Day 9 - Back Home

I'm awake before the alarm. Breakfast starts at 6:30. Our scheduled departure time is 7:30. I have toyed with using wheel chair assist. The walk 4 levels to the terminal and then to baggage claim is long.

Ultimately I decide to bite the bullet and just walk off. Even walking at my slow pace it will be faster than wheel chair assist and there are passengers that need the asssistance more than I do.

We leave the cabin at 7:30. Elevators are impossible so the first step is two flights of stairs with my carry on luggage. We quickly disembark and start the tedious walk. Back and forth on a sloped ramp to get down to the terminal entrance.

Actually the process was very smooth. Baggage is quickly located and facial recognition works flawlessly. No need to even pull my passport out of my pocket. Within 30 or 40 minutes we are in the car headed to Clermont. 

There have been wild monkeys in the brush next to Park N Go forever. This trip they were the most active I haver ever witnessed.  All over the road and even climbing on some of the cars.

The drive home is smooth, one of the advantages of returning on a Sunday. The weather is cloudy with a cold front expected later in the day.

I pass through the gate to our community just before noon. The temperature outside is 77 degrees. A dark cloud bank can be seen just to our west.

The wind begins to blow and within 20 minutes the temperature has dropped over 20 degrees.  One of the fastest significant temperature drops I ever remember.

Within a few hours the laundry is done and packed away until next time. When you ask? No idea, nothing is booked, but we are looking at a Princess cruise.

Day 8 Coco Cay

There are two large ships in Coco Cay today. I would guess between the two there are over 10,000 guests on shore.

The weather is perfect. Low 70's an occasional cloud and a slight breeze. The high seas of several days ago are gone.

I often just stay on the ship, but today I decide to walk ashore, wander around, and even avoid the shuttle. It is busy but not crowded. I confine my walking to the paved walkways and avoid the unstable sand.

When we get to the food building everything is open, there was available seating if we wished, and there were no lines. I indulge in a small soft serve ice cream.

The grounds are clean as expected. I head back to the ship.

Luggage is quickly packed so the rest of the day is free. Some music at the piano bar then meet everyone in the Crown Lounge before dinner.

Half way through dinner the head waiter sceams over the PA system telling us to thank his staff and remember them on our survey and then plays music that is deafening. In my opinion - disgusting. Worse than I remember on any ship. I share my opinion with management.

An hour of music in Central Park and the it is time to set the alarm for 6 AM.

The seas are flat as we travel the last few hundred miles back to Port Everglades.

Day 6 & 7 Sea Days

As we head north from Aruba the temperatures remain in the upper 70's. With the wind on our stern there is little breeze on the decks or balconies.

Every voyage brings a new experience. In the elevator on my way to Central Park the elevator stops at deck 8 but the doors won't open. Push the door open button, still no response. Try a different floor. Still no movement.

No panic. Its not like the elevator is falling. Eventually the elevator continues to deck 9. I exit, relay the issue to the staff and take the stairs down to 8.

Probably 15 minutes later while walking past the elevators the same elevator is at deck 8 with passengers unable to open the door. After 16 years The Oasis is beginning to show her age.

During the night the winds shift to the north and the temperature begins to drop.

On day 7 fewer people are at the pool but the sun remains bright.

The usual choice of trivia, shop sales, and classes like animal towel folding. We enjoy New Orleans Jazz on the boardwalk as young children play all sorts of games, eat cupcakes, popcorn, and hotdogs in a carnival atmosphere.

I've made a conscious effort to avoid writing about the obnoxious people in our society today, but I will digress for a few paragraphs. We decided to grab a bite in the suites lounge instead of having breakfast in chops.

They have two excellent coffee machines that grind and make your coffee to order. More to the point it also makes hot chocolate with hot milk or water, whichever you prefer. Fruits, pastries, and other goodies are availble to eat.

For most of the morning the lounge was quite empty. Then a woman came in and took a table near the entrance facing everyone else in the room. Placed earphones over her head and made what I presume to be a video call with someone. So what you may ask? Well with earphones she had no idea how loud she was talking. Everyone could hear nothing except her complaining abour her father, how bad a person her sister was, and how as soon as she got home she was going to talk to the warden.  It wasn't clear which type of warden, and it doesn't matter. No one else cared. Now hearing this once would have been bad enough, but she was one of those people that kept repeating everything over and over. Forget how irritated she made the other guests in the lounge, what about the poor person on the other end.

Tonight is lobster night, probably the busiest night for the dining room staff. We ask our servers to help us be finished in time for the 8:30 production show. They do a good job and we make the show with 10 minutes to spare.

