Day 53- Captives Of The Rain, August 7, 2011

I never actually said it in yesterday’s post but we spent almost an hour at the base of the Meares glacier and observed almost no calving. There were several groans and cracks from it’s movement but that’s was it. I guess, if you look at it from another perspective, calving equals the death of a glacier so if the glacier isn’t putting too much ice into the bay, then there’s hope for it’s survival. I did mention the rain that began to fall as we returned to the dock and it has been raining steady all night, turning the footing on any of the trails we might have walked today into slippery, muddy messes and more. So, after a breakfast of Banana Pancakes, I’ve used the time to get caught up on editing photos, writing these blogs and posting everything on line. Later, we’ll hit the grocery store in town for the last few perishables we need. On Monday morning, Carl wants to hit the road early. It’s about 700 miles from Valdez to Haines where we will get the ferry which is part of an extensive Marine Highway system. There are so many places only reachable by either airplane or boat, the ferry system here is a lifeline to some of the more exotic islands like Unalaska or more mundane places like the state capital, Juneau. Anyway, in Haines, Carl may go fishing one more time. I’m going to try to get more bear photos and there is that inevitable laundry to be done. We’ll have 36 hours on the ferry and I plan to spend as much time as possible up on deck taking photos. I’ve always been interested in traveling the Inside Passage and this ferry trip will allow us that opportunity. Later today, if the weather clears, we’ll get out and explore a bit more of the land side of Valdez.

Day 41- Kenai Fjord Tour

Webster and his dictionary did not have enough superlatives to describe this day. The day began like so many on this trip, gray and dreary but every once in a while we were being teased with the smallest imaginable glimpse of blue. Our ship, the Kenai Star was only about half it’s usual occupancy and this too was a good thing. Right off the bat, just out of the harbor, our first animal encounter, a sea otter paddling on it’s back munching on a crab. The sound of it’s teeth tearing into that crab is hard to describe but what it reminded me of most was a dog chewing on a big beef knuckle bone. A little further out in the bay, the boat, accompanied by a Kenai Fjords Park ranger, came upon a lone humpback whale cruising along. Everyone watched for several minutes jostling for position at the rail to get the best pictures possible from a moving platform. This procedure would be repeated many times during the day. Of course, the photos were only of an occasional blow hole, the telltale hump with the tiny fin and the inevitable tail end of the large marine mammal, the fluke. And while I don’t usually subscribe to the use of puns, I got a pretty nice picture which Carl says is no fluke. The route the cruise took varied from the plan based on wildlife sightings but generally speaking, we left Resurrection Bay for the Gulf Of Alaska by motoring along the western shoreline passing by Bear Glacier which is actually a collision sight of three glaciers. The ranger spotted a bald eagle up in a tree and a little further down the shore line another was spotted, probably it’s mate. Ranger Mark kept up a running commentary about the geology of the region, the forces at work to make such a spectacular coastline and as he spoke, we could almost see the process at work. He was very passionate about all subjects and was a big hit with the kids. He ran a junior ranger program for the 8 or 9 kids on board, keeping them not only busy but involved with the whole process. At the end of the trip, he held a “ceremony” and gave them a junior ranger oath which basically pledges them to visit national parks often and care for the environment with one final caveat, to never be mean to Park Rangers. That cracked everyone up on board, even the kids. Among the other wildlife we saw were a small pod of orcas, a fleeting glance at a couple of Dall Porpoises, several more humpbacks, a black dot in the distance attributed to a black bear and a few white specks high up on the basalt cliffs that people insisted where mountain goats. I couldn’t tell even through the camera. I’ve never been able to focus through binoculars. I think it’s got something to do with the fact that I am near and far sighted. My trifocal glasses are tough to line up with the optics of the device. Sounds good, doesn’t it? The skies began to brighten just about the same time the seas began to develop a mild chop to it, signaling our departure from the protection of the bay. By the time we had traveled the few miles to Aialik Bay, several people were feeling the effects of motion sickness. The crew served a less than sumptuous buffet which did include the advertised salmon and a prime rib with the rib. The sides consisted of a green salad, some sort of rice that vegetables had been dragged through and a complimentary beverage that was already included in the $20.00 price of the meal. And just about the time I got to the buffet line, we passed a beautiful and naturally carved triple arch called the Three Gates. And then, we saw the Holgate glacier in the distance. We were miles away but could already feel the distinct change in the air. Somehow the already cool day had become much cooler and there was a heavy mist in the air. Some places call that rain. I call it a minor inconvenience and go get my lens cloth. Then it’s back on deck where I’ve spent most of my time. Call it the place where photographers should be or you could call it the best place to be if you’re feeling even slightly queasy. Diesel fumes have always bothered me even when I worked at the trucking company. Never mind about that. There was the glacier ahead. We approached slowly, spying small bits of ice in the water. The bits became chunks which turned into small floes. Captain Nicole announced she would come close to the glacier and then kill the engines so we could listen to it’s movement. I knew there would be sounds but I was still amazed by the groans and cracks coming from the 500 foot tall wall of blue fractured ice in front of us. Small bits were breaking off here and there. We listened intently to where the louder cracks might be coming from in hopes of getting some sort of heads up on where the next chunks might fall from. After more than a half hour, the boat regrettably had to leave with most of the passengers agreeing what they had just witness was incredible and saying how they could have stay for hours to listen and watch. Me, too! Once back into the gulf, the skies had turned bright blue and we were blessed with bright sunshine for a good part of the crossing to Cape resurrection. The way back to Seward brought us past tons of waterfowl, gulls, puffins, murres and cormorants as well as a brief sighting of another bald eagle pair and one rather erratic juvenile humpback. And there was one more haul out beach for Stellar Sea Lions. Ranger Mark told us how the Stellar population was dropping off markedly. Researchers at the Seal Life Center are involved in a multi year study to find out what is the cause. They have marked hundreds of Stellar Sea Lion pups and will follow them to adulthood, if they make it. As we approached the harbor, the clouds thickened once more and rain began falling by the time we got to the dock. All in all, it was a great day and the all you can eat desert buffet was better than the actual meal. Hope you like the pictures.

