Here We Go Again - Oct 8

Sunday, October 8

It doesn’t feel right to write frivolous things about a cruise when so much terror, chaos, and malice is emanating from the Middle East. I am aware of the situation. I may be on a ship in the Pacific Ocean, somewhere between L.A. and Honolulu, but I have access to the internet and to satellite TV news. I am aware, and I am alarmed. 

I never wanted this blog to be about politics. This blog is how I communicate with family and friends while I travel. This is my journal. This is my lens. I find that I look at things differently — and, I hope, more thoughtfully — when I know I will be blogging. So I am going to keep on experiencing travel, observing my surroundings, and writing (about anything but politics). I am very fortunate to be able to do this.

This morning we took a Lyft to the port at San Pedro. The traffic was light and everything went smoothly. We boarded the ship right away, with a minimum of fuss, and found our stateroom. 

This was a voyage that had been originally scheduled for April of 2020, but we all know what happened in March of that year. The trip was rescheduled a couple of times, and here we are. We got a good price on a suite, and we felt it would be a good value due to the number of sea days coming up. So we found our stateroom, as I said, and it exceeded our expectations.

Our sitting area, where fruit and canapés awaited us. Not shown: a desk, a bar, and another chair, plus doors out to the balcony.

The bedroom and part of the vanity. Not shown: a large wardrobe

The bathroom, includingtuba and part of the shower. Not shown: a powder room space connected by a door to the bathroom, containing a toilet and sink

More treats arrived soon after we did

This is what really makes our stateroom - a 270 degree balcony on the aft corner of the ship

We are going to have a very fine time on the Majestic Princess. We may never leave our stateroom.

We met our steward, Edward, who is from India, and he made sure we had everything we needed. Our luggage arrived and we unpacked. Suddenly, it was time to set sail.

The captain announced that we would be backing out of the harbor, so it was interesting to be in an aft stateroom. At one point, we heard sea lions (or seals?), and we soon saw their noses poking out from the water.

Backing out of the harbor

As we left the harbor, the water turned a color that I couldn’t name. It was a combination of green and brown and slate grey. We passed restaurants and tour boats and a shipyard for fire boats and tugboats. I could hear mariachi music floating across the water from one of the restaurants. I could almost see the music. Quietly the huge ship began to turn around, and, bow first we left California behind.

We had dinner at The Catch by Rudi. I love the glassware they use. They should have a shop onboard that sells it.

Afterwards we went to see a comedian. We didn’t think he was funny. Since when is a child getting beaten by his parents and grandparents funny?

Finally, Ted Stevens. Why was I smiling in that picture? I guess I was smiling at the absurdity of it. This is one of the reasons why I think airports and other things should not be named after people. First he was so beloved they named the airport after him before he died. Then he fell into disgrace. Then the charges against him were dismissed due to prosecutorial misconduct — not quite the same as being cleared. Then, ironically, he died in a plane crash. His name is still on the airport.

And what would Uncle Ted think if he came back today and saw what has happened in the last 8 years or so?

Today’s fabric is Grunge Basics Wren, by Moda. It is the closest I could come to the color of the water as we left the harbor in San Pedro.