opposite side of the valley to get there. We went to several shops in town, our major purchase being duct tape to tape our boxes. We went into the local church and the Castle Gardens. Everyone we ran into on the island was very friendly and happy to see us there. The Post Office had a stamp made with the date on it and MS Rotterdam, as well as an image of the ship. Nice. As we were leaving port, some young ladies were selling greeting cards with the Rotterdam in front of the island. Someone had to have gone out to sea to get that picture first thing this morning, then printed them for sale. There were vendors on the ship and in various places in port. They were just all set up for us. We are the first cruise ship to get into port this year. One with 3000 passengers tried about a month ago, but it was too rough for them. I'm really glad we were able to get in. It is a beautiful island and very unusual port of call.

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Walvis Bay, Namibia

Walvis Bay is a fairly small, but busy industrial port. Most of the 50,000 residents work in the port area, but there is also a sizeable fishing fleet and a local operation extracts salt from seawater. A lagoon south of town is habitat for a large population of flamingos, pelicans, and other marine birds.

We docked in Walvis Bay early in the morning. We had signed up for a HAL tour, so met in the Queens Lounge at 7:30. We were on a bus by about 8:15, headed for the lagoon. We transferred from a small bus to 4 wheel drive vehicles, there were about 10 of them. Being on the first bus, we had our pick of vehicles so we headed immediately for the new Land Rover. The others were older jeep-like models. Our driver was older than the other young men drivers....he owned the company. He was born and raised in Walvis Bay so was able to give us a lot of information about the area. We passed by some beautiful homes on the bay, then headed south of town on gravel roads. They soon gave way to the beach or sand roads. For as far as we could see, there was sand. Huge dunes, smaller dunes with grass growing on them, just a lot of sand. At one point the top of the sand was pinkish red. Our driver said it was garnet, how pretty!

We stopped so people could climb a dune if they wanted. Mel went about half way up then came down on his behind. It was a steep climb. We stopped again at a small lagoon area that had a few flamingos in it, and a large dune behind it. Again, a number of people climbed it. We went off road and started going up and down the steep dunes, like we'd done outside of Dubai. It was quite fun, and nice to be in the comfort of a Land Rover. Our driver headed out into the sand at one point to pee. After that I asked if there were any toilet facilities other than dunes. The answer was no. By then the dunes were 200' high, rather than the small ones he'd used to go. He pulled his vehicle a bit apart from the others and parked diagonally on the beach. That was the "ladies" room. Guess the fish wouldn't watch.

We stopped by a group of fisherman. They were fishing for shark. There were several guides, giving that as a tour. One had a shark on the line. While we watched, he pulled the shark into shore as close as he could while another man went into the water about waist deep to hook it and pull it in. It was just over a meter long from the tip of it's nose to the base of it's tail, quite large. They tagged it, then dragged it back into the water to let it go. I was glad of that. They catch them for sport, trying to beat the record for the largest caught.

After riding thru more dunes, we stopped in the middle of them and had lunch. While they set up a tent and hauled out tables and chairs, complete with tablecloths, Mel and I headed up the highest dune. It was quite a climb. All you could see from up there was sand on one side, ocean on the other. We were served oysters and champagne, then plates of finger foods, like meat balls, fish balls, calamari and quiche. It was quite good, and fun to eat in the middle of the dunes. They put everything away and off we went again, driving down very steep dunes and racing up the next one. A lot of fun. We arrived back at port at 3:10, all aboard was at 3:30. We had just a few minutes to walk back to the port entrance to where some vendors had set up. We were kind of looking for a large giraffe but came home with a fat wood rhino instead. A group of children from a local orphanage was on the pier singing to us as we were supposed to sail away. The ship's dentist had been injured in an ATV accident in the dunes, and had to be disembarked, so we were late leaving port. He had a broken collarbone and several broken ribs after the vehicle stalled on a steep dune and flipped back on top of him. Hope he's OK.

Once we headed out to sea, it all of a sudden felt like we were really on the way home. We are going straight across the Atlantic up the northeastern coast of South America and will be back to Fort Lauderdale soon. With Africa behind us, it's really time. Amazing how fast this trip has gone by. I think we are finally ready to come home.

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Luderitz, Namibia

Luderitz lies on one of the least hospitable coasts in Africa. Founded in 1883, the area was purchased from the local Nama chief by Heinrich Vogelsang on behalf of Adolf Luderitz, from Bremen in Germany. Before the discovery of diamonds there in 1909, Luderitz was mostly a trading post, with some of the economy based on fishing and guano-harvesting. When the diamonds were discovered, the area enjoyed a huge burst of popularity and prosperity but today diamonds are found mostly elsewhere and offshore. The harbor, with its shallow rock bottom, made it unusable for modern ships and led to Walvis Bay becoming the center of the Namibian shipping industry.

Because of the shallow rock bottom, the Capt had informed us that we might have to tender into port. Depending on the tides, it is too shallow for a ship of our size. We were on a tender at about 8:30. Namibia is known for it's huge Namib Desert, and receives very little rainfall per year. We were there on one of one or two days a year that it does rain. We just took umbrellas and rain jackets and headed into town. There we walked thru town and up a hill to Felsenkirche, the Lutheran church, built in 1912.

After visiting every store in the town, only one being a tourist store, we decided to go on a quest for packing materials. We went to an upholstery shop to see if they had any scraps of foam. We got 2 pieces which worked out perfectly to wrap the ears on Mel's large wood elephant. At the "department" store, we bought 2 large pillows to use to pack it also.

We walked all over the town, down to the small beach by the pier, past the elementary school where kids crowded around us to be in a picture, then back to the pier. We were back onboard at about 1. By that time at least it was no longer raining. Not a very interesting port, but very unusual.

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Cape Town, South Africa - All 3 Days

Cape Town is the third most populous city in South Africa and its legislative capital as well as capital of the Western Cape Province. The city lies at the foot of Table Mountain (3,3570 feet), so named after it's flat top, and on the shore of Table Bay. Cape Town is a commercial and industrial center; oil refining, food, chemical, and fertilizer processing, and the manufacture of automobiles, leather, plastic goods, and clothing are the chief industries. An important port, Cape Town's exports consist mainly of gold, diamonds, and fruit. With one of the world's largest dry docks, ship repairing is an important industry. Cape Town is famous for its gorgeous natural harbor, as well as its location near the Cape of Good Hope. Much of the former dock area is now a commercial and tourist waterfront area with museums, craft markets, and restaurants. Because of its location and natural beauty, Cape Town is the tourism capital of South Africa, receiving the largest number of tourists of any South African city.