The show, One Sky is good. After the show we have short break and then two comedians. I felt the one was OK, the other not. Not being a fan of comedians its ok.

Tomorrow we are at Coco Cay. Two days ago the seas were too rough and the winds too high for ships to dock. We will see what the morning brings.

Day 5 Aruba

We arrive in port early, not a difficult task since Aruba is only about 70 miles from our previous port.

We make the decision to stay on the ship today. The weather is great with the temperature about 80. Some clouds and one or two brief showers during the day. The wind is brisk at 20 or 25 most of the day.

I spend a few hours doing train club stuff and a few more writing my blog.

Most importantly my first task is to check on my sand bar trees. When I first came to Aruba about 14 or 15 years ago I noticed a few trees growing on the sandbar in the harbor 100 feet from the ship. At the time I thought they would be gone before I ever would return.

Much to my surprise a year later they were still there and  doing well.

In the years that ensued I kept track of "my trees". They may have even become the reason for a cruise or two over the years. Ok I really don't need much of a reason to cruise.

I step out on the balcony. All that remains are a few dead branches.  My trees have fallen victim to climate change and pollution. I guess I can no longer use them as a reason to cruise to the Southern Caribbean. But I could just come to pay my respects!

Breakfast as usual in Chops. There are only 69 "Pinnacle" level passengers so Chops is never busy for breakfast. Ship crew members are so good. Despite only sering us once a day, 2 passengers amongst the hundreds they encounter, they remember the details like I usually have orange juice and Lynn uses honey with her coffee.

After breakfast we head to the Suites lounge where I tend to spend lots of time. Uncrowded and quiet.

It is a training day for the crew. There is a reported fire.

A crew member needs to be extracted from an enclosed space, I only can assume a confined area in the engine room, and other crew members are guiding invisible passengers in an exercise to remove everyone from the ship. All in a days training which is conducted every week or more frequently.

Dinner tonight is a strip steak. Tender and properly prepared. As with most meals the portion is large and I am unable to finish it.

Tonight's entertainment is the Ice Show. Again one of my favorites.

The show ends about 10:30 and we head to deck 16 to watch as we set sail. The lights of Aruba fade into the night as we had northwest towards Coco Cay.

The next two days we will be at sea.

Day 4 - Curacao

I consider Curacao my most favorite port in the Caribbean.

We dock late, but it really does not matter. I let the crowds get off first, then follow. We are docked at the new dock, farthest from town. The P&O Brittania is docked at the first pier.

The weather is perfect. About 80 degrees, an occasional cloud and a strong breeze, probably 20 to 25 mph.

We walk towards town and are sidetracked for a local ice cream. That ended our trek. We sat for a bit, took a few pictures and watched the bridge opn for a freighter to leave port and then headed back to the ship. I'm really not admitting this but the long walks are getting harder. I know "long" is relative, but the walk to the ice cream shop and back was about 3 miles. Long for us.

Back on the ship and showered we go to Park Cafe for lunch. The beef sandwich was excellent. The ship is pretty quiet with most passengers ashore.

The suites lounge is a good hang out space. A bar within 50 feet, views all around, and uusually pretty quiet. A good place to type.

The Spaghetti bolognese was very good, but I realized later that it was loaded with sodium. A frequent issue with cruise ship food.

A set of "jazz in the park" in central park, and it is time to call it a night.

Our next port is Aruba, about 70 miles away.

2 sea days

It is about 1200 miles from Ft Lauderdale to Curacao, our first port of call. The journey will take us about 40 hours and we are expected to arrive just after 8 AM on Tuesday.

Breakfast in Chops hasn't changed. Uncrowded and good service. Later in the morning I entertain myself by listening to the shopping sales pitch. Not that I care at all about shopping, but he is a polished pitchman.  He knows, and uses, all the tricks.

I have access to the suites lounge on this cruise, an option that I am often denied because there are so many top level cruisers. Capacity is limited so only the top of the top cruisers get the benefit.

Coffee, snacks, and bar service is usually available. Located on deck 17 there is a good view of the ocean and the ship's pools below The. seating is comfortable.

When I return to the cabin to freshen up for dinner I face a very strong draft in the hallway. By strong I mean blowing hair and flapping shirt strong.

Yes, I will be judgemental and say the jerks in the cabin next to us left the balcony door wide open while simultaneously proping open the cabin door to the hallway. The resultant tornado through the halls disrupted AC for many dozens of passengers. I took it upon myself to close his door. A risky move but neccessary.

There are a lot of kids on this cruise. More than I expected for an 8 day cruise while school is in session, but overall they are well behaved. As usual, the searching for ducks is a frequent quest. I stoped bring ducks last year after witnessing how much damage irresponsible passengers were causing to the plantings in central park.

