Report # 114 Day at Sea February 29, 2020 Saturday Mostly sunny & 83 degrees

Happy Leap Day, the extra day in February that occurs once every four years.  If you were born on this date, perhaps you have discovered the fountain of youth, since your age is only ¼ of everyone else's.  Would be nice if it really worked that way.

 

It was a bit cooler today with a tad less humidity.  Compared to yesterday's heat in Tonga, it was most welcomed.  It seems that the ship has had problems with directing the air-conditioning equally throughout the vessel.  At times, it was sweltering on Dolphin deck at the stairway down to Deck A.  Then the public areas were cool, to the point that many people were wearing jackets and sweaters.  The dining room was also warm this evening, just in time for Gala night of course.

 

We think that the Maori Ambassadors are towards the end of their stay here.  This morning they performed the Maori War Dance, where the purpose was to scare the enemy with extreme facial expressions.  One of those was sticking the tongue out.  Even more hilarious, was watching Greg ad Heo duplicate this tactic at dinner tonight.  They did it well, making us all laugh. 

 

Another subject of interest for us was the talk about the endangered parrots of Eastern Polynesia.  But try as we might, we could not get the timing right to catch his lecture on TV later in the day.  We would have been curious as to how the speaker, Gerald McCormack, was adding birds with a transboundary reintroduction.  That has happened to us at home many years ago, when we accidently left a door opened to an aviary, and several wild turkey poults escaped.  Not sure if this contributed to the huge number of flocks we have in or county, but surely some of the blood line might have survived.

 

Port talks on upcoming New Zealand cities were delivered today.  That is a good indication that we will not be turned away.  And shore excursion is still selling tours in Australia, so that looks good too.   People are still talking about the changes with the itinerary, but in a good way.  As much as we love Singapore, we sure do not wish to take any chances going there.  Our biggest concern at the moment is that we may be allowed in an area that is fine, no virus, then after we leave, they have a breakout.  That might affect every port after that. We may be turned away, like what is happening to several cruise ships lately. No sense worrying about something we cannot change at this point.

 

We spent the better part of the day at the Seaview Pool, mostly due to the fact that in a few days, we will begin to cool down and no longer go to the pool.  It has been so pleasant back there, we really enjoy the quiet time.

 

During the day, we made several attempts at going online to send and receive emails.  Did not have much luck at all.  We are not alone, as everyone is having the same issues.  If this ever gets fixed, we will be surprised.

 

We are still getting notices regarding important health advisory instructions.  Today's note was titled "Keep calm and wash your hands".  Cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing.  Don't touch your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.  And void sick people.  These are things we must have learned in kindergarten.  Watching people's habits, we would say that most of this common-sense stuff has been long forgotten.

 

Our two week delivery of sodas came through today for our President's Club amenity.  Just in time, since we have run out.  Since we have purchased the nice long-lived flowers in Tahiti, we do not need to add that to our delivery for a while.

 

Gala dinner was Bowlers and Bumpershoots, a theme for being en-route to Commonwealth Nations.  "Bowlers" is for the top hats, and "bumpershoots" is for umbrellas.  These parasols were hung with paper clips from the ceilings in the dining room.  At times, when the ship was rolling, some of these fell to the floor.  Now we might be wrong, but isn't it bad luck to open an umbrella inside a room?  Something like walking under a ladder used to be bad luck.  So during dinner, we kept a watch on the umbrella hanging over our heads.

 

Another funny thing happened tonight.  We had been scheduled to have a guest host, but by 8:25pm, no one had arrived.  Asep informed us that the chief engineer was slated to join us, but something had interrupted him, and he could not attend.  Not to fret, however, since they sent the wine (or soda) in his place anyway.  The shrimp appetizer was good, as were the entrees of arctic char, and rack of lamb.  The surf and turf was reportedly excellent as well.  Chocolate souffles and Oreo cheesecake was a good way to end the meal. 

 

The show was a repeat of  singer Annie Frances and Jim Hodson, a multi-instrumentalist.  At the 7:30pm show, we could hear Miss Frances all the way to the Ocean Bar with her booming voice.  There appeared to be standing room only.

 

One more day at sea, and we should be in Auckland, New Zealand.  

 

Bill & Mary Ann  

 

 

 

 

 

Report #113 Nuku'alofa, Tonga February 28, 2020 Friday Partly sunny & 81 degrees

Tonga is the only country in the South Pacific that has never been colonized.  It is a small kingdom with a king, where culture and tradition has remained the same for centuries.  There are 171 or 176 islands belonging to Tonga, with Tongatapu the largest.  And this is the island we will visit today, at the capital city of Nuku'alofa.

 

Captain James Cook came here in 1776, and named the area the Friendly Islands.  He arrived to islands with a 3000 year old history and 1000 year old monarchy.  Bet they were invited to share the Kava ceremony as was the norm back then as it is now.

 

Missionaries arrived here in the 19^th century and converted most of the islanders to Christianity.  Even to this day, if you arrive on a Sunday in this city, you will be treated to the church choirs during their services.

 

We usually walk the town and the extensive harbor road, since we have taken most all of the tours here.  Today shore excursions offered a city and island tour, as well as a panoramic drive to see the beaches, blowholes, caves, and flying foxes.  We also took the motor launch to Fafa Island, a 17 acre resort with surrounding sandy beaches.  There were also similar boat rides to islands for snorkeling and lunch.  Prices ranged from $60 to $240 for 2 ½ to 4 ½ hours. 

 

The carpets in the rooms on our deck were scheduled to be shampooed between 9am and 2pm, so we left the ship around 10am since we had not seen the shampoo guys yet.  That was probably due to the fact they had a rather big emergency drill for the crew at the same time.  Good time to leave the ship.

 

The skies were mostly sunny, but it sure was warm and sticky once again.  And barely a breeze stirred as we left the ship and crossed over the long pier to shore.  The souvenir tents were set up, but the vendors even looked stressed today.  And there was no pressure from the taxi drivers, who usually follow you down the street promoting tours.

 

We headed directly to the two-story main market a few blocks away from the ship.  They have a little bit of everything here like toiletries, local arts and crafts, jewelry, wooden carvings, tapa cloth handbags and fans, and fruits and veggies.  Upstairs, there is a large array of clothing and even more island jewelry.  Today we just stayed on the lower level, and did purchase a pair of seashell earrings that will match the new Tahitian shell necklace.  

 

Crossing the street, we went in search of Marco's Pizza, mainly to see if it was still in business.  It was not opened, but we happened to get lucky when the owner of this small restaurant arrived in his vehicle.   He did confirm that he would open the café at 11:30am, but this was his last week at this location.  He said he was moving to a new building around the corner and up the street.  This is a good move for him, because the old place was not the most inviting pizza restaurant we have seen, although he did have a wood-fired oven there.

