On the Boat Again - Jan 4

When we left Fort Myers, heading south, it was 56 degrees. By the time we got to Alligator Alley it had climbed up to 58. Shorts weather! 

OK, maybe not.

Alligator Alley is a ruler-straight highway through the Everglades from Naples to Fort Lauderdale. There is only one little curve in the road. A couple of times we saw cars that had pulled over by state troopers. Usually there would be one trooper vehicle and two to four cars. How do they do that? How do they pull over more than one car at a time? 

At the Fort Lauderdale airport it was 64 and sunny. Hopeful! We had arranged to meet up with old friends here. They were on their way home from the Emerald Princess, and we would be boarding very soon. It was really good to have a chance to see people we don't get to see very often - and there will be more such chances before this trip is over!

When we arrived at the port we were greeted by chaos. It took our bus quite a while to get from the port entrance to the terminal due to terminal gridlock. There was a line the length of the terminal and there was another line coming from the other direction and everyone was a little confused. There wasn't anyone from Princess to inform us where the "preferred" line was, or if there was one. When are they going to figure this out? Not a good first impression.

Once we got on board, the chaos evaporated. Princess had made us an offer we couldn't refuse - an "upsell" - and we found ourselves in an aft suite. It was (and still is) really nice. This ship is in much better condition than the Caribbean Princess. It should be - it just got out of dry dock two weeks ago. We made dinner reservations and the staff was helpful and efficient. Here is the good first impression!

Sailaway was followed by a gorgeous sunset. I am going to try to reproduce it in a quilt.

We had dinner at Share, the brand new Curtis Stone restaurant. It was in a beautiful space. The service was excellent, the menu was innovative and interesting, the experience was fun. The food was very good, but not as good as I was expecting for the price.

After dinner we went to Movies Under the Stars. We watched a movie on a jumbo screen out on the top deck. It's kind of like going to a drive-in, but you sit on deck chairs instead of in your car. We saw Bridge of Spies. It was an excellent movie. 

Walking in the Rain - or Not

In the morning we continued our journey southward. We wanted to do a volkswalk in Venice to get some fresh air and exercise. See www.ava.org for info on volkswalking if you are not familiar. We started the walk and after 15 minutes it started to rain. Of course we had not brought raincoats or umbrellas with us. Who needs raincoats?  Um, we do. 

As it became evident that it was not going to stop, we decided to turn around and go back. We were starting to get a little too wet when we got to the car. Oh, well. I'm sure it would have been a nice walk through the historic part of Venice. All we got to see was the historic railway station and all we got to smell was the sewage treatment plant.

Because of the rain we were forced to go to an outlet mall near Fort Myers. (Sorry, Nancy). It was shocking. Shocking that such places exist everywhere in the country except Alaska. So this is the way people live in the Lower 48!

Did you realize that people will stand in line to get into a store? (Kate Spade, if you must know.)

Did you realize that people have strollers for their dogs? They even have double-decker dog strollers. Pink double-decker dog strollers. With cup holders! 

Fortunately, some things are the same everywhere. We discovered that credit cards ARE accepted at outlet malls. There is a line for the ladies' room even at outlet malls.

After fleeing the outlet mall, we drove to our hotel. We reviewed the dinner options and decided on a place called Ginger Bistro. This turned out to be a brilliant choice. The Dim Sum Platter we started with was incredible. Why didn't I remember to take a photo of it before we ate it?

Here is the Walnut Shrimp and the Curried Chicken in a Clay Pot. Mm Mmmm.

New Year, New Trip

Our journey begins on New Year's Day. We leave Anchorage just before our driveway becomes too slick to walk on. The first flight is your typical flight out of Alaska. First class is filled with oil field workers who don't live in Alaska. There big dogs and little dogs. There are bags of McDonalds. There are lots of carry-ons. Not so typical: bad turbulence on takeoff. Scary bad. Nevertheless, we make it to Seattle.