We were to arrive in port at noon on the 20th. Because of gale force winds, we were anchored just outside the harbor for hours. The Harbor Master didn't feel it was safe for us to dock in such winds so had closed the port to cruise ships. Mel and I went onto the bow to take pictures, and boy was it blowing! I saw them watching us from the bridge, probably thinking what idiots we were being out there in that wind. It was an experience! We were finally portside at about 9 pm, having missed an entire afternoon on shore. Darn!

We were up early the next day to jump on the shuttle which took us from the ship to the shopping area in the port. Some ships dock right next to the mall, which would have been nice. Even though our ship is small compared to many ships these days, we were too large to dock there. The area has several malls and huge stores. Wonderful shopping! It was great to just see a price and that's what you pay, no bargaining, fair prices. Our items were even wrapped in bubble wrap! We've been buying in so many markets, that it was a nice change. We even asked for extra bubble wrap and the stores were happy to give it to us.

We grabbed a quick lunch on the ship then went out to meet our driver. We headed out of town to a Spier resort to get up close and personal with cheetahs! The resort is about 50 minutes east of Cape Town, in some small hills. The area is famous for it's wineries. There was one at the resort. We were dropped off and checked in. The room was large, with a fireplace. The hotel is set up like an apartment complex with a number of different buildings. In between each area is a pool for those rooms. It was very nice. We settled in, then headed for the cheetah experience. Spier is a large complex which includes an amphitheater, Manor House Museum, craft market, huge buffet restaurant, a winery, several shops, the cheetah experience and an eagle experience. We browsed the shops and craft market until we got to the cheetah experience. It hadn't opened yet so we shopped until it opened at 2.

Entry into the cheetah area was just $1! They have 14 cheetahs in all. For $9 we could enter one of the enclosures with an adult cheetah. For $20 we could go in with 2 six month old cubs. Mel chose not to go in with the cubs so he went up on a viewing area to take pictures and movies. A young girl told me the rules before entering. There were a number of young people there, working with the visitors. They were from all over the world and were there as volunteers for a number of weeks. I was told to get down on one knee so if the cheetah rolled over, I could get up quickly and move to it's other side. They only want visitors at their back, not front. I could only pet the back and side. I was dying to touch it's head and tail! The "babies" were about 1/2 size, 40 lbs. I was behind one of them when he rolled over, so they had their backs facing each other. I got to be in between them, petting them both at once. It was very cool. Cheetahs have been my favorite cat for years (sorry Koda!). I was in with them for about 20 minutes. The handler answered any question I might have. I'd read a lot about the facility there, in doing research before our trip. I knew it is associated with the Cheetah Conservation Fund whose headquarters are in Namibia. I had tried to arrange a trip there, but it's so far in the interior of Namibia that we would have had to charter a plane to get us back to the ship, pretty pricey.

Next both Mel and I were ushered in with an adult cheetah. We had just kneeled down to pet him when he decided to roll over, so we had to get up to move to the other side. Cheetahs sleep 18 hours a day, so visiting them while sleeping isn't a hard thing to do. This one decided it was time for a drink though, so we were asked to move quickly to the fence, then out the gate. He was running around when we were taken to a different enclosure. This guy behaved himself and let us pose for pics and pet him for as long as we wanted. It was a great experience.

After the cheetahs, we did some more shopping. We relaxed in the room for a while, with a fire, before dinner. Nice to just be able to shop without rushing, and to relax and do nothing for a change. We seem to be racing from one thing to another whether we're on the ship or off! Don't want to miss anything. We went to the restaurant for dinner. Mel had a Game Platter, consisting of crocodile, kudu and ostrich. The croc was very tasty, with the consistency of chicken but had a wonderful fishy taste. The kudu was a bit gamey for me, but the ostrich was also good. After dinner we needed some exercise so walked around the facility. We heard music, so headed that way. It was coming from the buffet. We asked if we could just come in and listen since we'd had dinner at the hotel. That was fine. The main buffet was in a tent with several dozen tables. Outside were smaller tents with propane heaters and a blanket on the back of each chair. We found some sofas which also had blankets on them. It was quite cool out. While sitting there in came a group...from HAL!!! We were hoping to get away from ship people. :) They were surprised to see us also. It was a tourist agency tour to have dinner at Mojo, the buffet. Too funny.

We had negotiated with our driver for a tour the next day. He was to pick us up at 9. We were all there and ready at 8:30, so off we went. We headed almost due south to the coast of False Bay. We passed by a shack town with over 1/2 a million residents! The shacks seemed to go on forever, but the area appeared fairly clean, not like the horrible slums in India. The coast was beautiful! One of the roads was closed, we went thru anyway. They close them after big wind storms because the sand covers the road. It wasn't too bad. We drove along the coast passing by small towns that could have been in Monterey or Carmel, very quaint. Our first stop was Boulders Beach to see the penguins. This colony of penguins arrived the same year as the war in the Falkland Islands and never left. There are several thousand penguins, but we only saw a couple of dozen. They are Jack Ass penguins, named that because of their funny squawk, just like a jack ass! I held out my hand to one, she bit me. Just another contact with an animal to write in my book. They were fun to watch.

We kept going south, entering the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. There are supposed to be Cape Zebra and baboons there, but we didn't see any. There were signs everywhere saying that baboons can be dangerous and don't feed them! At the point, there is a funicular to take you to the top. From there it was 104 stairs up to the lighthouse. We could see the western southernmost tip on the African continent. It was cold and windy but beautiful to see. There was a nice gift shop too.

On the way back to Cape Town we stopped at a small craft market. We finally succumbed and bought a carved giraffe. It isn't 7 feet tall like others we've seen onboard, but is a skinny 4' tall. Now to find a box that long. We also stopped at an ostrich farm. They had ostrich of all sizes, the babies were very cute. The shop had gorgeous ostrich products which were very expensive, almost $300 for ostrich leather driving mocs. We left with no purchases and headed back into Cape Town. Our guide was telling us about the history of the area and what we were seeing the entire time. It was an excellent tour.

