Cruising

An 18-day stay on a cruise ship may seem like an interminably long time to be confined even on one of the mega-ships now available, but honestly, the time sails by.  It seems as if we just boarded this ship, the Celebrity Eclipse, and already it is done.  Why?  The experience is like having an always-on backyard party with happy friends or a gossipy chat with neighbors at the mailbox while being invited to a dinner party and a good show every night—no tickets or cash required.  And if that’s not enough, dancing goes on almost anywhere!  And I do love to dance!

In this vagabond life, for days on end, Stan and I are frequently our only conversation partners. Sometimes we feel a bit isolated.  Putting us on a ship with 4,000 people is like balm to the weary.  Ah, finding fresh meat for conversation tantalizes this couple of dyed-in-the-wool people-lovers with new faces, new subjects, new attitudes, and new friends.  It usually starts with friendly chatter, and then after the next little bit, we end up sharing our stories and listening to theirs.  We learn about their history, their careers, their illnesses, life challenges, and most of all, we hear about their travels and their family.  We never know where or how we are going to meet them.  Sometimes our introduction begins while sharing a table at dinner, sometimes it happens while ordering a drink at a bar, and other times while participating in a daytime trivia game.  Already we like Al and Betty from Indiana and Trevor and Ann from the UK.  We are happy to see them and when we do, our chats take off right where we left off the previous day. We met one couple who have cruised 37 times.  Whoa, while I enjoy the relaxation, the instant entertainment, and the no-brainwork downtime a cruise delivers I’m not ready for that many “canned” sailings.   People have told us about year-long cruises that go around the world, or about people who virtually live aboard ships going from one cruise route to another.  That’s not our cup of tea, at least as long as we remain fit.  Cruising is fun, and it’s a wonderful occasional change of pace for Stan and me, and it’s also a great option for older people or those who might be physically incapacitated in some way.  Cruising allows these folks to receive the stimulation that new sights and new people can provide without suffering the physical demands of climbing stairs, walking great distances, and carrying luggage.  I highly encourage anyone to try taking a cruise, but to be sure, if seeing the world is the plan, cruising is not the best way to do it.  One or two days in a port city is a mere taste and hardly a cultural or historic introduction.  Most people simply shop, take a multi-hour automobile tour of the destination or participate in a water sport.  While not feasible in some places our favorite to see the world involves renting an apartment in a city in a new country and imagining we live right there in the neighborhood.

The early part of the cruise:

Upon leaving the port at Sydney, the first two full days were at sea, my favorite kind of cruising days, and then the ship stopped for two ports of call.  Surely everyone is familiar with the infamous Bay of Islands destination in New Zealand.  I’m speaking tongue in cheek, of course.  I’m not sure why our ship stopped there.  The islands did look pretty, and graceful sailboats zipped by here and there but it offered little else.  My impression is that this group of islands is a popular holiday resort spot for North Island New Zealanders.  We did not leave the ship that day but took advantage of the quiet day to enjoy the scenery and imagine this grand boat was all ours while everyone else jockeyed to get off the vessel by 1 pm and return back by 5:30 pm.  A 20-minute tender was required to reach the port and a 5-minute shuttle from the port to the town.  At 2 pm, some folks still had not been given passage on the tender to town.  Madness!  Meanwhile, Stan and I had the gym to ourselves and could lounge anywhere we wished poolside (under blankets) to read.  Yes, while the weather is not cold, the wind and clouds made it decidedly cool down here. We did leave the ship when we ported in Auckland.  Although we visited Auckland ten years ago almost to the day, I found that I remembered very little of the city.  Among the places we visited in Tasmania and New Zealand recently, Auckland is the largest and busiest.  We refreshed our memory by walking the city and zooming up 60 floors in a glass-floored elevator to the top of the Sky Tower for a 360-degree view of the city, the mountains in the distance, and the beautiful seaport.  I logged in to my Off Exploring.com blog from that 2013 trip; our photos are almost identical!!!

The next four days were at sea.  We slept late on these days; it was easy since the ship’s clock time moved forward one hour each day as we passed through time zones.  We visited the gym and enjoy peaceful afternoons of quiet nothingness amid the vast blue ocean.   Each day brought some sun, some rain, and lots of wind.  Stan always managed to find us a place on deck that was out of the wind where we relaxed until trivia time four.  On April 27 we crossed the international date line which meant the next day was also April 27.  It’s really hard to keep up with the dates when there are two Thursdays in just one week.!il 27.