The flight from Seattle to Orlando seems to be part of a parallel universe. The only people in first class are couples (one of whom also has a screaming baby). Yes, this is an overnight flight.

Travel tip: If you are traveling with anyone under, say, ten, and especially under two, bring a bag full of stuff: snacks, toys, games, blankets, more toys, stuffed animals, bottles, and maybe a little Benadryl.

Here is something you will NEVER see on a flight in or out of Alaska.

It is an EMPTY overhead bin . . . after everyone has been seated. Really.

Eventually we get to Orlando and it is Saturday morning. We pick up a car and drive to St. Pete to visit the Dali Museum.  (We had been to the Dali Museum in Figueres, Spain, and were so impressed we wanted to see more.  ADD LINK)

The building itself is very interesting and the architecture is really part of the homage to Dali.

The exhibit was excellent. We learned a lot from the audio tour. Here is one of Dali's early works. The woman is his sister.

This painting shows Dali's wife, Gala, and it is called "Gala Contemplating the Mediterranean Sea Which at Twenty Meters Becomes the Portrait of Abraham Lincoln." Dali was experimenting with the concept of the minimum number of pixels it takes to portray a human face. ADD LINK TO Dali Museum in Spain

This painting is called "The Hallucinogenic Toreador." It shows a number of figures of Venus de Milo. If you focus on the green you will see that it is the tie of the matador. His chin, mouth and nose appear on the torso of the Venus with the green skirt.

Read more about Dali at thedali.org.

Today was also the last day of an Escher exhibit at the Dali. You may know that Escher was also fascinated with optical illusions, Möbius strips, and tesselation. It was an excellent exhibit, but it was so crowded that it was very difficult to see everything. It's nice that so many people will come out to see this type of a museum. (It's not cheap, either.) ADD LINK

If you are in the Tampa/St. Pete area, The Dali is a MUST.

After the museum we headed to Bradenton and our motel. We are in the midst of a large mall. There is another mall across the street, another mall down the road, and a fourt mall just on the other side of the highway. They all seem to be very crowded. 

We had a late lunch at Five Guys. It's a hamburger/fries chain. The burgers are perfect. You can get them with any combination of toppings you want. But they are famous for their fries. A "little" was more than I could eat. No dinner for us tonight.

Zzzzzzzz. Jet lag. Zzzzzzzz.

Bah Hah-bah, Bah Humbug

October 9

During dinner last night, the Dreaded Dinnertime Announcement of Doom happened. Experience has proven that announcements broadcast into the dining rooms during dinner are 1) important and 2) not good news. The gist of the announcement was: "Safety is paramount; blah blah blah; we will miss Bar Harbor, which is a tender port, due to weather; we will have a day at sea instead; the schedule for tomorrow wil be published as soon as possible." After everyone at the table expressed their disappointment, we continued eating.

This morning we awoke to sunny skies and calm waters. Was  this because we had sailed away from the rough weather during the night? Or because we had sailed further away from the coast? Or because the weather forecast was wrong? (The correct answer turned out to be #1.)

We also awoke to find the "new" schedule in our little mailbox. I have to say that I was very disappointed with the new schedule they came up with. There were a lot of so-called activities which were really just blatant attempts to sell you stuff. If you took the schedule and added up the Effy events and the "spa" events and the "art" events, they would outnumber the entertainments listed on the schedule - by a large margin. Much of the entertainment was recycled: the same musicians in the lounges, a movie we already saw, a few trivia games. Zumba was at 9:15 am, but unless you woke up early and read the schedule, you wouldn't know about it in time to wake up early for it. 

There were a few "unhosted" events, which required no effort on the part of the cruise staff. Basically, there was NOTHING TO DO as we rounded Cape Finisterre. Look it up if you don't know where it is. The schedule said we would be rounding Cape Finisterre today.

I did see a whale in the morning, and Libby saw a pod of dolphins. Or maybe they were porpoises. Ken saw a different whale. How do I know it was different? I don't.