Not So Great Stirrup Cay

We woke up at Great Stirrup Cay . The ship was moored and all people wanting to go ashore would tender over. I took one look at the “island” and decided that 2200 people on the spit of land in front of us could do without 2 additional people. The cay was pretty flat and narrow with a few palms towards the middle. There didn’t appear to be much to see so we passed on the tender adventure. We watched as the water taxi pulled up to the ship, loaded about 150-200 people on board ,traveled the five minute trip and then beached itself for people to jump off on the beach. Nearby, there were two Royal Caribbean ships pulled up near their own private island. At least theirs looked more like a tropical island even if it was smaller. We spent some time at the pool, in the hot tub and of course there was the food. I have to say, based on this 3 day cruise, NCL and their quality of food has dropped a notch or two on our level of cruises. We have taken cruises on Carnival, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean and NCL. The later had been our favorite although the cruises had been week long events. Now, I think Celebrity and Royal Caribbean are tied for level of service and quality of food and entertainment. The highlight of any cruise for me is the Art Auction . Carl found a nice piece by Nicole Stahl of Dolphins to give to our granddaughter. Before we left, Steph asked us to bring her back some dolphins.

Atlantis, Paradise Island and Nassau

Our shore excursion tickets haven’t arrived yet. A few days ago, we went on line and put in a reservation for a clear view kayak tour in Nassau. I figured they would have delivered them to our stateroom so on our way to breakfast, we stopped by the shore excursion desk. Now, I’ve already told Carl my leg is hurting from all the stairs we climbed yesterday and as much as I was looking forward to the see through kayaks, I really wasn’t unhappy when they said they had no reservation for us. We spent the first part of the day poolside, in the sun. Of course, I smeared on the old +30 sun block. It feels like I took a bath in crude oil but, on the other hand, I spent more than a half hour in the sun and didn’t burn. After lunch, Carl decided to lay down while I took a shower and washed my hair. He slept 2 hours and after I dried off, I read some of my book, “The Vampire LeStat’. It’s the second in as series of 10 books by Anne Rice that make up the Vampire Chronicles. From the stern of the ship, we have a beautiful view of Atlantis, the billion dollar complex that used in one of last season’s Amazing Race legs. We couldn’t see the pyramid and the 60 foot waterslide but we know it’s out there. Just before we leave Nassau, there is a brief shower. It’s just enough to dampen the deck but the clouds sort of get in my way for sail away photos. I take them anyway. Paradise Island has a lighthouse at the very tip, the entrance to the harbor. I can see why. It’s really rocky out there and since it’s the windward side of the island, the breakers really pound in there. Tomorrow, our port of call is Great Stirrup Cay, the NCL privately owned island. We’ve decided to just get off the boat and wander around looking for something to take pictures of. There’s 2200 people on this boat. I wonder if I can actually find a sport or two with no people in my viewfinder.