 

Turning right at the next corner, we went to see where all the singing was coming from.  It was the Catholic Church, St. Anthony of Padua, and the group of young school kids attending a service there.  Their pastor was encouraging them to out-sing each other, so they were raising the roof.  Directly across the road, was the Royal Tombs, where Tongan royalty have been buried since 1893.  The surrounding grassy fields have always been considered sacred, but one tourist had entered the gates, and walked up to the tombs to take photos.  Few locals were in the area, so nothing was said. 

 

On this same street was the Centennial Church or the Free Church of Tonga.  These days it is fenced off and in bad condition.  It had sustained considerable damage during a cyclone, and it has yet to be repaired.  As old as it looked, this church had been rebuilt in 1985, after having survived for 100 years.  Hopefully they will bring it back to life someday.

 

We always walk to the newer church, where the king and his family attend Mass when they are in town on Sundays.  Close to this church are huge mango trees where we can find the fruit bats hanging upside down during the heat of the day.  Once again, like back in December, we saw none.  But then, there was no fruit in those trees either.  So when the source of food is gone, the bats re-locate.

 

Heading towards the ocean, we saw the Royal Palace, which was built in 1867 with pre-fabricated pieces shipped from New Zealand.  It is a stately white Victorian and was once the residence of the king.  These days the palace is used for ceremonial occasions only. 

 

Hala Vuna Road begins here and goes for a few miles along the waterfront.  It is a pleasant walk, but today it was really hot.  The only people we saw, with the exception of a few friends from the ship that like to walk like us, were local taxi drivers and a few local families.  The taxi guys will park under a tree, and sit in the cars until a call comes in.  This morning the tide was up, and we did see a few shorebirds jumping on the rocks.  If the tide had been out exposing the reef, many more birds would have been here.  Also, we saw no pigs during our hike.  Local people that live on this stretch of road, will let their pigs wonder into the reef to root for sea worms and shellfish.  The first time we witnessed the large domestic pigs in the shallow water, we thought we were seeing things. 

 

Anyway, we went from one shade tree to another, looking for an empty bench.  There was a perfect bench in the shade, but a local taxi fellow was sitting there.  He invited us to share the long bench, so we did.  He was so nice, and asked where we were from.  Then the conversation went to sports when we said San Francisco was our home for many years.  Football must be very popular here, and he could name every famous quarterback that we could recall. He told us that this week was special for the school kids, since they were having competitions with all sporting games. Then his cell phone rang, and he was off to pick up a client.

 

By this time, we had made it as far as Little Italy, which is a lovely little hotel with a nice restaurant.  However, they did not open until 5pm for dinner.  It had always been on the recommended list on the HAL port guide, but now, there were no restaurants listed.  So we wisely decided to go back to the restaurant where we had lunch last December.  Once we walked into the front entrance and were seated, one of the owners recognized us, which was surprising.  Actually, she was so happy to have customers, because due to this virus, four big cruise ships had been turned away recently, and all of the tourist-related businesses were hurting.  She said one of those ships held 4000 passengers, but did not know which line it was.  They saw it arriving to dock at Vuna Pier, then it was denied entrance, and left.  In fact, we learned later on, that our entrance was a 50/50%  chance of happening last night.  The Captain said that the health officials in Tonga had to really go over our questionnaires we turned in a week ago before we would be cleared.  

 

Back to lunch.  We immediately ordered two locally-brewed ice cold Maui beers.  Excellent.  Then two more arrived.  One of us ordered the Hawaiian sandwich, and the other a Bolognese spaghetti plate.  Both came with a small side salad.  The pasta was the closest to what we cook at home so far this trip.  Topping off the meal, we shared a banana split.  Even though we sat in a screened enclosed porch, we had a fan at our table.  It was going to be difficult going back outside in that unrelenting heat, but all good things must come to an end.  

 

Back-tracking, we did not stop at many more icons of the town, and made our way back to the ship.  The air conditioning was life-saving.  So were the Cokes on ice we had while in our room working on photos.  The sail away was held at the Seaview Pool, and the brave folks came out for the slight breeze that popped up.  The local police band was in full force, entertaining us while the ropes were dropped.  Tongan dancers and singers put in another shore side show, as we sailed away from the island.  Sure is nice to see such a welcome and goodbye, as many places do nothing like this.  Truly, Tonga has earned the title of the Friendly Islands, as Cook suggested.  And searching the shoreline, we did see some of those pigs going into the water. It is always fun visiting with friends at these sail always as well.  Then the big announcement came, and changed the mood for everyone onboard. 

 

Captain Mercer had delivered his normal talk of the day, but had a huge announcement  concerning changes that had been made to our upcoming itinerary.  Due to the evolving situation with the COVID-19 virus (coronavirus), and security concerns, the ports in Indonesia, Singapore, the Maldives, and Kenya have been cancelled.  Not a surprise to us at all.  It would not be unthinkable that even more stops may be changed as well.

 

Now the new itinerary will include a stop in Hambantota, Sri Lanka, three days in Mumbai, India, a day in Praslin, Seychelles, and an extra day in Tanzania.  The one aspect about the unexpected visit to India, is that we have 10 year visas for that country, but in an old passport.  The morning that we left for the airport January 1^st, we had not planned on bringing those passports with us.  But at the last minute, we decided to pack them just in case, so we did.  As for those folks who do not have visas for India, we have not heard if there will be a blanket visa for everyone.  These visas were difficult to obtain, and we have never heard of any shortcuts in that process.

 

Needless to say, that was the topic of conversation for the rest of the day, and for sure, for weeks to come.  Of course, all of the shore excursions that were booked in these ports through HAL, would be credited back to the guests.  However, there are undoubtedly many independent travelers who arranged private tours.  The question they all had was if they attempted to go on those tours anyway, they would not be allowed back on the ship.  This notice came to our rooms late last night.  To make matters even worse, there has been continuing problems with getting and sending emails again.  Or even getting online.  Well, at least we are not packing our luggage today, and preparing to go home.  At least…..not yet.   Nothing would surprise us at this point.

 

With bypassing Indonesia, that means most of the crew members will not be seeing their families and friends as they had expected.  And that is sad.  But we suspect that the crew had already been warned of these changes at least a week or more ago, and were sworn to secrecy with the guests.  And that is understandable, but they would have to abort their families travel plans in order to get to Java or Bali, as most would involve flights, cars, bus, or ferries to get to those islands.

