Today was another welcomed day at sea on our way to Puerto Chiapas, Mexico tomorrow. No doubt, it was going to be hot with temperatures in the mid 80’s and humidity at 73%. The winds were no help with 3.7 mph breezes, although the ship’s speed did add some wind at 18 knots. There were scattered clouds with some sun peeking through.
We did have some invites today beginning with a “Behind the Scenes” 1.5 hour tour at 10am to see the hotel facilities such as the kitchen operation and the laundry room. We don’t believe the bridge was part of this tour. On past cruises, we have toured these key working areas as well as one-on-one visits with a few captains showing off the bridge and the navigation equipment. Then we had a private visit with Head Housekeeper, Shiv, who took us down to the laundry area and had the crew show us how their innovative equipment worked. We never would have guessed how the thousands of tablecloths, toweling, and bed sheets were washed, dried and actually folded by one clever piece of machinery. In addition, we saw how t-shirts and dress shirts were blown up with hot air instead of pressing by hand. Shiv showed us the special commercial-sized washing machines that handled linens from guests rooms that were quarantined. And he showed us the “dry” cleaning machine which was not chemical-based but used an apricot type of biodegradable solvent instead. He did not recommend sending your good clothing here. Speaking of Shiv, we miss him most of all since he left the company.
Anyway, a safety warning came along with this invitation informing the invited guests that there would be stairs, long-time standing, and walking longer distances. No full-time users of scooters or wheelchair people would be allowed to participate. Non-slip soled shoes were required and we know there were warnings about excessive heat and noise. And on our fall cruises, we saw this tour was available for a price around $179 per person. Today, it was complimentary. Since we have seen these areas and more, we did not attend.
The biggest discovery of the day was spotting green turtles in the water from early in the morning until darkness. While one of us worked on the reports, the other had fun photographing the small retiles as they got tossed about from the sides of the ship. These green sea turtles are found worldwide, but in larger numbers in this part of the world. Some of the largest nesting grounds are found in Baja California and the Sea of Cortez. Their life cycle begins as they hatch and the sex is determined by the warmth of the nest. Too hot, the turtles become female, the cooler part of the nest produces the males.
Basically, the adult turtles are herbivorous but are omnivorous in their younger years. Enemies are people (fishing industry and illegal poachers), sharks, shorebirds, crabs, foxes and jackals. If the small hatchlings make it to the water, they will stay near the coast for 5 years. In shallow waters, they will dive up to 4 to 5 minutes, and surface to breathe 1 to 3 seconds. Once hatched, they can live up to 90 years. Adults can reach 5 feet long and weigh as much as 419 pounds. Some males have been recorded weighing 694 pounds. For the most part, they are highly protected these days, although there are still some countries that sell all parts of these turtles for their meat, shells, and eggs.
As far as migrating is concerned, these turtles can swim up to 1600 miles to their spawning grounds – the exact place they hatched. Incredible. Females mate every 2 to 4 years, and males will mate anytime. And they are not sexually mature until they are 20 to 50 years old. Also incredible. We are lucky to be seeing some of these youngsters as we sail past the coast of Mexico. We sure hope that not many of them are not injured as the ship plows through the groups.
Captain Frank came on with his talk and mentioned we had passed Acapulco this morning. There was a day when cruise ships regularly stopped there, but once the political violence became a factor, we have not been there on any HAL ship. Just as well as there are many alternatives. Due to the fact we were late in leaving Manzanillo, the speed needed to get to Puerto Chiapas was not enough. He needed to add another engine to get the ship to the next port on time. The pilot would be picked up around 8am tomorrow morning, with a narrow channel to navigate before docking portside in the outskirts of town by 10am.
He added that the temperature would be rising to over 90 degrees and even higher in the inland areas where the tours would be headed. Bring lots of water. There was a slight chance of a late afternoon shower tomorrow as well. The sunset was 6:45pm and the sunrise 5:45am.
We had lemonade time at the Seaview Pool with Greg who updated us on ship happenings and harmless ship gossip. Later in the afternoon, there was a Biergarten Festival in the Lido Poolside with beer, of course, and live music from the Dam Band at 5pm. The Lido Marketplace turned into a German Themed dinner. Greg and his entourage will check it out before dinner to enjoy some of the appetizers such as pretzels.
Another invitation was to a private afternoon tea for the President’s Club members held in the Pinnacle Grill at 3pm. There was live music from 3 to 3:45pm. It was a nice and new event, but we do not drink tea, nor did we need the extra food before dinnertime. So we did not attend, but thanked them anyway for their effort.
We skipped lunch and had a few room snacks since we had reservations in the Pinnacle Grill. The dining room featured German cuisine, but the Canaletto served Mexican tonight. We had our usual wedge salads with two strips of candied bacon. Presented on a larger plate, we were able to cut up the large wedge salad serving and not spill it everywhere. Honestly, this was enough for a meal, but we did not end it there. Both of us ordered the lamb chops, which are always good. We shared a flute of skinny French fries, and barely did that justice. Dessert was one slice of Key lime pie, cut in half, which was just enough with no room for the pretty little macaroons. We had expected the room to be full of guests, but there were only a dozen or so diners present. Among them were the Captain and his wife who were celebrating an anniversary. Always nice to see them enjoying the trip as well.
Entertainment this evening was a singer by the name of Spencer Day, with Sinatra tunes. It never gets old for this group we assume. As always, there was a Wajang movie, My Old Lady”.
Hope it isn’t too hot tomorrow….we shall find out soon.
Bill & Mary Ann
