2008 12/31 - New Year's Eve on Grand Turk Island

Happy New Year friends!

We enjoyed an absolutely stunning day on Grand Turk Island in the Caribbean. This is a shot of our ship in the background. This port offers a stunning beach just off the pier. Shopping is dead-ahead in the terminal building, no vendors peddling wares. The lounge chairs are provided free of charge, no litter, beautiful white sand, a great walking beach and crystal clear water. We love it here and we'll be back again.

2008 12 29 St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

We have all heard about St. Thomas and it's beauty - and we'll state emphatically that it is true. We enjoyed a partly sunny day on the island and traveled by ferry over to St. Johns to Trunk Bay, part of the Virgin Islands National Park. Both are lovely and we really enjoyed the visit.

2008 12 28 Phillipsburg, St. Maarten, The Netherlands Antilles

We arrived St. Maarten on the Dutch side of the Island. It was an overcast, dicey day. The seas were moderate, but intermittent sunshine made the day very enjoyable. Here is a shot of the city as we approach the port. The second photo is a shot of the ocean from the beach on the windward side of the island, the French side.

2008 12 27 Roseau, Dominica

Dominica is a young, volcanic island and this time of year migrating sperm whales arrive to give birth to their calves. Here is the fluke of a female sperm whale as she takes her final plunge.

Here she is giving us a rainbow from her spout.













Our ship at port in the harbor.

2008 12 26 Port of Spain, Trindidad

Heavy rains in Trindidad caused our tour to be cancelled, so we left the pier and booked a taxi for a 2-hour tour around town. The population here is large, and quite poor. The nation, however, is wealthy as they have huge oil and natural gas reserves. Like in the States, the trickle-down hasn't trickled down. Port of Spain has a lot of crime and a big drug problem - nothing new. Infrastructure has been neglected and the people are suffering. Someone is getting rich - it's just not the people.

2008 12 25 Christmas Day - Barbados

Another lovely day in the Caribbean.

The weather in Barbados was partly cloudy and seas were moderate with 10' to 15' waves, but the island is a beauty! We enjoyed a tour of the island in a Land Rover 4 x 4 through some of the hills and forests, and through the sugar cane fields on the island.Our guide pointed out a few of the more historical buildings, old sugar cane plantations - most of which are long gone. We absorbed a bit of the history of this place and now better understand the impact it had on America.

2008 12 23 Mayaguez, Puerto Rico

The city of Mayaguez is building a new port in an attempt to lure cruise ships to Puerto Rico. Mayaguez is feeling the effects of the poor economy and our cruise ship was big news. Musicians and local artisans were brought into the town square to provide trinkets and entertainment for the insatiable shoppers from the cruise ship. The visit of the Prinsendam even prompted a live report by the local news anchor.

During our time at the square I was approached by a local woman (probably in her 60s) who wanted to interpret for me a song a perfomer was singing. She wanted me to know that song was about the struggle of the common laborer, the average man. The lyrics were asking them to hold on, that their struggle would not last forever, and that they cannot be kept down. That their hard work somehow would prevail.

The economy is tough here. Her also shared with me that her only son committed suicide recently because he could not find work, and could not support his daughter. He felt that if he was gone his baby daughter would at least get financial support from the government. A very sad situation indeed.

2008 12 22 Santo Domingo, The Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is an interesting country, with a mix of over 120 cultures. There is a huge population and the economy is struggling. Politics is politics and people in high places enjoy the nicest homes. Here is a photo of the electric service that goes into homes and buildings throughout the city. The mesh of wires is everywhere - down every street and intersection. It sags into the street and down sidewalks and the locals tell us service is unreliable and is often out several times a day, often for hours at a time. The next photo is of the Presidential Palace - it is just like our White House - complete with armed guards. We've heard much of the state of the economy from island country to island country throughout the Caribbean - no jobs, slow tourism, and the numbers of poor is growing at an alarming rate. They are concerned.

2008 12 19 Departing Ft. Lauderdale - Bon Voyage!