We left our luggage onboard and headed back out to take the shuttle to the shopping pier. The time to be onboard had changed from 5 to 7, probably to make up for our late arrival. We walked around the shops, visited the craft market that we'd missed on the first day. We also went into the huge mall where the locals shop. We bought some bubble wrap. I also picked up 2 bottles of the Amarula which we'd had on our safaris, yum. We were back onboard by about 4. Mel took our receipts to claim our Value Added Tax (VAT 14%) back while I headed to our cabin with a headache. Our visit to Cape Town was wonderful. I could easily come back for a longer one. The city is clean and beautiful. The small towns on the coast are quaint. There are game reserves within driving distance. What a beautiful area.

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Durban, South Africa

Durban has a long tradition as a port city. The Port of Durban is one of the few natural harbors between Port Elizabeth and Maputo, and is located at the beginning of a particular weather phenomenon which can cause extremely violent seas. This made Durban a busy port of call for ship repairs when the port first opened in the 1840's. Now the busiest port in South Africa, it is also the busiest container port in the Southern Hemisphere. The city of Durban is also famous as a major tourism center due to the city's warm climate and beautiful beaches.

We had a HAL tour to Tala Game Reserve which left at 8:30. It was just under an hour to get to the reserve. It was very commercial, with a formal entrance gate and facilities to serve coffee to 3 bus loads of tourists. They also had a nice gift shop. We were put on large vehicles, the seats were 4 across, 4 or 5 rows, set on top of a small truck. The area was pretty much open fields with some ponds and a few trees. It felt like someone had a farm and decided to turn it into a game park. We were able to see the animals up close though. They had no predator animals...no cats....only various antelope, rhino, hippos and giraffe. We did see several eland and a pair of sable antelope that we hadn't seen before. The rhino were just laying around on a hillside, easy to see. I loved seeing a genii of giraffe on a grassy hill, we were able to take some great pictures. The hippo were hard to spot, as usual. I do have a picture of a baby on it's mother's back. At least I can see the baby and the mother's head. They stay under water during the day. It was an OK tour, but somewhat of a let down after our wonderful game drives in Kenya and Richard's Bay.

Back at the ship by 1, we ate lunch when visited the vendors on the pier. We had already bought almost everything we needed, so didn't buy much. I did find some great fabric with animals and animal print on it. Looking forward to a sea day to rest!

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Richard's Bay, Day 2

The wake up call came in at 5:30. Mel was already up, so I was awake since the beautiful wood floors squeaked a lot. It was barely light out. We looked outside, hoping to see animals walking around but there was nothing. No sighting on the way to the lodge either. We had coffee and biscotti, then got on the safari vehicle and were off. We saw a red duiker in the road. Had never heard of it. It's a small antelope type creature. There were a few Nyala around, but not much else. The ranger was constantly on the radio, listening for spottings by other rangers. Someone had found a mother cheetah with 3 cubs. We sped off in that direction. We actually had to wait in line to see her. There was another vehicle nearby, and they only allowed one at a time. When it was our turn, we neared a low shrub and looked into the shadows. At first she totally blended in with the undergrowth. When I finally spotted her, she was just right there, about 20' from us. I could barely make out something near her but with the binoculars, I could see big eyes looking at us with curiosity. She had 3 cubs that were about 2 or 3 weeks old. They were all fluff and eyes. Very cute. We got a couple of pretty good pictures. It was hard since they were in the shade, we were in the bright sun. Wonderful to see such a thing in the wild. The mother just laid there looking at us then ignoring us. She knew her cubs were safe. Wonder what she would have done if one of us had left the vehicle!?

After that, we stopped for "coffee". They made a mixture of coffee with hot chocolate mix and Amarula. Alcohol before 9 a.m., that was an experience in itself! It was yummy, and I immediately bought some from the ship when we reboarded. We didn't see many more animals after that, but seeing the cheetah family was rewarding enough.

We stopped at a different lodge that had a shop on our way back for breakfast. I bought a shirt that has a list of terms used for multiples of animals, like a gaggle of geese, a crash of rhino and a geni of giraffe! Very clever. Back at our lodge we had a full breakfast, hoping to spot more animals while eating. There were impala roaming around, but they are so common, it wasn't as exciting as spotting other animals. We went back to our cabin to pack. Spent a short time on the deck reading and dozing before we were picked up to go back to the ship. Too bad we hadn't had more time to enjoy that beautiful cabin.

On the way to the port we asked to be taken to a craft market. Our driver stopped at a huge one by the highway (the roads were excellent by the way). It was a coop, so had booth after booth by different artists or vendors. We could have spent several hours looking at everything, but had little time, so selected a few things then went to pay. They wouldn't accept credit cards or US S$$, only rand. I had a few, but had to borrow some from a friend to pay for everything. Funny cuz we'd borrowed cash from them on Komodo Island weeks before. Nice friends.

Back at the port we took our luggage onboard then went back out to check out the vendors. Prices are always better when we are about to leave. Sure enough, some tiny stone carved animals had been $5 when we docked, they were now $2. Good deal.

Richards Bay, South Africa

Richards Bay is South Africa's largest harbor. The important habitat supports a large population of hippos and marine birds. Richards Bay Game Sanctuary was created in 1935 to preserve the delicate ecosystem and it's wildlife. The port opened in 1976 to manage valuable minerals that are mined in and transported from the interior. Even though the city is the heart of a busy industrial zone, the naturally sheltered inlet features fine beaches and unspoiled dunes. Tourism is an important part in the local as well as national economy.

The ship docked at about 9 a.m. We were ready to jump off to check out the vendors on the pier before we headed out to a game reserve. There were a few items we hadn't found in Kenya or Mozambique, mainly beads and baskets. We purchased a beautiful basket then raced back inside to get our luggage for our overnight.

The ride was just under 2 hours. We were amazed at how much the rolling, green hills looked like the mid-west of the US! The parts of the city we saw, could be in the US also. The hills were beautiful. Nice to see green after the dryness of Kenya. They grow eucalyptus to make paper, and there were rows and rows of trees in various stages of growth. They harvest every 8 to 10 years.

We arrived at Phinda Vlei Lodge shortly after 1:00. The driver stopped on the road to let us out, nothing in sight. The lodge was down a short path. It consists of an open air public building and 6 secluded cabins. Their maximum capacity is 12, so it is pretty exclusive. After learning about the schedule we were taken to our cabin. You can't see any of the cabins from the main building. We couldn't see any other cabin from ours! We were served lunch on the outside deck. While eating we watched the velvet monkeys running around, several dozen crested guinea fowl and a wart hog. When we went back to our cabin, the wart hog was in a clearing near the path. We stopped to take pictures with it before going back and getting ready for our first safari.