 

There was a beautiful sunset this evening, and we caught it from deck six forward.  We agreed that it was too cloudy to see a green flash, but we sure did notice that the sky was pulsating green around the sun as it went down below the horizon.  And out of seemingly nowhere, were dozens of birds, possibly shearwaters or similar, flying right above the water around the front of the bow.  Once the sun disappeared, so did the birds.

 

So dinner was interesting as we all discussed the many changes, and the fact that this is still a developing story.  Things can turn on a dime, depending on how this virus spreads.  The best we can all do is continue to take it a day at a time, and enjoy the places we will visit….and stay healthy.  That is number one in our book at this point of time.

 

We now have two days at sea as we sail south to Auckland, New Zealand.  At least we have not been turned away from there………yet.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Pictures 

Report #112 Day at Sea February 27, 2020 Thursday Mostly sunny & 81 degrees

Another day at sea, and another day closer to Tonga, the final tropical island we will visit in the South Pacific for this voyage.  The skies have cleared up nicely, and the sun was shining most of the day.  The surrounding seas were about smooth as glass at times, because there was very little breeze.  Looking good.

 

Today the Maori Ambassadors offered two sessions dealing with poi again, and learning how to play rhythm sticks or Tititorea.  Shore Excursion's team continued with talks about tours in upcoming ports, and the guest speaker lectured on the Cook Island seabed minerals.  Always something new to learn. 

 

The movie in the Wajang was a good one called Hunt for the Wildpeople.  Set in the New Zealand bush country, it is about a wayward native boy, and his foster uncle who go missing after the foster aunt dies.  Part adventure and a lot of comedy, it was worthwhile seeing.

 

The only real meal we had today was this morning in the dining room.  We skipped lunch, because we had reservations in the Pinnacle Grill this evening.  If we have a late lunch, then we have trouble eating dinner, and really enjoying it.  So we had minimal room snacks after spending the afternoon at the pool.  With the sun coming out, many more folks decided to spend some time in the pool and on the lounges.

 

We sure don't remember that each band in the lounges took one day of the week off on previous grand voyages.  It was the Ocean Quartet's turn to be off today.  So when we went to the lounge during Happy Hour at 4 to 5pm, there were hardly any people there.  With no music, and no dancing, the folks do not go there.  That has to affect their beverage sales.  So we are wondering why there is no "fill-in" on those days the bands are off?  We seem to recall a piano player who filled this gap on shorter cruises. 

 

Our meals were outstanding once again in the Pinnacle Grill.  We began with the rolls, one of which is about 100% garlic with cheese in the center.  Served quite warm, this is the first one to go.  A torpedo roll is also served, and that goes second.  Starters were wedge salads, but with only one slice of the clothesline bacon each.  We usually skip the presentation with the hanging bacon, lemon slice, and the pickle.  The bacon on the salad plate is just fine with us.  Both of us ordered the grilled lamb chops, the best you can find anywhere on the ship.  For dessert, we each had a small portion of the Cherry Garcia ice cream.  It was most sufficient.  A plate of chocolate truffles were a bit different tonight.  Four of the offerings were chocolate filled with raisins and nuts, almonds and walnuts to be exact.  Normally we don't eat these, but we had to try these new ones.  They are winners.

 

Entertainment tonight was fun with a new group singing tunes from the 50's and 60's. The name of the group was The Alley Cats, and they drew a big crowd at both shows.

 

We're all ready for tomorrow's port of Nuku' alofa, Tonga.  Seems like we were just here, but then, we were….. last November. And while we are gone tomorrow, we had a notice that our carpets will be cleaned between 9:15 until 2pm.  It is estimated to take 10 minutes, and we need not be present.  And all the work will be done under supervision, we assume meaning that our room will not be unattended while the door is open.  If for any reason we did not want them cleaning the carpets, we could re-schedule it. 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

Report #111 Day at Sea February 25, 2020 Tuesday Partly sunny, light showers & 75 degrees

 

Today or tonight will be the day we cross the International Dateline.  Therefore, our clocks have to be set ahead 23 hours, and we will lose a day….February 26^th.  There will be no Wednesday.  If we have simple watches and clocks, the difference on those will be one hour back.  As we continue to sail west, we will get those 23 hours back one at a time.

 

It was also Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras, an excuse to eat, party, and celebrate the merriment of the day before Ash Wednesday.  Now that will be strange, because as we mentioned, we are skipping Wednesday and going straight to Thursday.  Bet they change Ash Wednesday to Ash Thursday.  So confusing.

 

For us, it was another beautiful day to enjoy at the back pool.  Since it was so unforgivingly hot yesterday, many folks did not peek their heads outside today.  Yes, it was still warm and humid, but much better than yesterday.  There was a nice breeze blowing across the decks, and we also had a few passing showers.  It sure moved the six people that were outside like us.  For the better part of the day, we had the deck entirely to ourselves.  

 

The Maori Ambassadors made poi this morning, then showed the folks how to use poi in the afternoon.  A guest presenter, Gerald McCormack, spoke about the geological history of the Polynesian Islands and the plants and animals as well.  A lecture all about Nuku'alofa, Tonga was delivered in the Mainstage.  We know this place inside and out.  Hopefully we will be able to do our long walk there without melting, and seeing some of the island's sites along the way.  Last November, the weather was pleasant…..warm but not too hot.

 

After listening to the Ocean Quartet, and visiting with passing folks, we ducked into the show lounge to watch the juggler , Steven Ragartz, a former Cirque du Soleil performer.  We did not last long, because we would have been late for dinner. And the performance was slow to take off.

 

So at dinner tonight, we found the waiters were dressed with gold, purple, and green sparkling vests and ties.  The chair covers matched the strings of beads and masks on the table for each guest.  It's our "mini-Carnival" celebration, which continued in the Crow's Nest at 9 and 10pm.  Dinner choices reflected the Fat Tuesday theme with Cajun-type food.  To be on the safer side, one of us had minestrone soup and a taco salad with grilled chicken.  The other less spicy entrée was Kentucky fried chicken with corn on the cob and mashed potatoes.  Both filling, although we saved a little room for desserts of flourless chocolate cake and one slice of tasty King cake, a yellow, purple, and green layer cake – the colors of Mardi Gras.