I went to the Knitters and Natters group. This is like a flash mob for knitters and other crafty types. Basically they have a listing in the schedule that says everyone who brought a craft project, show up at such and such a place at such and such a time and talk to each other while you work on your projectt. Thaat is hat I an "unhosted" event is. I worked on my cross-stich project and listened to knitters talk about making socks. I am usually interested in technical discussions of minutiae, but it was boring, even for me. But what else is there to do? Slot machine lessons? Shopping in the "Holiday Store,"

hich is more like a garage sale than a store. It's where grandmothers go to get cheezy gifts for their grandchildren, such as $10 pen and pencil sets with a matching tie.

A beautiful sunset tonight, but we didn't see the "Green Flash."

After dinner (formal night = lobster!) we watched a juggler in the Piazza. He bounced balls onto a large keyboard on the floor, playing different songs while doing so and wearing tights (Eeeewwww). The performance was mercifully short.

Then came the Main Event - the "premiere" (for this ship, but not for the fleet) of a new production show called Bravo. Lasst year Princess hired a new producer with a Broadway background to come up with some new shows and this was the first one.

This new show was a departure from Princess' standard formula for a production show. It was classy and sophisticated and it allowed the performers to showcase some of their talent.

There were solo performances by guest soprano Jennifer Fair and the four featured singers in the ship's group of singers and dancers. We have seen Jennifer Fair on other cruises, and she is very good, with a background in opera. The songs included selections from well-known operas, Broadway show tunes, popular songs such as You Lift Me Up, and, inexplicably, theme songs from James Bond movies.

Theere were some outstanding dance routines performed by pairs, including a tango and an emotinal modern dance piece. The ship's dancers are capable of so much more than chorus-line numbers and quick coostume changes.

The ship's band was supplemented with a couple of violins, a flute, and a few more musicians, and that really mellowed out their sound. The singers used real microphones instead of those little things that wrap around the ear and extend in front of the mouth. As  a result, the volume was perfect and you could understand every word.

The show got TWO standing ovations, well-deserved. Bravo!

To the Lighthouse

October 8

Saint John, New Brunswick

When your directions say "Take NB 1 to NB 111," we learned that NB does not mean "Northbound."  It means "New Brunswick." This confusion could cause you to miss an exit.

After a couple of false starts we were able to reach St. Martins in about 45 minutes. It was a pleasant drive - first on a highway, and then on a winding country road with numerous steep hills. There were a few farms, a few pleasant cottages, and a few ramshackle trailer homes.

Arriving in St. Martins we encountered a very small village with charming Victorian houses, white-washed churches, and stacks of lobster pots in backyards. Past the houses was a little harbor with cute little fishing boats and more lobster pots. There was a former lighthouse with a shop in it (closed), and a picture-perfect covered bridge.

The tide is on its way out.

Around another bend we found a rocky beach from which one could view the Sea Caves. They were formed by waves eroding the sedimentary rock found here. At low tide you can walk out to the caves. The Sea Caves are part of Stonehammer GeoPark.  The GeoPark consists of 7 or 8 sites in and around St. John that have geological significance. Interpretive signage, supplemented by a website, explains each feature.  If I lived here (or if I had several days here) I would explore all of the GeoPark sites.)

We stopped at the Cave View Restaurant to try out some of their World Famous Chowder. It was early and we weren't that hungry, but we couldn't go there without trying it. It was sunny and warm - around 60 F. (The ship's weather report for the day said the high would be 45!) so we sat out on the deck and enjoyed the spectacular view. The chowder was thick, creamy, and delicious, and it came with a wonderful biscuit. It was made with lobster (big chunks), haddock, and scallops. The absence of clams precluded that fishy taste and smell that clam chowder tends to have.

