With all the diversions we have had in the past week, we arrive in Ponta Delgada only 15 minutes lates. Local authorites quickly clear the ship and passengers begin to disembark.
The weather is great, partly sunny with skies expected to further clear thru the day. The temperature as we disembark is in the high 60's, definetly jacket weather for a Floridian.
We do not have an excursion here and have elected to just walk the water front and local shops near the port.
We spotted a local shop with lots of chocolate choices and decided to pick up a few on the way back to the ship.
The dock itself is quite old, but the small stone walkways are in good condition. Many crabs are spotted on the rocks, several locals are swimming in the harbor. Fishing boats, whale watching boats and rental houseboats occupy many slips in the harbor.
Many small shops, restaurants, and bars stretch out along the harbor. On the other side of the street there are many high rise buildings which appear to be condos, scattered among some structures that date back 300 years. None of the pushy salespeople like in much of the Caribbean.
With a local population of about 60,000, the 4000 passengers form the ship definitely have an impact on the city for the day.
Headed back to the ship, we do not go past the chocolate store. Our loss.
Back on the ship, it is very quiet in the afternoon. Our dining table mates have an excursion that will not get them back to the ship until 6:30, too late for their 5:00 pm dinner.
The "kids" are absent again tonight raising speculation if they will return to the dining room at all.
At 7:00 PM we set sail for Malaga, Spain. Two sea days way. Everyone returned to the ship on time. A good sign.
Tonights entertainment is provided in the context of a talent show for crew members. Many crew members have auditioned for inclusion and are competing for a first prize of a new IPad.
Simply put, most of them are better than the paid performers. Two native dance groups, two solo singers, a concert pianist and a magician.
The magician won with a mind boggling card trick that had everyone scratching thier heads as to how he did it.
Yes the captain sang also, but not as a competitor.
The head waiter has been working on his phone problem. Someone has given him a phone and he hopes while he is in Italy next week he can get the needed sim card.
The next two days will be sea days. The weather is cool but otherwise great. The seas are expected to remain under 2 meters, or 6 feet.
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