After tea and cake (they certainly didn't starve us!), we headed to the safari vehicle. They are very different in S Africa. There was no top to protect us from the sun, but it wasn't as hot as it had been in Kenya either. It was actually very nice weather, sunny and cool. The more we rode in the vehicle, the more I realized that it is EXACTLY like the attraction vehicles on the Indiana Jones ride in Disneyland! Guess that's where they got the idea. We had bars in front of us to hold onto, pockets at our knees to keep our belongings. We rode leaning sideways, as the road was uneven, or whipped around corners when the driver could go faster. Even the gears changing sounded the same. It was very amusing. This safari was very different from Kenya. Here we had a tracker riding in front of the vehicle. We needed him since the animals were very good at hiding in the heavy underbrush. Our driver had a rifle mounted on the dash, they don't have that in Disneyland!

We heard some elephants before we saw them. All of a sudden there was one about 15' from the right side of the vehicle, shaking it's head back and forth. The driver hit reverse quickly. Mel complained that he'd missed a shot. The driver explained that the elephant was exhibiting charge mannerisms. Glad he backed up. We sat there with the engine off for sometime, listening to the elephants crashing and munching just a few feet from us on both sides. The driver (he was our ranger also) thought they would cross the road, but only 1 did. They sounded like a herd of elephants in the underbrush. Guess that's where the expression came from. We could catch glimpses of their trunks once in a while, but they were mainly hidden. In Kenya they were out in the open, on an open plain.

We did a lot of riding without seeing any animals at all. We did see a lot of large birds and beautiful trees. There were a lot of Nyala and Impala running around, as well as wart hogs. The latter are so funny when they run, sticking their tails straight up in the air. We saw a mother with 6 babies, which was cute. It was just starting to get dark when we rounded a bend and there was a mother rhino and her baby. We hadn't seen any in Kenya. That was exciting. We moved on a bit and there was a crash of 10 rhinos, about 25' from the road. We watched them for a long time. They finally moved on, heading back down the road from where we'd just come.

We stopped in the road for drinks. At first I thought they were kidding, but they hauled out a small table along with a cooler with ice as well as hot water. They also had a good assortment to choose from. There was another couple in the vehicle with us who seemed more experienced with this custom. She had a hot cocoa with Amarula, whatever that is! Turns out it is a cream liquor similar to Bailey's, only made with a fruit which grows in the bush in S Africa. It was quite delicious. I don't know how those guys spot the animals, but our ranger got all excited and said there was a black rhino off in the trees. I used binoculars and still couldn't see it. They quickly packed up the drinks and off we went, off road, in search of the rhino. It was almost dark so we could barely make out it's form. The ranger drove around to the other side of it, we must have been about 15 feet away. He said it would run if we turned on lights, but he turned on the headlights quickly so we could get a better look. Too bad he didn't warn us so we could get a picture too! I guess spotting a black rhino is pretty rare. They only have 22 in Phinda Game Reserve.

We were back for dinner at about 8. The manager at our lodge had surprised us by arranging for us to have dinner at a neighboring lodge where 4 of our friends were staying. Dinner was bush style with luminaries and lanterns to light up the area. We had lamb and impala, interesting selection. The impala was quite tasty, not gamey at all. We returned to our cabin at 9:30 or so, ready to go to sleep. Sad we didn't have more time to enjoy the room. It had a huge 4 poster bed with mosquito netting draped over it. The floors were African hardwood. The bathroom was as large as the bedroom, with a large claw foot tub, walk-in closet, double sinks and walk-in shower. There was a deck on 2 sides, so we could watch animals without being in too much danger. There was also a private pool just in front of the deck. In front of that was a huge open meadow area where animals were often viewed. Someone had had an elephant drinking out of their pool that morning. I took a hot bath since it had been quite chilly on the game run. Mel and I had both been wrapped in the blanket they provided. Mel took a hot shower then we hit the sack to be ready for the next day - up at 5:30!

Maputo, Mozambique

Maputo is Mozambique's capitol and largest city. It's location on the Indian Ocean has led to an economy centered on the harbor. Coal, cotton, sugar, chromite, sisal, copra and hardwood are the chief exports. Mozambique was freed from Portuguese rule in 1974. Over 250,000 ethnic Portuguese left the area, virtually overnight, so the newly-independent country had no skilled professionals to maintain its infrastructure. The economy plummeted. The government turned to the communist Soviet Union and East Germany for help, but by 1980 the country was bankrupt. A Civil War, which lasted until 1992, further weakened the economy, but with the end of the war, growth and stability returned. Today, tourism is playing a part in boosting the economy.

Today was HAL's first stop in Mozambique, ever. Our port guide wasn't really sure what to expect, she'd never been there either. We arrived at 8 a.m. They off loaded an elderly gentleman who had fallen down some stairs in the rough weather we'd had day before yesterday. He was one of the dance hosts, onboard to dance with the single women. He was severely injured and not expected to live. Very sad.

Mel and I hadn't booked a tour so got on the shuttle bus into town. We were taken away from the central area to a small shopping center. Vendors were set up on the median of the street. There was nothing else close by, guess we were just taken there to shop. We did what they wanted, they forced us to buy! :) We picked up a few nice things then took the shuttle back to the ship for lunch. After lunch, we again got on the shuttle into town, but asked to be dropped off at the Central Market. The weather was nice and cool, a great change from Kenya. The market was amazingly clean and didn't even smell! There were the usual fish and vegetables, as well as booth after booth of hair supplies, hair pieces, shampoo, curlers, etc. That was kind of different. There were also vendor booths. We saw many of the same things we'd seen in Kenya, as well as some new things like beaded work and ebony wood.

We headed toward City Hall, passing by the Iron House and Cathedral. The Iron House, is exactly that, a house built entirely of iron. Whoever built it wasn't thinking straight since once it was finished, it was so hot inside that no one wanted to live there. It became an office building, with different government departments moving in, then out again because of the heat. It is currently empty. We continued walking, looking for an office supply store. We need more tape to package all the things we've been buying. We found a small shopping center with an outdoor food court in back. Next to that was a HUGE grocery store. In that store we found tape, made in the USA. We bought a roll for each couple at our dinner table too. (They were thrilled with their gift!) We then walked back to the market, picking up a giant wooden hippo on the way. Their carvings are so beautiful and inexpensive that it's hard not to buy.