Hurray For Capitalism

The drive from Marco Island to Miami was uneventful and when we turned the rental car in at Thrifty, we were informed they provided a shuttle to the Port of Miami. That saved us a taxi fare of $24.00. That’s four beers on the cruise for Carl. Outstanding! The process of check in was smooth and effortless. By 1:00, we had already spent $18.75 for the soda program. For those of you who haven’t taken a cruise lately, you purchase a specific cup which can be filled with as much fountain soda as you can drink for the duration of the cruise. The cruise line charges $6.25 per day for the program and if you just purchased a soda at the bar, it would be about $3.00 with tax and the 15%autogratuity which is conveniently added for you. After the obligatory boat drill ( no life vest required this time ), we sat by the pool where there was pounding bass music with words that just repeated themselves over and over. I’m not sure if it’s called hip hop, grunge or gangster rap. I just know it doesn’t do a thing for me. I hate to admit it but I’m getting old. I want to be able to understand the words, feel all of the music and not come away with my ears hurting. We’re off to the theatre after dinner to “listen to” 70’s music. I’ll bet I know most of the words to most of the songs.

South Of The Border

Cartegena, Columbia is a city divided by old and new. We sit on board in the harbor and from our porthole we can view the loading and unloading of massive cargo ships. Nearby is an ocean of overseas containers. In the distance is the “new city” of Cartegena, steel and concrete high rise buildings just glistening from the tropical sun. We board a bus and are taken to the walled “old city” under the protection of two massive forts from the sixteenth century. The walking tour takes us to the oldest of the Catholic Churches in the city and we are escorted through some of the narrowest cobble stoned streets I’ve seen in some time. We are shown historical statues, government buildings and beautifully restored brightly colored homes that are now businesses. All buildings in this part of town must be maintained historically and kept in good repair. This part of the city is clean and my only problem is that we are inundated with licensed peddlers hawking t-shirts, jewelry, leather and other tourist trinkets. In fact, everywhere we turn, someone is trying to sell us a hat or sunglasses. It interesting to note there is no welfare for younger people and some try to earn money by performance art. We came upon a statue of four fishermen. I took a picture, thinking it was three statues and one person imitating a statue. Then I realized all four were human. They wore all black clothes, heavy black makeup and stood on blackened stumps while holding blackened fishing gear complete with a blackened fish. In front of these “artists” were buckets for offerings from passersby. That was the only time you saw any movement. It’s a type of art that demands endurance and dedication to the project. Towards the end of our tour, we were allowed just twenty minutes to purchase our souvenirs before returning to the ship. This is a novelty for us. Normally, shore excursions are the main vehicle used to lure people off the ships and into the shops.

Sanitation and Other Measures

We have picked up someone from the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta to check on the ships’ attempts to get a handle on the virus that is making an impact on so many people’s cruise. We have heard that this virus has affected 5 cruise ships including the Holland America’s Oosterdam that was berthed next to us in San Diego. The specialist says the ship is doing everything right and it seems the number of people reporting to the ship’s infirmary is decreasing daily. At our dining room table, three of the four couples endured quarantine and one couple went through it twice, once for him and then a day later, her. All food and condiments are given to us by staff whether it’s in the dining room or upstairs at the buffet. Salt and pepper are dispensed for you, cream is poured into your coffee and even the butter has made a transformation from clover shaped hand cut pats to foil wrapped prepackaged tablespoons. There has been so much disinfectant used on the ship that all shiny surfaces have cloudy film on them, the handrails in the stairways are constantly wet, the covers from the pool chaise loungers have been stripped and in some cases the varnish has been stripped away on the woodwork. We’ve heard reports of people’s clothing being ruined by the bleach and the staff is forbidden from shaking hands with the guests. On the night of the 11th, after the lifting of our curfew, two stewards came into our room and sanitized everything we might have possibly touched.