 

And as we mentioned earlier, the clocks went back one hour tonight.  And one more activity was added at 10pm.  It was possible stargazing with the navigation officer Eric.  That is if the weather permitted.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

 

Report #110 Avatiu, Rarotonga, Cook Islands February 24, 2020 Monday Chance of thunderstorms & 82 degrees

A new country, The Cook Islands, and a new island, Rarotonga, is our destination today. Not part of French Polynesia, as might have been mentioned in the port talk recently, the small group of Cook Islands are a country within themselves.   Settled by the New Zealand native Maoris in the 6^th century, it is believed that they arrived here in double-hulled waka canoes.  The highest point of this volcanic island is Te Kou, at 1929 feet in elevation.  And these days, the volcanoes are extinct.  The mountainous areas are surrounded with rain forests.  And for good reason, they get a whole lot of rainfall here.  We know of some guests on past visits that have taken 4 x 4 vehicles up to see the spectacular views, the waterfall, and the maraes.  We also know some folks that attempted to cross over the mountains by foot.  They said it was a one-time experience as it took all day, as well as a very difficult hike. 

 

There were four shore excursions offered today beginning from $70 to $100 for 3 to 3 ½ hours.  Two tours included lunch, one with a beach session, and the other with a lagoon cruise and a motu lunch.  We have done both of these on past visits.   Unfortunately, it had been storming the day before we arrived, and the waters were murky at best.  Did not see a whole lot of tropical fish.  One excursion did an island drive, while the most thrilling one was a 4 x 4 ride that took in the mountains.

 

We arrived to the island around 7am to very rainy conditions on the mountain tops.  Where our room is located, we have an excellent view of the tender platform and the boats that pull up alongside.  There was a swell, but it looked like there would be little problems getting us ashore.  So we decided to go over early at 7:45am, skipping breakfast, while they were taking over the first group of tours.  This time, there were eight of us waiting by the door that goes down to deck A.  Hoping we would not be kept waiting for over an hour like at Easter Island, we were happy that we were allowed to go down and take seats on the folding chairs that had been returned to deck A.  The tour folks did fill most of the tender boat, but they had saved 8 spaces for our group.  Guess this is the way priority tendering will go from now on.   

 

The ride was quick, and the landing at the Avatiu pier was very easy, as the little harbor protects the pier from the deep swells of the ocean.  We were greeted by Maori singers playing ukuleles.  But we were also greeted with the hottest and most humid weather we can remember here.  After picking up an excellent map, we noticed that there were only a few tents with souvenirs set up today.  Last November, there must have been twice that, or more, telling us that this is probably not the high season for tourists. 

 

The town of Avarua is the capital with less than 6000 people.  There are many shops, restaurants, and bars in town, as well as grocery and pharmacy stores.  They even had a couple of large building stores, similar to our Home Depots.  The entire island is full of resorts, hotels, and vacation properties.  Actually, this is the first time we checked out the shops, since one of us forgot their visor, a must on these hot and sweaty days.  We only found baseball caps for the fellows and straw hats for the ladies.  

 

Many of the passengers that did not take a tour, took the local buses that went around the entire island.  For an all-day ticket of $16, you could access anything on this island within that 55 minute ride, either clockwise or counter-clockwise.  At either the Bus Stop or dealing with the bus driver, you could pay in New Zealand, Australian, or US dollars. The only thing is that no matter what currency, they made it the same…dollar for dollar, even though the rate is $1.55 New Zealand to $1 USD.  We think the Australian dollar is much the same as NZ.  Better to use their money in that case.  Our tablemate Greg took that bus today, but said that when it was time to come back, a group of them had to wait in that hot sun for almost an hour.  In his humorous way, he added that getting on the bus in the morning was tedious, since most people could not understand the money they charged or over-charged.  But compared to booking tours, this form of transportation is quite reasonable.  We had mentioned to the port lecturer that we recall the days when the bus ride was $2 for a one-way trip.  We think he looked at us like we were "old-timers".  Maybe we are getting there, but not quite yet.

 

We turned left, and took the path of the walk we always take.  We swear that we had not gone much more than two blocks before we were soaked from the humidity and heat.  And we were not alone, since many people we knew were on their way to the Bus Stop, melting all of the way there.  Once we passed the fishing charters and the cargo sheds, we came across the Punanga Nui Market with eateries, crafts, and flower and veggie stalls.  Most were not occupied today, because this is more of a weekend hangout.  One of the vendors told us that we were lucky to have a fairly dry day, since it had been raining on the island for days now.  That was obvious because we saw many puddles that were really deep. 

 

Following the road, we went in and out of the Avarua shops, a Catholic Church, then past the police station, bus terminal, the courthouse, and Trader Jack's, one of the iconic watering holes with great sea views and food too.  This may be a possibility for lunch later.  We continued by the larger Cook Island Christian Church (CICC) and cemetery, which we would save for a visit on the way back.  From here, the shops become less, and the bars and restaurants dotted the road for a couple of miles or more.  Today, there was a series of gardeners using weed-eaters to clean the grass on the shoulders of the road.  Since our last visit, this road has been re-topped giving the shoulders a firmer base.  Now we were not walking in so much mud and puddles as we used to.  Also missing were the dozens of big dogs that liked to harass us as we strolled by their houses.  We only had three friendly dogs that followed us for a short distance.  It seems that it was too hot for them today as well.

 

The Tamarind House, one of the ship's recommendations, was not opened for lunch today.  Their sign said it was only opened for lunch on Friday.  So much for that one.  Bamboo Jacks, an Asian-fusion restaurant was only opened for dinner at 4pm daily.  That would not work with the all onboard at 4:30pm.  Since there were no more choices for a few miles up this road, we decided wisely to turn around and go back.  If it wasn't for the clouds blocking the sun most of the time, we would have been "cooked".  Cold beer was sounding better by the minute.  We did have vitamin water with us, but that was slowly disappearing.

 

It was about 11am when we reached the CICC church, where half of the island's residents attend services on the island.  This church and cemetery dates back to 1853, and is one of the most photographed spots in Avarua.  Crossing paths with Nancy and Mike from Washington state, we had an  interesting conversation regarding our itinerary for the remainder of this trip.  So many rumors are circulating about itinerary changes, that ultimately, we do not know for sure, where we will be going.  After making a visit inside this pretty island church, we took up the seats outside, where a small breeze was blowing.  No wonder that so many of the parishioners sit out here on Sunday morning, during the services.  Last fall, one of the nicest local ladies came to us, and invited us to stay for tea with the congregation after the Mass was over.  If we had time, we would have participated.  Anyway, we thought it was so nice of her to ask.