A very short drive brought us to the entrance to the Fundy Trail Parkway. This is another GeoPark site. The Fundy Trail is a linear park following the coastline. There is a low-speed parkway for cars and a network of multi-use trails for hikers, bikers, and wheelchairs. There are numerous picnic spots and lookouts. (In Canada they are called "lookoffs.") The day was outstaanding, and so was the Fundy Trail. It was what I expected but didn't get from the Cabot Trail. The Fundy Trail is about 12 miles long. We stopped at almost every one of the 23 lookouts. Gorgeous views at all of them. The parkway dead-ends, so we turned around and drove ack, gaining a different perspective. The traffic was very light. The leaves were the most colorful we have seen so far, but still not yet at their peak. I can't recommend this highly enough for any visitor to St. John.

Flower-pot Rock

Heading back toward St. Martins, we noticed how much the tide had gone out. This shouldn't be a surprise. Doesn't the Bay of Fundy have the most extreme tides in the world?

Now comes the lighthouse part, with apologies to Virginia Woolf. As we drove back toward St. Martins we began to see occasional blue signs with a graphic of a lighthouse and an arrow. They were official signs, not commercial-type signs.  We eventually returned to NB-111, the longish country road we had come in on. At one point we came to an intersection and there was a lighthouse sign pointing to the left. There was a tour bus turning out of the road to the left and I assumed the lighthouse would be a short distance down that road since we weren't too far from the coast.  I love lighthouses, so I said, "Let's go see it!" We kept going and we were almost to the coast the road veered to the right. We thought we might have missed the turnoff to the lighthouse but then we saw another lighthouse sign pointing in the direction we were now headed. "I guess we should keep going."

Now we were driving parallel to the coast through an open low area. We had good sight lines and we couldn't see any lighthouses. The road was not exactly a back road, but it wasn't NB-111 either. It reminded me of Farmer's Loop in Palmer. By now we had been driving on this road about 15 or 20 minutes. We were tempted to turn back, but every once in a while a tour bus would pass us going the other way or we would see a blue sign, and it made us think we were close to the lighthouse, so we continued.  

We began to turn inland. We came to a settlement (it was even called "Garnett Settlement") and a few forks in the road. We always took the road that seemed more like the main road, but there was always a niggling doubt that we were lost and we would have a 30-minute drive back to where we started our lighthouse quest. Every time we were ready to turn back there would be another tour bus or another blue sign. There wasn't much on this road so we reasoned that the buses had to be here to visit the lighthouse. I kept hoping the road we were on would loop back to NB-111. It "felt" like a loop road, but maybe things are different in Canada.  So we drove some more, and all of a sudden we were back at NB-111. Yes! It was a loop.

And guess what we saw when we reached the intersection . . . A blue lighthouse sign pointing down NB-111 towards St. John. So what was the point of the loop road??? Were we being pranked?

Anyway, we continued onward until we reached the highway and we saw a few more blue signs on the highway. When we came to the turnoff for St. John there was a blue sign pointing toward St. John. O-kaaaayyy . . .

As we approached St. John, which is on a peninsula, mostly, we didn't see any more blue signs, and we didn't see any obvious lighthouses.

We did see two decorative (?) lighthouses on a pier near the downtown tourist area. (If they were real lighthouses, why would there be two together, and why would they be so small and at the bottom of the hill?)

We did see a lighthouse on an island connected to the land by a causeway. It was not open to the public as far as I could tell.

What am I missing?

So, here's a travel tip for renters of cars. Before you leave in the car, find out where there is a gas station. This will save you a lot of time.

Carleton Martello Tower in Saint John

Bought magnet in cruise terminal, got back on ship, drank cocktails. Saw comedian Tony Daro. Didn't like him, left early. Ate dinner. Saw International Crew Show. Liked it a lot. Looked outside and saw Northern Lights. Good Night!