We arrived back at the market, hoping to find a shuttle back to the bus. Only the shuttle buses were allowed inside the port gates. If we took a taxi or tuk tuk, we would still have to walk quite a distance. Hard to do with a 25 pound hippo under your arm. We were able to flag down an empty shuttle and returned to the original destination, then back to the ship. We were onboard by 3:30. I wanted to swim in my small pool, but the water was freezing, so I passed. Time to get packed for our second overnight safari in Richard's Bay.

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Walking in High Seas

I always try to walk at least 7 laps or 2 miles around deck 3 on sea days. I enjoy seeing what's out at sea, if anything, looking at shore when it's close by or just watching the waves as I walk. Today was a challenge since we are experiencing 12 to 15 foot waves! As I'd pass around the bow of the ship, I would be almost weightless as the ship rose high in the air, then barely able to stand when it crashed down again. The ship is bobbing up and down rather than back and forth. I had to stop and brace myself a couple of times when we hit an extra high wave. There was salt covering one side of the forward deck, with some spray coming into my face in that area. I could feel every muscle in my legs working to keep walking and in balance. I have a feeling this is an example of what we have coming up. The Atlantic crossing should be interesting. It sure was exhilarating today!

Mombassa Day Three

We were out of the ship by 9, trying to find a taxi. We were with another couple, so we let him do the bargaining. We were surrounded by taxi drivers. We wanted one with A/C and who spoke English. One lady insisted she could do that. We looked at her car, it was about 20 years old and her A/C was open windows! That wouldn't work! We got on the shuttle bus to downtown and were able to find a nice taxi in front of a hotel.

We headed out of town a bit to an animal park called Haller Park. It is part of the Bamburi Park. In the 50's it was a quarry that had been totally tapped out. They decided to try to rehabilitate the land and started with a few bugs and plants to build up the soil again. Now, about 50 years later, it has become almost jungle like with dense foliage. At Haller, they raise tilapia to sell to local hotels to earn money. They have several hippos, 2 that were saved from a zoo in Germany. They also have a small herd of giraffe, which was the main reason for visiting the park. We got to feed them! We were given pellets to put in our hands. The giraffe reached over the fence and with a lot of slobber, grabbed the food from us with their big, hairy lips. It was a great experience. Now we've fed kangaroos, elephants and giraffes!

We went back into town to the hotel where we had gotten the taxi. It looked like it had been one of the finer hotels years ago. I had ice cream for lunch. We crossed the street to a huge craft store which was located on the second floor of the building. The prices were a bit higher, but it was air conditioned! They had very nice wood sculptures, batik pictures and good quality T's. We spent some time there then returned to the ship.

Once at the pier, we wanted to drop off our goodies at our cabin before shopping, but the vendors just draw you in. We purchased a few things (I bought a gorgeous wood cheetah that is about 22" high) then had to return to the ship, we couldn't carry anything else. We had lunch then returned to the pier. By this time, it was almost 3 pm. We were to be back onboard by 4. The vendors knew this and were selling everything very cheaply, accepting almost any offer you gave them. Other passengers were buying HUGE wooden giraffes, some as much as 8' tall! We were requested to turn our wooden items in to the ship to go in the freezer for several days. It would kill the termites. The hall just inside the gang way was full of giraffes. Wish I'd gotten a picture of that! We took our wooden items to our room to pack them well before turning them in. A friend told her one of her pieces had been damaged last year.

Once again it was wonderful to be back on the ship, take a nice cool shower and feel normal again. I couldn't believe how hot Kenya was. Hopefully our next ports will be a bit cooler.

Tsavo East Day Two

We were awakened by Duncan at 6:30. Frank was to pick us up at 7 for more game viewing before heading back to the ship. We headed out hoping to see giraffe since we hadn't seen any the day before. We did see a silver backed jackal, something I'd never heard of. It was unique and beautiful. I could see by signs that we were nearing the gate. We had to see giraffe! Frank stopped at the gate to get permission to re-enter the park using another gate, to go where the giraffe were. It was a short time before we saw Water Buffalo, then a LOT of giraffe. Nice to see so many in the wild.

One experience we had on our safari could have been construed as a bad thing....we had a flat tire. In reality it was a good thing because we were allowed to get out of the van. No one else had that experience! I asked Frank if it was OK to pee behind a bush. He said fine so we all picked our bushes, kind of funny. While he was fixing the flat, we walked closer to a group of waterbuck to get pictures. When we returned to the van, the tire was fixed and we were about ready to take off. Frank then informed us that 1, there are poisonous snakes in the bush and 2, if a ranger had passed while we were out taking pictures, he could have lost his license because it is against the rules of the park to let passengers out of the van. Geese, why didn't he tell us BEFORE we went out.......poisonous snakes, yikes!

We had lunch at a lodge that is on the border of the park. There was a watering hole right next to it with several Marabou Storks. We got to watch them while enjoying a buffet lunch. We got back in the van and started our E Ticket ride on the main highway between Mombassa and Nairobi. They all drive very fast and pass with little room before a vehicle passes in the opposite direction. Once we were forced off the road by a bus passing a truck. Glad I wasn't in the front seat. We stopped at the main gate again to get a picture and to shop. Mel found a giant elephant that needed a home. It didn't have holes drilled for it's tusk so one of the store workers rode with us to a craft store we'd passed on our way to the park. We'd wanted to stop there anyway. While they were drilling the holes, I shopped. I bought pretty much everything that I wanted from Kenya, all at that one store. Of course later on the pier I bought things I didn't know I wanted.

We next stopped at a Masai Village. They originally wanted $20 per person for a tour, but we got them down to $10 each. It was HOT! A Masai took us around showing us their homes, children and women making beaded jewelry. We met the chief who had 9 wives and dozens of children. They were setting up tables for the tour buses that were close behind us. They wanted to demonstrate a dance but we needed something cold to drink so badly that we passed on that and headed down the road. It was almost an hour before we found a gas station with cold drinks.