 

We were happy to find that Trader Jacks had opened for business, and the best part of that, was the fact they had an extensive pizza menu.  Other classy meals served there are sashimi and smoked marlin fish cakes and sandwiches.  No thanks, we will stick to pizza.  From past visits here, we do know that the crew like this place the best, perhaps because it is fairly close to the tender landing.  We ordered local draft beers immediately, which we paid for at the bar, and took to our table.  Then we ordered a Hawaiian pizza, which after paid for, was delivered to our table on the outside railing.  It sure was good too.  A few more beers later, we shared a brownie/ice cream dessert.  The entire bar and restaurant had filled with customers by now.  Watching the beverage delivery being brought into the Restaurant, we noticed that Heineken and Pacifico were the most popular brews, and sodas most ordered were regular Coke, Sprite, and Fanta. 

 

While we dined in the breeze of the shaded patio, we watched three of the local islanders dive and swim by the boat launch across from this iconic restaurant.  On the other side of Trader Jacks is a small sandy beach, where many of the crew take a quick swim while they can.  Their "off" time is usually short, so they know exactly where to find food they like and WIFI.  We also had a good view of the SS Maitai shipwreck, a vessel that traded between the Cook Islands and Tahiti back in the early 1900's.  All that is left now, is the engine block that sticks up above the water outside the reef.

 

We made our way back to the harbor, and there was a tender waiting for us, and also one tour bus that had just arrived.  We hustled fast enough to beat the "sticky" guests to the boat.  We felt bad for the crew that were tending the dock area.  It was blistering hot out there, and very little shade provided for them.  The waiter tending the watering hole (lemonade) made us happy with two full cups each of ice cold drinks.  Back on the ship, we consumed even more ice water before we felt close to normal again.  Yes, it had been that warm and humid today.

 

While downloading photos in the wonderful comfort of our room, we noticed it had begun to rain again.  Guess we planned that one right, although it might have felt good.  It appeared that the planned 4:30pm sail away festivities may be moved to the Crow's Nest.  Most times, these are passing showers, dumping a lot of rain, then moving on.  That's exactly what happened, and the party was on. 

 

We had high hopes of seeing some birds, specifically tropic birds, but it was not to be.  The most birds we had spotted today on the island were a few white terns and a handful of common mynahs.  It was not much better by the time the ship loaded the rest of the tender boats, and we were on our way towards Tonga.  It was always nice to visit with friends at the Seaview Pool deck.  One younger couple on rented bikes had passed us on the road, stopped, and asked if we needed any water, since they had lots.  Gosh, we must have looked worse than we were, but that sure was nice of them.  Well, they happened to be at the sail away, and we asked how far they had gotten on the bikes going around the 52 mile road around the island.  They figured they had done around 40 kilometers, until one of them developed a flat tire.  Bet they never thought about that when they started out.  So a local had told them to take off their helmets, hold them upside down, and someone will stop and ask if you needed help.  They did that, and a nice person called the bike shop, and someone came out, swapped out the bikes, and they were in business again.  Lucky, or else they might have run into problems pushing those bikes back.

 

All of us had different stories at dinnertime of their day in Rarotonga.  And all of us agreed it had been way too hot.  There were some odd selections for entrees tonight, with the majority of our tablemates choosing the stuffed bellpeppers.  One of us had the lager gravy sirloin steak (not bad), and the other safely ordered a chicken Caesar salad.  The chicken breast had been cooked and grilled fresh, and was delicious.  Sometimes the alternates can be the best.  One of the desserts was a passionfruit cheesecake, which reminded us of when we ordered one slice of it while in Samoa recently.  It cost the equivalent of over $20 USD. 

 

We have two sea days now to reach Tonga, and we sure hope the weather is more comfortable there.

 

Bill & Mary Ann  

Pictures 

   

Report # 109 Day at Sea February 23, 2020 Sunday Mostly sunny & 83 degrees

If it is a Sunday at sea, then it is Sunday Brunch Sampler Day.  When we went to breakfast, we found the dining room had been converted to a palm tree forest, with green and gold hanging mobiles throughout the room.  The chair covers were on and ready for both the brunch and the special Tropical Paradise Dinner this evening.  Although we don't do the brunch, we heard it was delightful.

 

Today was a good one for activities that kept folks inside the ship.  It was pretty hot outside for most, so there was no lack of things to do.  The new Maori Cultural Ambassadors have begun their series of talks to educate those of us that have not visited New Zealand before.  They are experts at story-telling, dancing, and singing. 

 

An Australian guest chef has arrived by the name of Bella Jakubiak.  Her port to table cooking show took place today in the Wajang.   We believe that the guest chefs are now taking the place of the America's Test Kitchen, which we have had on the ships for a few years now.   Some of the passengers have expressed disappointment with the change, but then, nothing lasts forever.   

 

Speaking of changes, we are wondering what is happening with the flowers, or the lack of flowers onboard.  Three of the atrium's large vases on deck five have been emptied, with no replacements.  The orchids that are on each table in the Lido have about lost every one of their blossoms.  And in the dining room, we have the tiniest vases or bowls with three flowers in them.  But the kind that do not last long.  Someone made the remark that eventually every ship in the fleet will go "flowerless".  Perhaps silk flowers would be better than nothing.

 

We spent part of the day baking out back, almost alone at times.  Only the smokers were outside as long as we were.  We did have a breeze at the back railing, and wetting a towel does help.  And the pool was refreshing, and just the way we like it……cool and almost empty of swimmers. 

 

Since tomorrow's port of Rarotonga takes New Zealand dollars, we bought some at the front desk.  Now we hope we will be able to tender there, because many times there is a deep swell that makes the tender boats hard to access from the ship's platform.  We seem to remember that we missed this port last year.  Or was that Niue?  Or both.  One thing for sure, is that Captain Jonathan will never use that alternate narrow landing that caused boat # 9 to land on top of the coral.  Barb stills laughs about her adventure, since she was one of the lucky ones to be on that boat.  But then, she was the unlucky one when that same tender boat was being fixed right in front of her cabin for 6 weeks afterwards.  Since it had sustained significant damage with holes in the fiberglass, they dropped a blue tarp over her window, turning the room blue.  Anyway, we hope for good weather and smooth seas in this Cook Island.

 

After lunch, we took a walk on deck three, but it was still pretty warm and sticky.  We ended up in a pow-wow with friends, ending the walk, which was really better.  We are all wondering when the President of HAL will be boarding the ship, and will he announce any changes in our itinerary due to the spread of coronavirus.  This has been the question of every day recently.

 

The Station Band had their day off, so the folks that usually go to the Crow's Nest, came down to the Ocean Bar.  There were many more dancers there tonight, and some of the dance tunes were country/western.  We like that for a change, as it is timeless.

 

At 7:30pm, we went to the beginning of the show in the Mainstage.  The singer was Australian Annie Frances, a familiar name for sure.  She has been performing on the world cruise off and on for many years.  And can she sing?  You bet, she had the audience in the palm of her hand within the first couple of minutes, as she belted out the song, Joy to the World, from the 70's. Several more tunes followed, but we had to get ready for dinner.