The weather is basically good. High 70's mostly sunny. There have been a few very short showers. Many northerners are getting a good tropical burn.

By the end of the second sea day the wind has increased and the seas are now 8 to 10 feet. If the captain hadn't told us, we would not have been aware. The  ship delivers no pitch or roll to the guests. What the seas do though is slow our progress. We will be an hour or hour and a half late arriving in Curacao. Whatever our arrival we will stay in port the scheduled time.

I did not go to see the production of cats. Several others did and said it was greatly improved from a couple years ago when they last saw it. Maybe the next time I am on Oasis.

The top tier event is very brief. About 5 minutes of entertainment, a few recognitions, and a few words from the Captain. Obviously many knew it wasn't worth the effort as attendance was poor. Years ago it waa a lavish afair. No more. 

The aqua show has been redone since I last saw it. Good and worth staying up for the 10:30 PM start time. Fortunately I rembered ear plugs as the music can be deafening.

Tomorrow we will spend most of the day in Curacao.

Jan 10 Oasis of The Seas

Our first cruise of the new year is on the Oasis of the Seas. 8 days to Curacao, Aruba and Coco Cay, Royal's private island.

The drive to Ft Lauderdale is uneventful. Adrienne and Steve are driving separately and will pick up Pann and Terry at the  Ft. Lauderdale airport.

We all get together on the shuttle bus from Park-N-Go to the  terminal. It wasn't planned that we would meet there, it just happened. Once the bus was full we head to the ship. The many times I have used Park-N-Go while sailing from here, this is the first time the shuttle did not take the main entrance but instead a back entrance through the industrial area of the port. Interesting to say the least. But definitely no traffic. Probably a concession by the port to expedite the thousands of passengers passing through the port each week.

The luggage is unloaded and handed over to the dock porters. We head to checkin.

Unlike our last cruise the process is quick and easy. Probably less than 15 minutes from stepping off the bus to being on the ship

Cabins wont be open for about an hour so we find seats at the Solarium bar and settle in for 8 days of R&R.

Several hours later I head to our cabin. The luggage is found and stowed away. I try to be consistant from ship to ship, but that is not always possible. At the time she was built The Oasis had some of best designed cabins, by today's standards she is outdated and not nearly as well thought out as more modern vessels. But don't get the wrong idea. She will be fine. It may just take me a little longer to find my toothbrush.

About a year ago I started bringing vacuum hand grips for the shower. To no avail here. The shower walls are textured and will not support a vacuum. At least there is a factory installed grab bar, a nicety missing on many ships.

One of the benefits of having spent literally years on Royal Caribbean ships is my loyalty level. As we approach the dining room, along with hundreds of other passengers, I am picked out by a staff member and whisked to the front of the line. No waiting for us. We are directed to our table in a secluded section at the back of the dining room.

The southern fried chicken and key lime pie for dessert was good. Service was a little slow, but that is normal on the first night as the crew gets to know thousands of new passengers.

After dinner we find Canilo a crew member that Steve Adrienne and I met about 6 years ago. They have kept in touch via Face Book, a medium I seldom use. We quickly find him in one of the jewelry and watch shops. Probably a step up from the liquor shop that he was woking in when we first met.

It has been a long day and a good night's rest is next on the agenda.

Seas are about 6 feet and skies clear as we head south to Curacao.

Day 8 - Sea Day

The seas remain calm as we head towards Port Canaveral at just under 20 knots.

The skies are partly cloudy and temperatures reach a high of 75 today. There is an occasional shower that drives everyone inside.

Especially on sea days there are often many games to entertain the guests. Jenga blocks is one of the more enertaining.  Using blocks of 2X4 requires that the shortest players be lifted by parents or others. In a challenge of passengrs vs. Officers, the officers won every time.

Several days ago we watched the rehersals for the tree lighting ceremony. It was perfomed tonight in a very packed Piazza.

Prime rib for dinner. One of the better meals, but service was worse than usual, but we do make it to the 9:30 farewell show.

Bags were packed this afternoon and placed in the hallway before turning in for the night.

Just before departure we get notice from the front desk that they want me to make final payment arrangements.

Quickly cleared up, but just another example of poor operation of the Sky Princess. They somehow screwed up my account.

I'm finishing this as we wait to disembark in Port Canaveral.  In conclusion: the worst ship I remember being on.

Day 7 Grand Turk

We arrive on schedule about 10 AM. the weather remains perfect, high 70's, sunny, with a slight breeze. We have booked a short tour of the island on an open air trolley. We depart the ship early for our tour and explore the shops a little.  There is a Margaritaville here with a large pool. The port district is very clean and appears to have been rebuilt after the devastating hurricanes of 7 or 8 years ago that destroyed most of the islands infrastructure.

