"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report # 94 Sailing Towards Aqaba, Jordan April 3, 2016 Sunday Partly cloudy & 89 degrees Gate Of Tears

Sent: Sunday, April 3, 2016 7:39:41 PM
Subject: Report # 94 Sailing Towards Aqaba, Jordan April 3, 2016 Sunday Partly cloudy & 89 degrees Gate Of Tears

The Amsterdam rounded the bottom of Yemen this afternoon, as we left the Gulf of Oman and proceeded towards the Red Sea. There is a spot where the shores of Yemen, on the Arabian Peninsula, and the country of Djibouti, in Africa are very close. Named the Gate of Tears, this chokepoint has been the scene of much turmoil, probably starting with the dawn of time.

We finally made it to the aft pool today for some r & r, and were already back there when we came upon this spot. People began pouring out of the inside of the ship to take photos of this very sensitive area of the world. Last year, there were Yemeni planes flying overhead, while bombings were happening within the interior. It was hard for us to believe we were so close to this, especially after we all recently watched this horrible news on TV. Way too close for comfort.

Today it appeared to be quiet on the shores, but you would need some powerful binoculars to see any movement in the buildings on the shoreline. Captain Mercer kept the pedal to the metal as we left the chokepoint behind in minutes. On the horizon, we could see other ship traffic, probably on their way towards the Suez Canal. Always good to know we have company. Unless, of course, the ships are Somalian or Yemeni. You never know……

The weather has remained warm with some humidity. It has kept a lot of folks off of the lower promenade deck, even early in the morning. Today we had a following wind, so the breeze was minimum at best. We doubt it cools down significantly until we transit the Suez Canal, and enter into the Mediterranean Sea. In the meantime, we need to enjoy the few days we have left to pass the time at the aft pool. Although there was a mention of rain this morning, it never happened. There were dark clouds, but we escaped any rain.

The lectures today included one from Barbara H telling us everything we need to know about Haifa and Ashdod in Israel. Since we were at both ports last year, we pretty much know what there is to do and see. Instead of heading into the Holy Land, we will stay close to the port cities, enjoying what they have to offer. Having saved handy maps from last year's visit, we will be ready and set to go off exploring.

The Show Chef David must have left the ship to go to the new ship, the Koningsdam. Show Chef Joseph must have replaced him while we were gone. He has taken over the cooking shows in the Culinary Arts Center. Today he was preparing Middle eastern bread pudding and one of our favorites…..baklava.

Only one guest speaker delivered his talk about the Red Sea this afternoon. For those who were interested in learning belly dancing, you could go to classes in the Crows Nest at 1pm. Good way to burn off a few calories.

Lunch for us today was in the Lido, because the dining room had another Sunday at Sea brunch from 11am to 1pm. It's a lot of work for the staff to set this venue up, but we supposed a lot of people like it. Unfortunately, we don't Custom-made sandwiches in the Lido were fine with us.

This evening the dress suggestion was Gala. Originally it was supposed to be "The Valley of the Kings" theme, but since all of the Egyptian ports had been cancelled, so was this theme night. Therefore, it became a "classic" gala, which means no decorations at all, and no one, including the waiters, dressed Egyptian. Too bad, as it can be fun to see the get-ups people come up with.

The meal was good, though. Escargots were the big appetizer, while entrees included surf and turf, rack of lamb, a pumpkin ravioli, three types of fish dinners, and pheasant. One of us ordered the surf and turf, which was lobster and filet mignon. The other had the lamb dish. When the lamb arrived, it was more than pink, it was almost rare. So we switched the lobster and steak with the rack of lamb ribs. We were all happy, especially when the dessert menu arrived. They had a very good carrot cake, and almost as good, lime jello with sliced fruit. And because it was a gala night, we had double company with Joanne and Michael, the future cruise consultants, joining us. We know them well, but the rest of our friends did not. Introductions out of the way, we had a nice time with them. Our overflow table did not have any officers, because they already had six at the table with Martha's friend Pam joining them. That made our group 16 tonight. What fun we have.

The entertainer this evening was a fellow called David Kidd aka Tom Jones. We guess he sings his songs like Tom Jones such as some of his early hits, and modern and raunchy tunes. We did not make up the description, as this is the way it was printed in the daily newsletter.

While we were walking the hallway towards the aft elevators to go to dinner, we spotted one of the room stewards pulling a large box down the hallway. Bet we are getting presents tonight. It was confirmed when we entered our room after dinner. There were two turquoise boxes wrapped with white ribbons on the bed. We had gotten two HAL Heritage Logo Boxes by Tiffani & Co. These covered bowls are solid blue with the HAL logo on top. The info for the Grand World Voyage 2016 was printed on the bottom of the bowl. We got similar boxes a few years ago, except those had the world map printed on the sides, with the ports on the lid. They are still nice and will look good with our older ones at home. They can be used for change or jewelry on a dresser at home.

Another gift was putting the clocks back one hour. We love that gift.

Bill & Mary Ann

Mountains of Djibouti