Bon Voyage - We're off. This photo is taken as we leave port in Ft. Lauderdale around 5 o'clock Friday evening. Can hardly believe we're off.

Bon Voyage! We're Off

We're like Rudolph on Christmas Eve - the bags are packed - made our list - checking it twice - hugs and good byes have been said - make like a tree and leave.....The next 14 days consist of the Caribbean, so Justin and Peyton - you enjoy all that snow for us. Take lots of pictures and we'll see you in the Spring.

Cruise Destinations

Recently we were asked about our plans for winter and for us it's back to sea. Last year we took a cruise that lasted 30 days and really enjoyed the experience. We're off again, this time beginning December 19th (08) for a back-to-back cruise through the Caribbean and to South America and Antarctica. The cruise line is Holland America.

For those of you who've asked, here is our itinerary.

14-Day Southern Caribbean Holiday Cruise

68-Day Grand South America & Antarctica Voyage


Itinerary

Day	Date	Port or Activity	Arrive	Depart
Fri	Dec 19	Fort Lauderdale, FL		5:00pm
Sat	Dec 20	At Sea
Sun	Dec 21	At Sea
Mon	Dec 22	Samana, Dominican Republic	8:00am	5:00pm
Tue	Dec 23	Mayaguez, Puerto Rico	8:00am	5:00pm
Wed	Dec 24	At Sea
Thu	Dec 25	Barbados	8:00am	5:00pm
Fri	Dec 26	Port of Spain, Trinidad	8:00am	5:00pm
Sat	Dec 27	Roseau, Dominica	11:00am	7:00pm
Sun	Dec 28	St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles	8:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Dec 29	St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands	8:00am	5:00pm
Tue	Dec 30	At Sea
Wed	Dec 31	Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos Islands	7:00am	1:00pm
Thu	Jan 1	Half Moon Cay, Bahamas	8:00am	3:00pm
Fri	Jan 2	Fort Lauderdale, FL	7:00am