We arrived back at the ship at about 6 pm. It was such a relief to be in air conditioning after none for 48 hours. The shower felt so good! We had a quick dinner in the Lido then headed back out onto the pier to shop. It was so sad to see how desperate those people were. One approached me to say that everyone stopped at the 1st and 2nd "shops" then never got to his, about the 5th one. They would touch our arm and plead for us to visit their shop, or to buy something from them. Few passengers were out at that time, so every seller was focused on us. We did buy a couple of things but it was hard to see quality in the dim lights on the pier. One woman approached me and said "My name is Rebecca and I'm 18 years old. I'm leaving for the day but please visit my shop tomorrow". I cracked up and told her that I am 18 also. She was probably in her 40's or 50's. I did return to see her the next day, but she had nothing I wanted to buy. We returned to our air conditioned luxury at about 9 pm. I slept VERY well that night.

It was interesting to compare experiences with others on the ship. Some saw more than we did, many saw a lot less. One woman told us there were flies and bugs everywhere. We didn't see many bugs at all. Guess I'm very happy about that. I think we were all very happy with what we did and saw, some more than others. Wonder if we'll see any different animals at our next safari outside Richard's Bay, South Africa

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Mombassa, Kenya

Mombassa is the second largest city in Kenya with a population of 900,000. It is on an island which is about 3 x 1.8 miles in size. The port serves both Kenya and countries of the interior linking them to the Indian Ocean. Mombassa is also the center of the coastal tourism industry.

We hurried off the ship to check out the vendors on the pier as soon as we had clearance. There were many set up, all on the pavement, no tables. Sarongs and such were hanging on the fence along the side of the area. We just wanted to see what there would be to buy before we headed off on safari. There is a lot of wood carving and stone carving, all very beautiful.

Our guide, Frank, picked us up at 8:30. We soon realized there would be no air conditioning for this tour and it was HOT. Kenya hugs the equator. We headed out of town, passing a lot of slum areas, then getting out into the country side. After passing thru some low hills, it became pretty flat. It was brown and dry. We traveled for about an hour before stopping at a craft shop. There were all the HAL buses of passengers who were going on safari also. The shop was loaded with carvings and batik pictures. One of the workers would attach themselves to you and try to bargain for any item we were interested in. They would start at $100 for instance, when the real selling price might be $10. It was kind of annoying, but happened over and over again. Guess they could make a good profit if someone didn't know.

After another hour, we reached the gates to Tsavo East National Park. Together with Tsavo West, they form the biggest game sanctuary in Kenya occupying 4,500 square miles. It has diverse habitats, ranging from mountains, river forest, plains, lakes and wooded grassland. We saw some of everything. Soon after driving thru the gates, we came upon a lone tree with a baboon sitting right on the top. It was like he was waiting for us, posing for pictures. Our first animal. We then started seeing more, mainly zebras, then elephants. Here's a list of what we saw in the 2 days we were in the park:

Baboon, Zebra, Dik Dik, Wart Hog, Gazelle, Hartebeest Antelope, Lion, Waterbuck, Impala, Cheetah, Hippo, Crocodile, Mongoose, Pigmy Mongoose, Giraffe Gazelle, Kudu, Velvet Monkey, Silver Backed Jackal, Water Buffalo, Tortoise and Giraffe.

Large birds include Marabou Stork, Secretary Bird, Cory Bastard (not sure of the spelling of that one!), Marshall Eagle, Egyptian Geese, Guinea Fowl, Vulture and Snake Eagle.

Small birds were beautiful European Roller Bird, Golden Piper and Yellow Necked Sparrow.

We arrived at Galdessa Camp at about 3. It was a lot further out in the bush than the lodges where most people were staying. It is built right on the river. The main lodge is an open air structure. Each "room" is an individual cabin with a canvas front. All the furniture was made with logs and branches found in the bush. We had a nice front porch to sit on to enjoy the river. We had lunch, a short rest, then headed for a river walk. On the way we spotted a young cheetah. Frank turned off the engine and we realized that there were 3 cheetahs, probably siblings. I think they were as curious about us as we were about them because they soon approached the van, sitting about 20 feet from us. The one just sat there looking at us, it was amazing. We soon had to leave them, rather than them running away from us, we were late for our walk.

We were met by a guide and 2 rangers carrying AK 47's. One was always in front of the group, one behind the last person. Made us feel safe. Also with us was an older man who had actually lived on the land. He was moved out when it became a National Park in 1949. He showed us how they make fire in less than a minute using 2 sticks. We climbed over huge granite rocks along a rushing river. The water had carved holes and a narrow canyon, it was moving pretty fast. A bit further down we saw one lone hippo peeking out of the water. The guide said they generally forage for food at night alone, then return to the river during the day in groups. He figured that one had probably gotten separated from his group. We soon heard them grunting further down the river, ours grunted in reply. We also saw some very large crocodiles in the water. Don't think I'd want to swim in that river! We saw crocs in the river in front of our camp also.

We returned to the vans and drove a short distance to where we saw a table set up right there in the bush. We washed our hands in a canvas wash basin, then sat down. I think it was originally set up to view the sunset from there, but we were a bit late due to our cheetah encounter. They had a full bar set up but we just wanted water, it was so HOT. I think our travel agent had set that up as surprise. It was very nice.

We were escorted to our cabins to clean up for dinner. We had a canvas bag that holds about 20 liters of water to shower with. They had put some warm water in it, but at that point I would have been happy with a cold shower, it was so HOT! No fan in the room either. Dinner was at the main lodge then we were escorted back to our cabins. We were not allowed to go anywhere on the grounds without an escort. Once they left us in the cabin, we were not allowed to exit. If we needed anything, we had a whistle to blow and someone would come. Right in front of the cabin, next to the river, was a path used by hippos at night. Wouldn't want to run into one of those up close! Our friend heard them munching as they passed by at about 2:30, I slept thru it. The bed was hard and it was extremely hot with the mosquito netting keeping out any breeze there might have been, but we were so tired, that we slept well in spite of it all.