 

So the tropical dinner had some good choices.  The most fun one was the tropical burger with fries.  On a bun with breaded onion rings to boot.  One of us had the barramundi, which was also delicious.  Lamb chops grilled with molasses on the side was the next best choice.  Most of us stayed until 10pm, but for a change, the decorations were not coming down around our heads this time.

 

Hope we make it to shore tomorrow.  If not, there is always Tonga.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

  

 

Report #108 Papeete, Tahiti French Polynesia February 22, 2020 Saturday Chance of thunderstorms & 88 degrees

Located in the Society Islands of French Polynesia, Tahiti is the largest island in all of the archipelagos.  And the city of Papeete, Tahiti, is the capital of the country.  Considered the gateway to French Polynesia, is something we know well.  We have flown to and from Tahiti on our very first cruises here with Princess Cruise Lines.  Once was on the old Pacific Princess, one of the "Love Boats", and the second time was on the larger Golden Princess, both of which are long gone from the fleet.  Both were very long flights from California, so being able to stop here on a ship is so much better.  We have been lucky to do it so many times, that we have honestly lost count.

 

One aspect of flying was memorable, since we got to see the beginnings of the coral atolls belonging to the Tuamotu Archipelago.  Unlike islands, these coral atolls resemble a string of pearls from the air.  The most gorgeous lagoons are in the center with waters as aqua as they get.  A diver's paradise.  Years later, we would actually visit some of the largest atolls like Fakarava and Rangiroa.  If we remember correctly, this is the area where the most valuable black pearls are farmed.

 

Several tours were available for booking here.  Most of them were site-seeing of museums, gardens, caves, and sacred maraes.  Point Venus, a historic landing point, and views of the black sand beaches are tours we have taken in the past.  Two boat rides would give the folks  a chance to swim or snorkel, or take a lunch tour with sightings of blowholes, caves , and gardens.  There would be no day excursion to nearby Moorea, since we were not overnighting here.  Actually, for the first time we can remember, there is no other stop in French Polynesia.  Normally, we stop at Moorea, and Bora-Bora, but not on this trip, much to everyone's disappointment.  Oh well, guess we had to sacrifice some of these beautiful islands to make time for our trip to Antarctica. 

 

One island that we will visit, will be Tonga.  Yesterday, we received a Tonga Health Form, much the same as we got for Tahiti.  Questions asked were also the same like where have we been in the last 14 days, and are we sick.  Some folks should mark "yes" to sick, because we sure see a lot of nose-blowing and deep coughing.  It is not the dreaded virus, but something bacterial going around.  This always happens on these long trips.

 

Also in port were the Paul Gauguin, another freighter with passenger quarters, several ferries, and one really sleek private mega-yacht.  It was docked near us, so we did get some good close-up photos of it.   There were only initials on the side for a name, and we could not tell where it was registered.  All we can say, it was one nice ride.

 

Today we went off of the ship around 10:30am, and it was already hot and humid.  Probably the warmest we have felt it here.  It's not so much the heat, as the extreme humidity that made us "melt".  The old information building is gone, but the souvenir tents are still there, and we found the Tahitian dancers and band on the side of the tents.  We were lucky to have caught the last of their song and dance.  Frankly, it was too hot for them too.  As long as we were here, we might as well check out the sea shell jewelry.  Not intending to buy anything, one of us spotted a colorful necklace, and the price was right, so he bought it with my approval. 

 

Our first job of the day was to stop by the fabric shop, and purchase another piece for a blouse.  We had spotted a print there last November, but ended up buying a different one.  The owner of the shop instantly recognized the fabric of the blouse I had on today, and even remembered us from last November.  She said we really must like Tahiti to be back so soon.  Yes, she was right.  Anyway, we left with 2 ½ meters of the correct print, and now there will be two shirts to make this coming summer.

 

The next stop was at the Municipal Market where everything Polynesian is sold, including food and flowers.  Every time we come here,  flowers are the first on the list.  We found a limited supply, but enough to put together a very large display for our room.  We got some bird-of-paradise blooms, protea, and some other tropical blooms that will not die too soon.  The vendor added a half dozen stems of greens for filler.  Guess the bunch weighed 10 pounds if not more.  We came right back to the ship, and spent some time trimming and arranging them in the extra-large vase our room steward gave us.  Now this is what we call flowers.  And the good thing was that we saw no insects at all.

 

Cooling off for a bit, we went back out for a walk through town.  This time we passed by the marketplace, and continued to the old Notre Dame Church, completed in 1875.  It is a small, but inviting church with a wood-carved Madonna and Child.  Wanting to update the Kindle, we went to Place Tarahoi, or the governmental and political administrative center for the country.  Originally, this was the site for the Royal Family in the 19^th century.  There is a pretty garden in the back, where a freshwater creek runs through to the park across the road.  Queen Pomare used the pond in the back as her private bath we understand.  Many varieties of tropical plants decorate these gardens and they are complete with names and descriptions.  Most all of the signs are in French, however.

 

Up the road from here was a Hinano store, selling everything Hinano, for the local beer that is so good.  It only took a few minutes to find a t-shirt that was new to the line.  Except when we went to purchase it and use a certain credit card, we were told there was a limit of 5000 francs or about $50 USD.  They did not accept US dollars.  So we ended up with two nice t-shirts, because we do not know when we will be back here.

 

Attempting to get online was not successful.  There were plenty of sites, but the connections were poor at best.  Maybe if we had stopped at McDonald's, we may have had luck if we bought food or drinks.  It seems that is where the majority of crew members go for WIFI.  We learned later at dinner that Greg and Heo had to pay for extra internet at a nice place where they had lunch.  We should know that nothing in paradise is free.

 

Also at the government center was a craft and jewelry market with things from other islands.  Wood carvings and straw hats were for sale, as well as some high end black pearl and sea shell designs.  Some of the pieces ran into the thousands in US dollars.  We simply looked, then continued on, as it was time for lunch.

 

Right up the main road from Bougainville Park, we know where you can find the best pizza in Tahiti.  Even though the restaurant had opened at 11:30am, it was mostly full of locals.  We ordered two Hinano beers, and one large parma ham pizza, which was delicious as always.  While we were waiting for our food, it began to rain hard.  Lucky we were inside the covered garden area of the restaurant, as some of their tables do get wet.  We saved a little room for a shared dessert of profiteroles, a special treat here.  After relaxing for an hour and a half, we knew we had to move on in between the showers.