Fri	Jan 2	Fort Lauderdale, FL		5:00pm
Sat	Jan 3	Half Moon Cay, Bahamas	8:00am	3:00pm
Sun	Jan 4	At Sea
Mon	Jan 5	At Sea
Tue	Jan 6	Barbados	8:00am	5:00pm
Wed	Jan 7	At Sea
Thu	Jan 8	Devil's Island, French Guiana	8:00am	4:00pm
Fri	Jan 9	At Sea
Sat	Jan 10	Macapa, Brazil	4:00am	4:00pm
Sat	Jan 10	Crossing the Equator
Sun	Jan 11	Santarem, Brazil	Noon	8:00pm
Mon	Jan 12	Boca da Valeria, Brazil	8:00am	2:00pm
Tue	Jan 13	Manaus (Amazon River), Brazil	10:00am
Wed	Jan 14	Manaus (Amazon River), Brazil		4:00pm
Thu	Jan 15	Parintins, Brazil	8:00am	5:00pm
Fri	Jan 16	Alter do Chao, Brazil	8:00am	3:00pm
Sat	Jan 17	Crossing the Equator
Sun	Jan 18	At Sea
Mon	Jan 19	Belém, Brazil	8:00am	5:00pm
Tue	Jan 20	At Sea
Wed	Jan 21	Fortaleza, Brazil	8:00am	5:00pm
Thu	Jan 22	At Sea
Fri	Jan 23	Maceió, Brazil	7:00am	3:00pm
Sat	Jan 24	Salvador, Brazil	8:00am	5:00pm
Sun	Jan 25	At Sea
Mon	Jan 26	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	10:00am
Tue	Jan 27	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil		6:00pm
Wed	Jan 28	Ilhabela, Brazil	7:00am	3:00pm
Thu	Jan 29	Itajai, Brazil	8:00am	3:00pm
Fri	Jan 30	At Sea
Sat	Jan 31	Montevideo, Uruguay	8:00am	6:00pm
Sun	Feb 1	Buenos Aires, Argentina	8:00am
Mon	Feb 2	Buenos Aires, Argentina		5:00pm
Tue	Feb 3	At Sea
Wed	Feb 4	At Sea
Thu	Feb 5	Port Stanley, Falkland Islands	8:00am	5:00pm
Fri	Feb 6	At Sea
Sat	Feb 7	At Sea
Sun	Feb 8	Cumberland Bay, South Georgia	8:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Feb 9	At Sea
Tue	Feb 10	At Sea
Wed	Feb 11	The Antarctic Sound (Cruising)
Thu	Feb 12	South Shetland Islands (Cruising)
Fri	Feb 13	Wilhelm Archipelago (Cruising)
Sat	Feb 14	At Sea
Sun	Feb 15	Ushuaia, Argentina	10:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Feb 16	Punta Arenas, Chile	10:00am	10:00pm
Tue	Feb 17	At Sea
Wed	Feb 18	At Sea
Thu	Feb 19	Puerto Chacabuco, Chile	9:00am	4:00pm
Fri	Feb 20	Puerto Montt, Chile	9:00am	7:00pm
Sat	Feb 21	At Sea
Sun	Feb 22	Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile	7:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Feb 23	La Serena, Chile	8:00am	5:00pm
Tue	Feb 24	At Sea
Wed	Feb 25	Arica, Chile	10:00am	7:00pm
Thu	Feb 26	At Sea
Fri	Feb 27	Lima (Callao), Peru	8:00am
Sat	Feb 28	Lima (Callao), Peru		5:00pm
Sun	Mar 1	Salaverry, Peru	9:00am	6:00pm
Mon	Mar 2	At Sea
Tue	Mar 3	Manta, Ecuador	7:00am	7:00pm
Wed	Mar 4	Crossing the Equator
Thu	Mar 5	Fuerte Amador, Panama	8:00am
Fri	Mar 6	Fuerte Amador, Panama		3:00am
Fri	Mar 6	Panama Canal (Full Transit)
Sat	Mar 7	San Blas Islands, Panama	7:00am	2:00pm
Sun	Mar 8	Santa Marta, Colombia	8:00am	5:00pm
Mon	Mar 9	At Sea
Tue	Mar 10	At Sea
Wed	Mar 11	Fort Lauderdale, FL	8:00am

2008 12 13 The Sandhill Cranes

I was tackling a few chores around the bus this afternoon when I heard an odd racket outside. It was the distinctive call of Sandhill Cranes. These majestic birds are comfortable around people on the golf course, but had taken a shine to the Tee Box on the 12th Green here at The Great Outdoors. Several of the neighbors were scurrying for their cameras to capture this amazing site. I was fortunate they were in the mood to be photographed.

2008 12 11 It's A Beautiful Morning

This morning provided us a particularly spectacular sunrise. The colors are amazing, but pass so quickly. I barely had time to grab the camera before it was over - and the pictures really don't do the splendor justice.

2008 12 02 Kennedy Space Center

It was an early start this morning touring the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral. A huge complex that will certainly take more than one day to take in everything. We're planning to return on Friday to do just that.

A guided tour took us through the entire Kennedy Space Center (KSC). This state-of-the-art Complex is not an Amusement Park - it is a working scientific complex. A amazing place to visit and work. It was fascinating walk down memory lane.

Do you remember these programs?

The Space Shuttle Program (1981 to present, more than 119 flights)
Launch Complex 34 - Apollo Program (1965-1968, 2 Unmanned, 1 Manned Mission)Project Gemini (1965-1966, 10 Manned Missions
The Mercury-Atlas Program (1962-1963, 4 Orbital Missions
The Mercury-Redstone Program (1961, 2 Sub-Orbital Missions)
Skylab & the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) (1973-1975, 5 missions total)
Historic LC 39 Launches - Apollo Program (1968-1972, 10 Launches
The International Space Station (ISS)(1998 to present, more than 22 Space Shuttle Missions to date)