Right beside the pier are beautiful pristine sandy public beaches. The water is crystal clear, possibly the clearest in the Caribbean. A few hundred feet from shore the water depth goes abruptly to over 7000 feet. Don't expect too retrieve anything you drop.

Some of our group has chartered a private snorkel trip, others enjoy the beach, we enjoy our tour. Many say this was the best stop of the cruise.

While waiting for our tour there is some unexpected excitement. Several dozen officers and staff, including the captain pass by at a brisk pace towards the beach. The first rumor is that someone jumped from the ship. Moments later it is reported that someone has been caught shoplifting. Two simultaneous incidents?

Ultimately we learn that someone jumped from the pier. Whether guest or crew is unknown. They swam to the beach. The clear violation? They crossed over the yellow line on the pier edge and by jumping in the water avoided  a security check going ashore. Shop lifting? don't know if that is true or not. Possibly authorities caught up with the swimmer in a shop.

Our tour was good. At our obligatory shopping stop some locally made coconut ice cream was delicious. The snorkelers and swimmers also had a great time. With only 1 ship, there were no crowds to fight.

There are many wild donkeys on the island. They enjoy running in front of vehicles and begging for food. They looked pretty well fed.

Dinner this evening is beef wellington. Despite being 10 or 15 minutes late to the dining room, our ser.vice was the best it has been all week.  

Most of the group goes to the production show after dinner. I catch half a set of the jazz band and call it a night.

Tonight and all day tomorrow we will be at sea on course to return to Port Canaveral on Monday.

Speaking of Port Canaveral, it was just reported that Port Canaveral is officially the busiest port in the World. Surpassing both Miami and Port Everglades, cities that previously held the honor.

Day 6 - San Juan

The weather remains perfect, temps in the high 70's with a nice breeze and sunny skies. We elect to stay on the ship today and enjoy the lack of crowds and lines.

As an extra bonus we enjoy several rehersals of the tree lighting ceremony which will be held later in the week. Princess has a new 30 foot tree with programmable lighting that is synchronized to the show. The cruise director for the next cruise will be hosting it as our current cruise director will be leaving the ship when we do.

After all the work to retrieve her dive book, the operator cancelled the dive trip due to rough seas at the dive site. Note that rough seas for a 21 foot dive boat are calm seas for a cruise ship.

Some of the group enjoy a walking tour of the fort. Others enjoy lunch at the oldest restaurant in San Juan, others enjoy the beverages of the local breweries. I enjoy the peace and quiet of the ship

The Silver Ray is docked near by. One of the smaller luxury cruise ships launched in 2024, she carries just over 700 passengers, 10 % of the number of passengers on the largest cruise ships. Not surprising, the fare per person per day is much much higher.

As we leave port the view of the fort is stunning. Seas are slight and the skies clear. Our next port is Grand Turk.

Day 5 St Marten

Today is another busy port. Again we have 5 very large ships in port. We arrive on schedule. We have two "tourist" goals for the day. First is to vist our friend Nick that owns a local restaurant and bar on the beach, probably for lunch.

Second Lynn is shopping for a new watch. She lost her's a number on months ago and has decided on exactly what she wants to replace it.  Research done before leaving home, it is now just a matter of finding a good price.

The ship docks on time. Some of the group has a kayak trip scheduled. Others plan a day at the beach.  We hit every jewely store we see on the way to the Lazy Lizzard. Nick is expecting us and has a table waiting. Good for him, this is a very busy day with so many ships in port.

As we get settled in we note that 80 percent of his guests are returning regulars like us. What better could be said about an establishment. The wings are good. The others arrive. Most of them settle in under the shade on the beach. Some to swim in the warm water, others to just soak in the sun.

After lunch and a few beverages we head back towards the ship. As I often find, the first store we checked wound up being the best choice for Lynn's watch purchase. She easily saved 40% compared to making the same purchase at home.

Usually I will go to a specialty restaurant once or twice to use on board credit. Another failure with Princess. No one has been able to make any reservatons for months. Thanks to including specialty restaurants with Premier class bookings, all sold out for months. I guess you can also interpret that as a statement on regular dining in the MDR.

I settle for second best and and order tenderloin and Lynn orders lobster in the MDR for an extra charge. Onboard credit is lost if not spent.

Several in our group have scuba diving scheduled for tomorrow. Unfortunately Adrienne forgot her dive book, leaving it at home locked in the safe.  For those of you that are not certified divers, the logbook is more important than a passport. On the same level as an airline pilots flight book, or a sea captains seamans log. Without it you can't work.