Mid-point of Cruise:  French Polynesian Islands 

This we thought would be the high point of this cruise.   Just as I dreamed they would be, these islands are jewels in the middle of the Pacific.  Sprinkled in an area called the Polynesian Triangle are more than a thousand volcanic islands there in Central and South Pacific.  The triangle spans a tremendous area whose northern point is the Hawaiian Islands, the only Polynesian islands north of the equator.  Surprising news to me, the southern angles of the triangle include New Zealand to the west and Easter Island to the east.

Our cruise ported at three of the French Polynesian islands:  Tahiti, home to Papeete, the capital and largest city in French Polynesia, and the islands of Raiatea, and Moorea.  We confirmed it; the white sands and crystal clear aqua and deep blue waters are just as described and pictured in travel magazines – spectacular!  Mountains almost rising up directly from the picturesque beaches of these volcanic islands are lush and very green. 

\Would you like a black pearl or a string of them?  They are grown here and available in many, many stores.

Last third of the cruise:

During the last few days of the cruise before reaching Hawaii not only did we watch a new king being crowned in London but also met King Neptune.  Sailors who have not crossed the equator are called polywogs.  When they cross the equator for the first time, they undergo a ceremony to become a shellback.  The ceremony is conducted by King Neptune and involves humiliation.  In our pollywog to shellback ceremony, King Neptune came on deck and anointed volunteers serving as surrogates for all us pollywogs with an array of food-goosh like cheese sauce, beans, and flour as punishments for crimes committed on board.  Finally the surrogates had to kiss the “dead” fish.

By this time to our delight, Lou and Brenda from Toronto crossed our paths.  Married only for the past five years, this all-grown-up newlywed couple was an amazing pleasure to meet.  Lou, in his former working life, was an accountant and Brenda was a high school principal who before retirement was recruited to run the schools for royalty in Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong.  Very impressive!  So poised and interested in our stories, Brenda never mentioned these facts to us.  It was days before we learned of this extraordinary lady’s incredible work story.  And if Lou had not shared her history with us, we would never have known of her amazing accomplishments.  

We two couples connected immediately and similar to our meeting Jill and Gary, from the UK, whom we met at the bus station in Panama City, Panama, Lou (who bears s strong resemblance to David Hartman)  and Brenda will be folks we stay in touch with and will see again over and over.  What a gift!  As we played trivia together and had drinks and dinner together several nights, we told our stories and created a new friendship

That lovely cruise is now complete.  Those 18 days merely evaporated, but hey, we are now in Hawaii!  We first touched US soil at Lahaina, Maui where sadly the first thing we noticed was paper, plastic bottles, and can litter on the curbs.   A dark windowed vehicle with loud thumping music rocked down Font Street – things we have not seen in 5 months.  Welcome home! 

Even with those bothersome things, the island cannot hide its natural beauty.  We snorkeled there in Maui with Seth.  It was one of the most exciting, enjoyable snorkel trips we have ever experienced. We merely met our guide, Seth; got outfitted, and walked into the ocean from the beach along a dilapidated, fallen-down 1929 concrete pier to begin swimming with lots of colorful fish. Seth pointed out a silver spotted eel, a rare frogfish, and several kinds of beautiful sea urchins.   And then we spotted the green sea turtles, first one then two, then lots of them!  Water is the primary home for these great creatures; they eat there and breed there, but they need air.  The older and bigger ones can stay underwater for up to two hours at a time when resting but the younger ones must emerge about every 15 minutes.  When the youngsters needed air, they swam right over and sometimes upon us!  I felt like a 12-year-old again, it was so much fun.  Seeing those turtles was such a happy experience.  I found it hard to grin with a mask on!

The cruise ended in Honolulu.  We flew immediately to Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii for a six-day visit, then on to Hilo.  Although not active right now, we want to see the volcanos.

One note, Shea, our daughter, is a Southwest Airlines flight attendant.  Her employment extends parental rights for no cost on SWA flights and highly discounted flights on some other carriers, standby, of course.  Thank you, darling Shea and SWA.  On our flight from Honolulu to Kona, we were flabbergasted to see one of her very best friends, Jerome, serving our flight.  Now, that was a God’s moment!  Imagine my shock when I looked back over my shoulder during the safety announcements to see him standing just behind our seats!  Our visit was a pure delight!