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Seychelles Day 2

Mel promised an elderly gentleman (78) that he would take him snorkeling. He'd never been and really wanted to experience it. His wife was vehemently against it! While walking away from the port he said she'd gone to bed for the day, she was so upset that something might happen to him. That said, we met him at the gangway at 9:00. We walked thru the port gates, hoping to find a boat for hire at the marina. We'd seen that area on our tour the day before. There are always taxis inside the port gate and more just outside. Those inside have paid a bit for a permit to be there so the outside taxis are usually less expensive. We saw taxi drivers sitting in the shade across the rode from their vehicles. As we got close to them, a young woman approached us to see if we wanted a tour. We told her we wanted to snorkel, never expecting her to say "I have a boat"! Their boat could hold 10, so the fee was quite high for the 3 of us. She said she was waiting for 3 young ladies who had booked her for that day so Mel and I walked into town to some vendor huts while waiting for the others to arrive. When we returned to the young lady, she had found 3 others to go with us, they had returned to the ship for swim gear. They had just been walking along when she asked them about snorkeling and were excited to be able to do so. Turns out it was the Florist Manager, his helper and acupuncturist from the ship. I had taken a flower arranging class with Eddie, so knew him. I'd also told him how beautiful his floral creations are numerous times. He and Calista are very creative. I've been taking a picture of almost every bouquet I see on the ship. They are changed weekly, so that's a lot of pictures!

We were driven to a very nice hotel, right on the marina, to wait for them to go back for Eddie and Co. Their boat was about 30', twin engine and very clean. They had snorkel equipment for anyone who needed it. We headed just off the coast from Victoria where there are 3 small islands surrounded by coral reef. It is known as the St Anne Marine Park and is in the "1000 Places to See Before You Die" book. We anchored close to the coast of one of the islands and put on our gear. The island was so beautifully perfect that it looked like something Disney would create. There were large granite boulders interspersed with palms and other lush foliage, just beautiful. I jumped in the water, Mel followed. Pink (our gentleman friend, short for Pinkston) also jumped in and immediately filled his snorkel with water. He didn't really panic, but was in trouble. The guys on the boat threw out the life ring for him to hold onto. He got back on the boat and spent sometime inside, throwing up all the sea water he'd swallowed. So much for his snorkel experience. He did spend some time just looking under the water with a mask, then fed the fish from inside the boat, so said he had a great time.

The coral wasn't as beautiful as in New Caledonia. Most of it was dead. There were MANY fish though, so very nice snorkeling. We saw more of a variety of fish I think, many that we'd never seen before. We spent about 1 1/2 hrs in the water. Eddie, Calista and Lisa had gone further away from the boat and followed a sea turtle for a bit. They were thrilled. I took quite a few pictures of them underwater so am now carrying a flash drive around, hoping to run into them. I think they'll be thrilled with the pictures also. We circled the other islands before returning to the marina. It was a great day. Back at the pier we browsed the vender tents a bit then boarded the ship. Next we would be heading into dangerous waters, near the coast of Somalia.

Pirate Prevention

The Somali pirates have been in the news a lot lately. They have taken 5 or 6 ships in just the last week or so. One was taken today off the coast of Kenya, our next destination. The preparation to prevent pirate attacks started when we left Mumbai. I walk 2 miles on the Promenade deck most sea days just after lunch so I see some of what they are doing. That day, the fire hoses were out on the decks, ready to be turned against anyone trying to board the ship. It was actually a bit spooky because the fire equipment locker doors were wide open with a large hatchet in each one. Hope there isn't a maniac murderer on the ship!

 

While at lunch the day after Mumbai, the ship was buzzed by a 2 engine plane. It circled 3 times before I was able to get a good enough look to see that is said Coast Guard on the side. It was from the Indian Coast Guard, just checking out our ship. We'd never seen that before! It came quite close, flying almost level to deck 8.

 

I purchased a small souvenir Arabian knife for Mel in Dubai. We always go thru a metal detector when we reboard the ship. In Dubai, it was on the pier rather than onboard the ship. The Dubai security officer took the knife from my package and escorted me to the HAL security officer on board. He looked at the knife, looked at me and told me to just take it to my cabin and put it away. I laughed and said it was funny that they are concerned about a silly little knife when there are huge hatchets in the fire cabinets on deck 3. The next day they were gone. Guess they listen to their passengers.

 

Part of what I said in my April Fool's post about pirates was true. We were supposed to have 4 sea days after Oman, then just 2 after the Seychelles. The Capt said we would be speeding up to 23 knots, faster than we'd gone before, to reach the Seychelles a day early, giving us 3 days to reach Mombassa instead of 2. After Oman, the fire hoses were now mounted to the railings on deck 3. After the Seychelles, they were live, dripping water, ready to go. There had been a security officer on each side of the deck at the stern equipped with a radio and binoculars. Now after the Seychelles they also have helmets sitting close by and are wearing vests. Not sure what good they would be if we really were to be approached by numerous speed boats with fully armed pirates, but they are trying.

 

There is a large touch screen display in the Explorer Cafe area of the ship. We can look up info on the trip, our location, route, etc. I looked at our course today. After leaving the Seychelles we headed almost due south instead of east. Going east we would have been going thru the waters of the most recent captures. We went almost as far south as Madagascar, then headed for the coast. We followed the coast of Tanzania most of the day and will arrive in Mombassa at 4 a.m. The Kenyan navy is keeping watch of our progress and will protect us if necessary. There will also be extra security in the port. Kind of exciting being in the middle of something like this. Look at a map to see what I'm talking about!

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Feeling the pinch at the grocery store? Make dinner for $10 or less.

Victoria, Seychelles

The Seychelles is a group of about 115 islands that lie 990 miles off the coast of east Africa. The three central islands, which include Mahe where Victoria is located, are granite, while the outlying islands are coral atolls. Unlike most similar islands, the Seychelles are not volcanic - they seem to be the peaks of a huge underwater plateau that fell off the edge of India about 65 million years ago. The islands are rich in vegetation including the extremely rare giant coco de mer palm. Victoria is the smallest capital city in the world and the only major port in the Seychelles. It is also the only town in the country - every other settlement is a village. The Seychelles are known for their beautiful beaches and serene waters, perfect for snorkeling or a relaxing day on the sand.

We chose to do a full day tour with HAL so we could see the island. That would leave day 2 to do what we pleased, knowing what there is to see. Our tour started at the pier. We were loaded onto small size buses and driven a few blocks to the main downtown area in Victoria. We walked past a famous silver clock tower, erected in 1903 to celebrate Seychelles' new status as a crown colony. We passed that and continued to the market. It was very crowded, as being a Saturday, it would close early. There was a second floor which held a number of small souvenir shops. We didn't have enough time to shop. I could have stayed a lot longer. My printer had died and we used up most of our time looking for new ink cartridges (we were successful!). We boarded the bus for another short ride to the Botanical Gardens. There we were able to see the coco de mer palm trees. They are not native to the island of Mahe, where Victoria is, so that is the only place to see them without visiting one of the other islands where they live. The nuts can get up to 58 pounds and are very odd looking. They sold a lot of coco de mer soap on the island, as well as coco de mer liqueur, which we failed to find.