But all is  not lost. She sends a message to a friend with all the information to turn off the alarm system, get into the house and open the safe so he can send an electronic copy. It works, and she has the documentation to allow her to dive.

After the show I catch a little of the jazz band. Uncrowded, best seating on the ship, and Ok sound.  Unfortunately they don't play until 10 PM and later.

Next stop is San Juan.

St Thomas - day 4

Yesterday we made plans with Brian, Lynn's brother, on where we would meet him. Not an easy task as there are 5 cruise ships in port plus a US aircraft carrier with 4500 sailors on R&R. The ports are busy, the roads more so. As we approach we learn that Princess has encountered another itinerary change. There are 2 ports in St Thomas.  We are now assinged to the other one. After a few text messages a new meeting place is established. Actually to our benefit as we now are at least 30 minutes closer to where Brian and Noel are staying.

The ship is cleared and we are off for the day. The Marriot time share is very nice, but we are unable to get lunch there today. We drive to the nearby Westin resort. The main dining area only has seating in full sun. We decline and instead go to a restaurant near the beach. We were told they serve Hamburgs, just what we were looking for. Parking is scarce and the roads very rough and narrow. Forget the fact that they drive on the left side here. We are taken to the beach location in a golf cart.

Looking at the menu, everything is seafood. Neither Brian nor I can eat it.  We explain to our waitress the we were told they served burgers, chicken etc here. She talked to the chef. Of course he would fix us whatever we wanted.

Lunch was good and we had a nice view of the anchored G W Ford, aircraft carrier. Our nice visit must conclude. We are back to the ship in plenty of time to clean up for dinner.

Yes dinner. As I mentioned earlier there are 21 in our group, including our travel agent. An obscure fact that no one would pass on to us was the fact that when you book as a group with Princess the only dining option you have in 7:30 fixed dining time. No other option is allowed. I say allowed because until a few weeks before sailing Princess wouldn't share that detail with anyone, instead a day or two after someone would make a different dining reservation it would just get cancelled. It was only after many phone calls by the TA did someone at Princess share this little detail. Is it a big deal no, but the way it wasn't handled was very poor.

Service in the dining room is as you would expect with a table of 10 and 11 which includes 4 children. Even made more difficult as half of us switch tables each night to mix up the company. The staff manages to get us served in time to make the  show each night. So far they have been good.

The weather remains excellent. Tonight we head to St. Marten.

2 Sea Days

The seas remain slight, the skies mostly sunny. We are finally underway. Fortunately we have 2 days to make up for the late departure. That will not be a problem, we are cruising at 20  knots, well below our top speed.

We learn more about the delays on boarding day. The ship having spent the summer in Europe had to undergo an extensive Coast Guard inspection, the ship passed without a single citation.

Every crew member had to have a face to face interview with US CBP agents. Passports, visas and seamans logs had to be checked. A time consuming process.

Both of these steps have to be completed before passengers or provision loading can commence.

Having just completed a 16 day crossing, more than the usual amount of provisions had to be loaded. Usually the ship loads 300,000 pounds of provisions. Sunday they loaded 430,000 pounds plus dozens of pallets of Christmas decorations. Just to make it more difficult, some pallets with assembled and decorated trees would not fit through the loading door and had to be taken apart and handled as tree parts instead of trees. The description was "all the parts were just thrown in the hold"

The biggest culprit to slow loading - the fact that luggage was supposed to be presorted on shore so that each cart load would go to a specific area of the ship. Somehow the message was lost and luggage was not sorted causing a big delay when each cart of luggage had to be sorted on the ship. 

As we move south easterly through the Caribbean we can see several other cruise ships headed in the same direction. During the night there was a rocket launch, the recovered booster sits on itś recovery barge, headed back to Canaveral for another launch.

The weather is excellent, typical caribbean weather with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the 70's. The pool is crowded as expected. Some passengers should know better, but get too much sun anyway.

The ship is clean and in good repair. The shower arrangement is one of the better ones I have encountered, but the bathroom overall one of the smallest. The balcony is also one of the smallest. No chocolates on your pillow and so far no towel animals. But they did have a towel folding demonstration by several of the crew members. One cabin steward was the best I have ever seen. He was able to incorporate detail unequaled by his peers. Maybe his 24 years of experience was a factor.

The seas have remained under 2 meters so far. You can feel no motion to the ship.

Our first port of call will be St Thomas. We make plans to meet up with Lynn's brother from Wisconsin that is here for a week.