The World's Shortest Ferry Ride

October 6

We have arrived in Nova Scotia, "Canada's Ocean Playground." Specifically, we are on Cape Breton Island, at the port of Sydney. (Note: in Nova Scotia, on Cape Breton, at the port. Why the difference? I will save the question of the quotation marks for another day.)

Nova Scotia - New Scotland - is proud of its Scottish heritage, but the Scots were relatively recent immigrants.  The area was originally settled by the Mi'kmaq (who gave us the word wigwam), perhaps as far back as 10,000 years ago. The Vikings may have visited somewhat later. The French began arriving in the early 1600's and called it Acadia. Starting in 1755 the British began the Expulsion of the Acadians, as in Evangeline:

This is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks . . .

After the American Revolutionary War, British Loyalists and former black slaves began arriving. Cruise passengers began arriving in in the 20th Century.

Our ship is greeted Scottishly

The Scots started arriving in the 1770's, and they left their mark. Gaelic is still spoken in parts of Cape Breton. Road signs are in English and Gaelic. Fiddling and step-dancing and ceilidhs are very popular here.

The cruise terminal in Sydney

Sydney is a city of about 100,000. It was founded in 1785. We have been to Sydney before, so we rented a car to see the countryside this time.

Our destination today is the Cabot Trail. The Cabot Trail is a scenic highway that follows the coastline of Cape Breton Island. It consistently makes all the "Top 10" lists of the most beautiful drives in Canada or in North America. The Cabot Trail makes a 185-mile loop and we were certainly not going to have time for that, so our goal was to drive to Ingonish and back. We had enough time to come and go, with a few stops, plus a little cushion so we didn't miss the ship.

There are two ways to get to Ingonish. You can drive around the foot of St. Anns Bay, or you can take the Englishtown Ferry. We thought the ferry might be more fun, though we were worried that it might involve some delays. We decided to take the ferry on the drive out to Ingonish and take the other route coming back.

If we turn to the left, the overland route will bring us around the foot of the bay to the opposite shore

If we turn to the right we will eventually come to the ferry

We turned right, and eventually came to a lookout point ("lookoff" in Canadian). What's that? Did they build a bridge?

Nope, there is still a ferry there and we just made it. Who knows how long we would have to wait for the next crossing. It must have to go all the way around that island there. (Actually, this photo and the next two were taken on the way back, but you get the idea.)

Wait. . . .It just goes over to where that other car is?

Under way? No, the ferry is still at the dock.

Two minutes. 

That's how long the ferry takes to make the crossing. Two minutes. It takes longer than that to drive down the causeway on the other side. Crazy!

There weren't many places to eat that were open this late in the season. We stopped at bakery/cafe called The Clucking Hen for coffee and a snack. Nice baked goods. Then we continued on along the Cabot Trail towards Ingonish. Ingonish wasn't much. We continued a little further and reached a toll booth at the entrance to a national park. This was as good a place as any, so we turned around and stopped at The Clucking Hen for lunch on the way back. Sandwiches with home-made bread.

I really wasn't that impressed with the Cabot Trail. Maybe the good part was the part we didn't get to see. I was expecting sweeping views of cliffs and ocean. We only saw a tiny bit of that. Much of the road stayed away from the coast and we saw a lot of boring trees and schlocky side-of-the-road tourist-oriented development. I hate to say it, but think this drive is over-rated. 

That being said, it wasn't all disappointing:

On the way back we missed the turnoff to the overland route and found ourselves at the ferry again. Oh, well. Ferries are always fun!

Here it comes!

Cheesy factoid:

Canadians eat more mac and cheese than any other country. (I tried to look up the spelling of mac and cheese and I found mac 'n cheese, mac n' cheese, and mac 'n' cheese. I would like to know the rule for this in case I ever have to write about rock and roll.)

Back on the ship we had a nice dinner and then saw a comedian named Tom Briscoe. He was very funny. Some comedians make fun of other people, and it is sometimes mean-spirited. Tom Briscoe is the kind who makes us laugh as he joins us in making fun of ourselves.