The bus took us inland, up a winding road, past a few ambassador homes in the hills, to the Mission Lodge ruins. This was a place where the missionaries set up a school for the slave children. While interesting, the main reason to visit was a short walk to see an incredible view of Victoria. There was a covered patio at that site, built for Queen Elizabeth to have tea on one of her visits to the island. It was a lot cooler up on the mountain, Victoria was HOT. Next stop a tea plantation. They consume about 80 tons of tea per year in the Seychelles, but only produce about 55 tons, so do not export it. You can only get their tea in the Seychelles.

We continued on the winding road over the mountain to the other side of the island, not a long distance. We drove along the shore for a bit then stopped at a restaurant for lunch. The buffet was set up in a covered open area with a sand floor. We ate at picnic style tables. The food was OK, nothing to write home about (hmm, I guess I AM writing home about it!). After lunch we changed into our swim suits and hit the beach. The water was pretty churned up from the wind and waves, so snorkeling was out of the question. We did play in the waves for a while, then walked the length of the beach and back. There were NO shells on the sand, none. Not even broken ones, just no evidence of shells at all. Seems very strange since every vendor we encountered had dozens of shells for sale. It was nice to be able to swim again, this time in the Indian Ocean. Our last swim had been in the China Sea. After our swim, we were returned to the ship. We got a good night's sleep for our next day in port. The picture is of one of the beautiful resorts that are on the island.

Muscat, Oman

Each Gulf State has its own character, history, and customs, but Oman is the oldest - the Sultanate's earliest known settlement dates back 5,000 years. The region became important when Frankincense, derived from the native Boswellia tree, emerged as a popular religious instrument. The resin was believed to have curative power, and, as valuable as gold during Christ's era, it was exported as far away as Rome. Oman remained independent until 16th-century Portuguese traders established a fort at Hormuz. They ruled for 100 years, but after moving to Muscat, they were driven out in 1650.

Oman was one of the countries on our itinerary that I'd never heard of. Since it's 5000 years old, guess I missed something! We arrived in port at 8 a.m. Mel and I were ready to leave the ship at about 9. It was raining (what else is new, we seem to get rain at every port!), so we had our umbrellas with us. The port supplied shuttle buses to the gate or to an Intercontinental Hotel. We went to the gate of the port and grabbed a cab to a large mosque. We were actually in a van for 12, just the 2 of us!

We arrived in about 20 minutes. The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque was built over a period of 6 years from 1995 to 2001. The main musalla (room?) can hold over 6,500 worshippers. The main chandelier is made of pure Swarovski crystal and is GORGOUS! The carpet took 600 women 4 years to complete and is made of pure silk. It is the largest single piece carpet in the world, measuring over 230 x 195 and it too is gorgeous. We had been told that women must be covered up to their ankles and wrists, as well as their heads (one thing about the country that I did NOT like), so I arrived in capris, but with socks to cover my ankles. The guy at the gate kind of looked at my socks weird (I was wearing sandals), but allowed me in. At the door to the musalla, I removed my shoes (everyone is required to do so) and put on my socks. I'd brought a pashmina to cover my head. Mel had on a short sleeved shirt and was told he could wear anything. Backwards country! But I guess it was worth the effort to see the inside of the place. They had placed a blue carpet all around the room and one down the center for people to walk on. The large chandelier was unbelievable. It was probably twice as tall if not taller than I am. The carpet was beautiful also. But the walls were wonderful too! They were covered entirely with colorful tiles. The domes weren't just round, they had geometric shapes to them. It was a really beautiful place. Of course women are not allowed to worship in that musalla, they have their own which holds 750. It was nice also, but nothing like the larger one. Good that we decided to go look at the mosque first as it closed at 11 a.m. Some passengers from our ship were not that smart (or lucky!), so arrived only to be told that it was closed. We took a TON of pictures. Beautiful place.

After the mosque, we asked our driver to drop us at the souq, the market place. The entrance was right across from the bay. It had been raining so everything was wet. Again, we timed our visit well. Some passengers said they'd been inside when it was raining when all of a sudden the place was rushing with water. The shop keepers told them to get out quickly. It flooded up to about 8" at one point. The floor was all slate, laid in geometric patterns. Each shop was up 2 high steps, and rather small. They were selling a lot of silver, linen, perfumes, spices and incense. Several were full of antique pieces, mostly bronze or silver. Interesting to browse around. We were told that they would close at noon, but most stayed open until almost 1. Again, good timing on our part. They didn't open again until 4, we sailed at 5!

We walked around the wall by the bay, back to the port entrance and took the shuttle to the ship. We had lunch then decided rather than hang out on the ship, we may as well take the other shuttle to the hotel. We hit traffic so that took about 30 minutes. We were actually dropped at a small shopping center. We walked thru it, across the large parking lot to the hotel. Visited a couple of expensive shops, then returned to the ship. Our visit to Oman was very nice. It was clean and all the people were very friendly. One of the nicer ports we have visited. I would definitely return to see more of the country. Nice place.

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Scary News!

We've just been confined to our cabins for the duration. Not sure how long that will be. At least we have internet access! Hope we can find out more details soon, but as of now....we saw a couple of small boats off the starboard side of the ship, our side, but didn't think anything about it since we frequently see them. We did look at them w/our binoculars and it appeared that they had weapons, but who knows, could have been fat fishing rods! Soon after, the ship was going noticeably faster and seemed to be doing some zig zag maneuvers. Finally the Capt came on and said that those 2 boats are indeed pirates and he's doing everything possible to avoid a confrontation. They have the fire hoses ready (our heavy ammunition, yea!) and have already started putting out the high frequency noise which has the ability to burst an ear drum. Hope they work! Because of our current 23 knots per hr, we will be reaching the Seychelles a day early. That's the fastest we've cruised since we started this trip. We're unusually averaging about 18 knots.

Oh, I think I just heard gun fire, not good. :( I'm sure the Capt will be able to get away from them, lets hope! Wish they would update us as to what's going on. Turn on CNN. With everyone on the internet, most likely someone has sent the news to them. Oh boy, we're going to be on the news! Hope it's good news in the end. I'll keep you posted..............................................................................................................

April Fools!! :)

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