Nov 30 Sky Princess

From the start this was going to be a cruise like no other. I will be with 21 family members and friends for a 8 day cruise on the Sky Princess. Since booking the itinerary of this cruise has totally changed at least twice. Originally scheduled for the Western Caribbean, we are now headed to the eastern Caribbean. A month or so ago they changed the ports of call, and most recently, just within the past few weeks they have changed port times. 

Needless to say this has caused chaos for those that had made plans at any of the ports. fortunately for me I did not get caught up with any scheduling issues like some of my fellow passengers.

A couple of days before sailing I get a notice from Princess that boarding will not start until 1 PM because of additional clearance and inpections required because the Sky Princess was coming from a foreign country. At least they told us ahead of time. OK for me as I just stayed home untl after 11, in fact I didn't even start packing my suitcase until Sunday morning. The drive to off site parking was uneventful. The lot was very busy with 5 ships leaving Port Canaveral today. Our luggage is loaded and we are off to the terminal.

The line for security is long, winding back and forth outside the building, across the street, and up and down the sidewalk. Even though it is long, it does move, slowly. There is equipment for about 5 lines through security, only two are functional, probably another result of the ineffectiveness of our federal government. Once past security, it takes a few minutes to get checked in and to have ship security check our photos. It is basically just a walk onto the ship once past security in the terminal. All in all from parking the car to entering our cabin was just over 2 hours.

In addition to the dozens and dozens of pallets of provisions, there are another 2 dozen loaded with christmas trees and other holiday decorations. Our scheduled departure time comes and goes. The captain tells us we will be leaving about an hour late. It actually is closer to 3 hours late.  Loading the ship was the issue, again a process primarily controlled by the host port not the cruise ship.

No changing clothes for dinner tonight. No one has luggage yet. How bad can I be?   Everyone understands, we are all in the same boat, literally.

Our group has 2 large tables in the dining room. Service is slow, but that is to be expected on the first night. We finish in time for the 9:30 show. A juggler, Charles Peachock, from Orlando. Very talented, an excellent show.

We will spend the next 2 days at sea with our first port of call St. Thomas, that is unless Princess changes it again.

Oct 26, 27 Ogden, Utah

It is about an hour from the SLC airport to Pam and John's house near Ogden, Utah. We stop for dinner on the way.

The weather has changed, it is much cooler than expected. The tops of the mountains are covered with snow. No problem, I didn't plan any mountain climbing.

Our days plans have been sidelined by our ineffective politicians. We had planned a trip to Promontory park, the site where the transcontinental railroads met. Unfortunately the park is closed because of the government shutdown.

Additionally the new golden spike moument is still in storage. We sailed with the scupture last year and were looking forward to seeing his creation. Even though the 40 foot gold guilded spike has been finished for a couple years now, the park isn't prepared to install it. So goes the plans of travellers.

Instead we spend the day just visiting.

I purchase tickets for the Huber Valley excursion train for Monday. Maybe we will have better luck.

Monday morning is cloudy and cold with a splattering of rain. Huber Valley is about an hour away near Park City.  On the way we plan a stop at the Union Station in Ogden. Again our plans are foiled. Access ia essentially denied because they are using the station to film a movie. What exactly we don't learn.

A couple of pictures through the fence is the best I can do. We continue on our way

As we climb in elevation to over 5000 ft the air temp gets lower, to about 35. In spots the mountain tops are hidden in clouds.

By the time we get to the Huber Valley station the weather totally changes. The skies are blue, the sun is out, and temperatures have risen.

The railroad is in good shape. The trip covers about 10 miles of well maintained track. They have about a dozen restored cars, today they are only using one. It's about 80% full.

Around they yard they have lots of spare equipment. Trucks, axles, even a spare power plant and motor for the GP9 they are using today.

The scenery is what it is.  Too late in the fall for any colorful foliage, too early for the snow.

Teenagers for conductors and a 70 year old train robber and story teller. Just as should be expected on a tourist train.

We stop at Roosters for dinner, a local pub and brewery, well as much of a brewery as you will find in Mormon country. I order a cheeseburger with fries. The fries are cold, the server brings another batch from the kitchen. They are worse. A sequence of events I don't think I have ever experienced before.

Tusday morning and it is off to the airport to fly home. The temp is about 30. Pam has to use this strange scrapper thing to remove the ice from the windshield. The smog over SLC is very apparent. Since I was here about 25 years ago there has been tremendous growth. Traffic is heavy, urban sprawl at it's finest.

There are about 30 empty seats on our plane. We are late boarding as the crew was tied up on their prior flight, but we still manage to leave on time.

I have plenty of time on the plane to write this, and even post it as there is free WiFi. Much more timely than I usually am at the end of a trip.

About 4 weeks before our next trip.