 

On the way back, we swung by the market again, to pick up a small bunch of flowers to fill in the large vase.  There ended up being enough to fill another small vase.  Back at the ship, we cooled off in our room while working on the computer and down-loading photos.  It was heaven.  All aboard was 5:30pm, so we went to deck nine to take a few more pictures.  The actual sail away party was in the Crow's Nest, so we went down to the aft deck, where very few people were.  It was not a surprise, because we could have fried an egg back there it was so hot.  The rain had gone, and the city was steaming.  The ship was still bunkering fuel, so we did not leave until after 6:30pm.  The good thing was that sunset was at the same time, right before sailing away, so we did get some nice shots of the sun dipping behind Moorea.  A funny thing was that we had been almost alone back there, and suddenly, people were squeezing around us, thinking we had the best spot on the entire aft deck to photo the sunset.  People are funny that way, we guess.  By the time the ship swung around to head out of the harbor, most all of these folks left.

 

Dinner was good with all of us present.  The guys had gone off to explore the town and market, while the girls, Barb and Susie, had gone with Woody to do some shopping.  And go out to lunch.  Too warm for Woody, we ran into him as he was headed back to the cool ship.  He was not alone as Mike and Pauline also were done with their shopping, and were going back.  So for dinner, the best entrees were yellow fin sole, and chicken masala.  Not all that hungry, one of us had the green linguini with diced ham and peas.  Woody also ordered it, and thought the ham was Spam.  He may have been right.  Everyone agreed that with all of the recent time changes, all of us were bushed.  At least now, we will be headed mostly south until we reach New Zealand, then head west to Australia, where we will change the clocks again.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Pictures 

Report # 107 Day at Sea February 21, 2020 Friday Partly sunny & 81 degrees

As we get nearer to the islands of French Polynesia, the days are getting warmer and the seas bluer.  Few sightings of birds though.  We did spot some small white birds flying above the water, but so far off in the distance, we could not identify them.  Looking for flying fish was unsuccessful too.  And that tells us that if there are no fish, there are no birds.  

 

It was another great day to spend relaxing on the aft deck.  What a difference from the previous cruise, when we had trouble finding lounges.  Today, there were no more than six sunbathers at a time either in the pool or laying in the sun.  When occasional clouds passed overhead, it was really nice.  At least today, there were no showers while we were out there.  Now tomorrow, while we are in Papeete, showers are predicted, so we will pack the umbrellas with us.  It seems like we were just there, but then, we were, last November.  And it had rained then, because we had to end around many huge puddles on the way to shopping and lunch. 

 

While doing our morning hike on deck three, a major general emergency drill for crew members took place at 9:45am.  Even though it was announced prior to the whistle going off, we still jumped when the piercing sound erupted on all of the speakers.  As the drill progressed, we began seeing the crew members coming outside to their stations at each lifeboat.  Each one has a specific job to do, and it is reassuring to see it in practice.  The more crew that came outside, the more crowded it became.  So we ended our walk, and eventually went to the pool.

 

Lunch consisted of two types of Dive In burgers, and were very good.  When we go to the grill around 3pm, there are few customers, so the wait is quite short.  There are never extra cooked burgers on the side, so they are not cooked until they are ordered.  That is their secret to the freshness of their many selections.  We skip the fries, mainly because we only like the skinny fries served in the Pinnacle Grill.  Wish they had those here, but better they do not.  We would overdose on them.

 

The time changes have been catching up with us during the late afternoon.  So in order to fight off fatigue, we get out and about instead.  Walking seems to give us that boost, then going to listen to the Ocean Quartet is always fun.  We run into more people we know, while sitting outside the lounge.  And even some we do not know, but recognize us from the blog photos.  It is always a pleasure to meet new folks that have followed our adventures for more times than we even remember.

 

Also entertaining was the Malibu rum sampling that began at 7pm outside the liquor shop. They  were featuring a mango flavored rum.  A few minutes before 7pm, a line formed all the way into the casino.  The store salesman made  it clear there was only one small sample for each customer, and if you asked for a second one for a spouse or friend, the answer was no.  Of course, the bottles were on sale, but they would be held until the end of the cruise.

 

At 7:30pm, we attended the show featuring a singer, Jesse Kazemek and his lovely wife.  They sang several Elvis songs and promised some Beatle's tunes as well.  Come to think of it, we are hearing less and less of Sinatra or Bing Crosby these days, as the majority of the passengers are in a slightly younger age group now.  Only slightly…..

  

There were five of us at the table for dinner tonight, as the guys went to the Taste Of Tamarind in the Pinnacle Grill.  The cost for this special meal has gone up from $25 to $39 per person.  We love it, and would have booked this dinner had we known it was added.  We do have the next two ones booked, and look forward to them.  Both of us had the fresh catch fish entrée, which was tuna.  Knowing that it had been brought over fresh from the Pitcairn group, we had to try it.  Normally this is served on the rare side, but we requested it to be more done, but not dry.  It arrived perfect….seasoned and grilled on the outside, but still tender and juicy in the middle.  Desserts were a thin chocolate cake with ice cream and one scoop of pecan ice cream. 

 

Looking forward to our stop tomorrow, as it will be our only stop in French Polynesia on this cruise, a place we really enjoy.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

Report #106 Day at Sea February 20, 2020 Thursday Partly sunny & 73 degrees

 

As you might expect, today was another lovely day at sea.  The weather has definitely heated up, and although the forecast said 73 degrees, it was more like 80 degrees.  The humidity level is creeping up as well, which is good for the skin if nothing else.  But not so much for the hair and cameras. 

 

People are still talking about yesterday's stop at Pitcairn Island.  And from the guests we see wearing brand new Pitcairn t-shirts, we can assume that the islander's sales were good.  Passing by the Shops on board, we noticed that they are still trying to sell the rest of the Easter Island t's.  If they discounted them, then they would move.  However, if they did that, all of the previous purchases would have to be adjusted.  We did not know that, until last year, when a tableful of HAL t-shirts were on sale towards the end of the world cruise.  We discovered that all you needed to do was bring your receipt, and the difference was credited to your shipboard account.  More times than not, these sales happen after the world cruise is over, when we are on the Panama Canal re-positioning voyage.  Many years ago, we found bargains too good to pass up at 75% off of the world cruise items. 