The Panama Canal

Today, we travel through the Panama Canal, the highlight of this trip. We’re up early for the sunrise. It’s one of the few places geographically that the sun actually rises in the west and sets in the east. We will be traveling northwest in order to go east. Directionally, this place is all mixed up. There’s tons of statistics that I could pass on here but I don’t want to use up the space. I will tell you that our ship paid $259,000.00 to pass through the canal. We travel under two bridges, the Bridge of the Americas which connects North and South America and the Centennial Bridge that was constructed to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the completion of the Canal. The Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks lift us up 85 feet so that we can travel through the Gaillard Cut, the nine mile long, most narrow part of the 47 mile trip. Currently the Canal operates 24 hours a day and all traffic is inbound in the morning and outbound in the afternoon. Large ships pass each other in the second largest man made lake, Gatun Along the way, we view construction on the third and much wider series of locks for the post Panamax freighters, ships with beams wider than the 108 feet the current locks can accommodate. Finally, we are lowered back down to sea level by the Gatun locks and enter the Caribbean Sea.

Illness Strikes

I’m sorry to report there will be no beautiful photos from Costa Rica today. It started the night before last with a 6.2 magnitude earthquake striking near San Jose and La Paz. We had been scheduled to tour the beautiful waterfalls of La Paz and were not surprised but definitely upset to find that our shore excursion had been cancelled along with several others. We’re not sure if it’s because of a concern regarding aftershocks or if there is significant damage to streets and facilities. So we, like hundreds of other guests scrambled to find an alternate tour to fill our time while we are docked in Puntarenas. At dinner last evening, Carl began feeling awful. He was hot, felt clammy to the touch and his stomach was doing the Macarena . By 10:00PM, he had thrown the entire contents of his stomach up and I do mean violently. He collapsed into bed and was up again at 4:30 this morning with a mad dash to the bathroom. By 8:00AM, he was weak, had a pounding headache and ached all over. It won’t surprise any of you to know that we were off to the ship’s doctor moments later. He pronounced us under quarantine-me for 24 hours and Carl for 48. That means our shore excursion is cancelled and refunded plus we cannot leave the cabin for the stated times. Normally room service and confinement would appeal to us both. Too bad he feels so lousy. Oh, yes, I forgot to mention that he got a very painful shot in the behind to stop his vomiting and some pills to take before he eats anything else.
Maybe it was the motion of the ocean or maybe it was the breast of duck he had for supper. Maybe it was just his turn to get the virus that’s been ghosting about the ship. We may never know. I can’t say it’s ruined the vacation but it sure has put a stopper on the next day or two’s activities. The photo posted was taken two nights earlier, a perfect end to a beautiful day.

First Leg Of The Trip

I’m making an entry from San Diego today. We’re on board the Celebrity Cruise Ship, “Mercury” for our two week tour down the coast of Mexico, through the Panama Canal, a stop in Cartegena, Columbia, and our final destination, Fort Lauderdale, FL. The ship is good size and as always, it takes several days to become accustomed to where everything is. I wish I could have taken a picture of us during the mandatory life boat drill. The majority of the passengers are older with robust figures if you know what I mean and then to put these bright orange floatation devices on, well it’s just too comical. I can’t see down to my feet without holding the vest and tipping sideways. Once the drill is over, we can proceed with the fun. We were berthed in the part of the harbor next to the USS Midway which has been retired from active service and is now a floating museum. Her tower number is 41 but there are two other ships nearby with the tower numbers 78 and 68. I took several pictures from the dock just before we left. Does anyone know these ships? I'll post a photo later. Since my original post, I was able to discover the CVN 68 is the USS Nimitz, a nuclear powered air craft carrier.