Saturday Oct 25

We arrive in San Diego just after 6 AM. The skies are overcast and smoggy or foggy.

We are followed into port by the Niew Amsterdam, a larger, newer Holland ship.

The ship is cleared by 7:30 and disembarkation begins. Our luggage tags are specific to our airport bus, and we are not called until the bus arrives. It takes 10 minutes at the most to disembark, find our luggage, clear customs and board the bus. One could not ask for it to go smoother.

The drive to the airport is only about 30 minutes. Everyone is let off the bus at the same place, so the bus driver is not having to sort luggage by airline. It is a short walk to Delta curbside luggage check in. Check in takes just minutes.

Follow the signs to TSA. Our boarding passes are properly marked for TSA preapproval. That should help us avoid the longest lines. It does.

However there are always new experiences. There is a TSA officer in line in front of Lynn. She overhears him tell the inspector "check the elderly gentleman coming in this line". Obviously I raised a concern, drug smuggler or terrorist I don't know which, it doesn't matter. In addition to electronic scanning, and a pat down,  my hands, clothes and shoes are swabbed to detect any residue of drugs or explosives. To their disappointment none are found and I am allowed to pass on my way. Only a 5 minute delay.

Even with the extra scrutiny we have several hours before our flight. A schedule chosen on purpose to allow for the unforeseen.

The flight is on time. Just over 2 hours. The mountain tops are covered with snow. The SLC terminal is only a few years old. So much more spacious than many of the older airports. They even have a carousel for oversized luggage. A first for me.

John meets us at baggage claim and helps with our luggage and Pam arrives with the van after a simple call. Ogden is about an hours drive. We stop for dinner on the way. An old western themed restaurant where each table replicates sitting in a covered wagon. The steak was excellent, the waiter good.

When we arrive the temperature is about 70. Tonight we expect the mid 40's.

Oct 24 - Ensenada, Mexico

The air temperature is a little cool at 60 degrees when we arrive at port in Ensenada, Mexico. We had a shore excursion schelduled for today, but it was cancelled by the cruise line so we will just walk ashore.

The air is heavy with fog or smog.  By 10 when we get off the ship the air is a little more clear and a comfortable 70. We walk to the center of town where there are dozens of vendors set up selling everything from food and drink to souvenirs. We purchase nothing.

There is a Carnival ship at the next pier. An ambulance was awaiting their arrival. Fortunately not for us, we have had few medical incidents these past weeks.

For the past several days I have been considering a 30 day cruise from Florida to South America and then up the Amazon river.  The realization of the probability of yellow fever and many other unique tropical bugs, and my love of very hot humid weather, tipped my judgement in deciding it probably would not be a good idea. The biggest factor against it is that November and December are some of the best weather temperatures in Florida. End of debate. Off the list.

The ship is much busier at lunch time today including a group of Mexican police on board getting a free lunch. Personally being busy is a little surprising as it is so easy to just walk off the ship today compared to our previous tender ports. On second thought maybe it is the fact that local authorities are checking all passengers with drug dogs as we exit the ship. Rather ironic considering how many drugs are smuggled into the US from Mexico.

Tonight we say our goodbyes to the crew. As usual they have been exceptional. Last concerts by the string instrumentalists from the Ukraine and the last set of the dual piano players.

All the entertainers are leaving the ship tomorrow as the following two weeks are private charters. Jazz, then Blues. They bring all their own entertainers.

Our bags are packed and put out to be taken off the ship when we arrive in San Diego Saturday.  It cost a few dollars more, but we are taking a Holland arranged charter to the airport in the morning.

Saturday we fly to Salt Lake City to vist Lynn's daughter Pam for a couple days before heading to Florida.

October 23 - Avalon, Catalina Island

Again another tender port. We arrive about 6:30. By 8:00 the tenders are ready to take passengers ashore. We have made no plans for the day and decide to remain on the ship.

The coast reminds me of Europe. Steep slopes with stacked houses.

The seas are almost like glass. The skies cloudless. When we arrive the air temperature is in the high 50's. By noon we warm to the low 70's. Another georgeous day. Many passengers go ashore, probably 750 stay on the ship. The pools have a few takers, mostly young children.

Four lifeboats are used today to shuttle a steady stream of passengers ashore. There was only a small handful of tours available, so shopping, beaches, and drinking will be the predominant activity.

There are a number of dolphin pods nearby, unfortunatelyy too distant and too fleeting for pictures, but it is neat to watch them circle the fish, concentrating the numbers to make lunch easier. Then the gulls descend en mass to feast on the scraps.

It is getting near the end of the cruise. Transportation from the port to the airport is confirmed. Luggage tags are delivered to the cabin. This morning was our last opportunity for laundry.

Tonight's headliner is a singer named Savannah Smith. A regular in vegas she is very high energy and very good.

The seas remain calm as we head to Ensenada, Mexico. Our last port of call before returning to San Diego.

Oct 22 - Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara is a tender port. We use half a dozen of our life boats to ferry passengers to shore. Tender scheduling is pretty well organized. Everyone gets a ticket and they call ticket numbers as the tenders are ready to board.

A crew member operates one elevator specifically to take passengers from the gathering place on deck 2 to deck A where we board.

Our hour and a half Trolley ride was slightly worse than boring. 90% of what he had to say was about some actor that lived here or there, and how much the house sold for. I could care less.

Back on the ship an excellent burger for lunch from "The Dive".

This afternoon a couple of sets of classical music with piano, bass and violin. A normal feature on Holland but missing for the past few weeks. My guess is they didn't make the ship in Vancouver.

Our waiter spent the afternoon working shoreside and didn't make it back to the ship in time for dinner. The pressure was on his assistant to do everything. Though a little nervous Alexis did fine. Many others on the staff jumped in to help, especially when his table of 12 arrived and was immediately followed by a table of 8.

We are seeing the extremes of Holland America. Nearly three weeks with mostly mature passengers from a multitude of cultures and countries with many sea days followed by a low cost four day cruise of mostly young Californians. I won't say booze cruise, but probably as close as Holland gets to one. Definitely a different atmosphere.

Next werk the entire ship is under private charter to a jazz and blues group. No one can stay on unless they have already booked with the private charter. Holland just makes 1 sale to the group, and they handle all the details.

Tomorrow we sail to Avalon on Catalina Island. The weather remains near perfect.

Oct 21 - San Diego

We arrive in San Diego after 5 days at sea crossing the Pacific from Hawaii.

We are at the pier before 6 AM. The fog is thick with visibility of only a few hundred feet. The city is not visible from the ship.

We have a tour at 9:30.

There are no clearance procedures to disembark the ship, just walk off. Most of the passengers are leaving the ship today, about 250 of us are staying on for another 4 days.

The tour has 35 passengers. The guide is well versed on San Diego and is also telling the bus driver exactly which streets are the best to take.

By the time we have left the pier, the fog has lifted and the sun is out. Temperatures are in the low 70's. We have won again with another perfect day.

After a drive through various sections of the city we head to Balboa park for a brief visit. No, no ops session on the model railroad today.

The highlight of the trip is La Jolla. Sea lions and pelicans have taken over the beach. Hundreds of them to the delight of tourists but to the irritation of the locals. The stench at nearby restaurants and luxury hotels is unbearable, but the wildlife wins because they are protected.

Our tour finishes with shopping and time for lunch in "Old Town". A classic overpriced tourist area of dozens of shops. Being very poor shoppers, we settle for an ice cream cone.

Heading back to the ship I do one of the dumbest things I have done in years. I get off the tour bus and leave my phone in the seatback pocket in front of me. After having walked into the terminal and emptying my pockes for security do I realize what I have done.

Lynn, being must faster than me works her way backwards through the line, explaining to security people why she is going the wrong way.

The cooperation of everyone was fantastic. Through a joint effort of ship personnel, security officers, tour operators and port security the bus was stopped at the exit gate of the pier. Lynn was able to walk over to the bus and retrieve my phone.

I bet I don't do that again, but won't promise not to do something else just as stupid.

When we arrive back at our cabin, we are unable to open our safe. A call to the front desk and a clerk with the special key resets it for us.

The slot machines have been removed from the oceanview bar area. Much of the crew has been assigned new work areas. New passengers are trying to find their cabins. Many of the staff recognize us and tell us that they are working in such and such area this cruise. A string trio has now joined the ship. A Hilland America usual that was missing the first part of the trip. We also have a group that will be playing in the Ocean View Bar now that the slots have been removed.

The ship is scheduled to leave at 3:00. We enjoy sailaway from the crows nest bar.

We go to the dining room at our assigned 5:00 PM. We have the same table and staff as we have had for the past three weeks.  Tory, our head waiter made sure of that. It sure is nice to just walk past all the passengers waiting for table assingments. There are two large tables near us, they both have more kids sitting at them than were on the entire ship the previous 3 weeks.

We have a new comedian tonight. OK but not in the upper half of rankings in my opinion. Show times have been restored to the more common 7:30 and 9:00. We do the early show. The theater is packed.

This 4 day leg of the cruise did not sell well and was heavily discounted, hearing many cabins went for less than $500 with kids sailing free.

Tomorrow we are Santa Barbara. A tender port with an early tour.