 

It was too nice outside not to go to the Seaview Pool.  Now maybe it has gotten too warm there, since few people were using the lounges or the pool.  Actually, the water temperature in the pool was cool.  Sometimes, they fill it with warm water, and it's like swimming in a bathtub.  The colder the better, we say.  Our sunscreen has been working well, since we stayed out for a few hours without burning.   Out of the blue, a lone frigate flew over the ship, which we thought was odd.  But when the Captain came on with his PM talk, he mentioned that we were close to one atoll belonging to French Polynesia.  Perhaps less than 30 miles away.  We are more than likely getting close to the Tuamotu Archipelago, which is part of French Polynesia.  One more day at sea tomorrow, and we will be sailing into Tahiti.

 

We went to lunch in the Lido a bit later today around 3pm.  Being that the arts and crafts class is in full swing on one side, we always get our salad and sandwich, and go to the opposite side, where a small number of diners are eating quietly.  It never fails……as soon as we sit down, out comes the vacuum.  Just our luck that the worker begins at our end, getting the crumbs off of the carpets and chairs, and especially, under our feet.  Normally, this is done around 2:30pm, so that's why we went later.  Maybe that is why folks are using the Canaletto area, which has probably been vacuumed first. Perhaps we will try that tomorrow.   Either that, or we will have room service.

 

Later in the day, we sat in our favorite chairs across from the Ocean Bar.  At least the band was back, and so were the dancers.  With tonight being gala, the screen was up for photos.  The photo manager, Meaghan, came to set up the stair lighting, so we asked her about her visit to Pitcairn yesterday.  She said that they were able to see the tiny school, where three kids were in attendance, as well as one of their homes.  She was surprised to see a nice spacious house that had only two people living in it.   In their brief time they had there, they saw the rest of the buildings before they had to head back.  She was honored to have had the chance to do this.  Also lucky for her to be able to climb up that hanging ladder on the ship as well.

 

Around 6pm, we went to deck three for an afternoon walk.  But today, they were scrubbing the decks with disinfectant, and most of the doors were closed off.  So we went up to deck nine instead, only to find we had gone under a sudden shower.  The decks and the pool roof was full of puddled water.  Actually, the Captain did mention the possibility of rain showers tomorrow.  Looking all around us, we could see isolated showers here and there.  Sometimes they are able to navigate around them during the daytime hours.  But in the evening, it is nice for the ship to get a "free" cleaning. 

 

This evening was another gala dinner with the theme, Joie de Vivre Dinner.  Slightly tilted to the French cuisine, it was a chance for the cooks to do some South Seas cuisine.   One of the appetizers was frog legs, which was reported to be excellent.  Only one of us was game to try it.  Slices of cheese and tomatoes was good enough for the other one of us.  The fresh catch of the day was marlin from Pitcairn Island.  By the way, we had a host at our table of six, since Barb was at a birthday dinner.  He was Terry, the head of security.  We met him last year, when he joined Barb and us for dinner on one gala night.  He did let us know that the islanders did have fresh tuna and marlin for the ship, because he helped take the delivery off of the longboat.  We were certain that the fresh catch was from our freezers, but this time, we were wrong.  And it was good.  One of us had the fish, and the other had the veal, which was also delicious. 

 

The show this evening was Atlantic Crossing, a song and dance performance by the singers and dancers, of course. Earlier we went to the beginning of the show at 7:30pm.  It has been rumored that this will be the last world cruise to have this kind of entertainment.  Don't know whether this is true or not, but it would not be a surprise.  Many of the other HAL ships have other types of entertainment that we do not have here.  We expect that to change when this ship goes into dry dock in May. 

 

And the clocks went back one more hour tonight.  Some people think this is great, but it really is messing with the sleeping patterns for many.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

 

Report # 105 Adamstown, Pitcairn Island February 19, 2020 Wednesday Partly cloudy & 79 degrees

 

If it wasn't for the HMAV Bounty having major crew problems back in 1790, we might never have heard of Pitcairn Island, let alone the three other nearby islands of Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno.  Located in a most isolated area of the South Pacific, Pitcairn has been home to a small number of people from Polynesia, as believed by modern day archaeologists.  Surviving on limited agriculture and fishing, the population was eventually gone when a British sloop happened by in 1767.  At that time, the crew was attempting to chart these islands, but happened to be off by 3 degrees, the story goes. 

 

And so the story continues with the Bounty coming along in 1790, where the mutinous crew set Captain Bligh and a few of his loyal officers, adrift in a rowboat.  Led by Fletcher Christian, the sailors invite? some of the Tahitian natives to join them to an unknown destination, which turned out to be Pitcairn Island.  And because of the mistake with the charts, they remained hidden for over 20 years.  It should have been a happy existence, but it was not to be for the original mutineers.  Due to alcoholism, murder, and disease, most all of the nine original mutineers died.  But they did leave families, and with several generations down the line, many of those descendants live on the island today.  There are an estimated 50 folks living on the island now.

 

The islands are the last remaining British oversees territory in the Pacific.  Their currency is the New Zealand dollar, and that country supplies them with food, clothing, and household needs delivered every four months to their co-op store.  In fact, the next mail delivery and pick-up will be in May.  

 

The Amsterdam sailed close to the island around 7am, with a narrated scenic sail-in at 7:45am.  BY 8am, several of the islanders boarded their long boat and came out to the ship, climbing the ladder.  With them, they brought a load of souvenirs to sell, which included  t-shirts, caps, wood carvings, photos, knickknacks, some jewelry, and stamped postcards.  The biggest seller was island honey, which came in a small jar for $10 to $15.  These were limited to two jars per customer.  Once the islanders were set to go at 9:30am in the Lido Pool area, it was a melee. 

 

As for us, we stayed out on the bow during the sail-in, and well after we were in the bay.  We did not realize that the dining room had opened at 7:30am, so by the time we arrived, it was close to 9am.  Just as well, the crowd had thinned out, and our breakfast was quiet.  We had read that Pitcairn rolls (aka Panama rolls) were served on deck three, so we asked if they had some here.  Our waiter Danu thought these were maple bars, but Asep brought us the real rolls.  Only this time, they were filled with a coconut mixture, instead of the tangerine filling, but they still were tasty.

 

Remembering there were many types of seabirds here, we went back out on the bow to see if we could locate some.  And we were not disappointed.  Most of them were fairly far away, but we did spot white terns, boobies, sooty terns, and even a few frigates.  The frosting on the cake would have been sighting tropic birds, since we have seen them here before.  It wasn't until it was time to leave, that one red-tailed tropic bird flew right over the ship, giving us a chance to film him.  We were in the right place at the right time, we say.

 

And a few other folks on the ship were also in for a treat.  They got to step foot on the island with a ride in the longboat.  And the lucky folks were…… Captain Mercer, Henk, Christel, Kristen, one top officer, and the lucky camera expert, Meagan.  We spotted them as the boat pulled alongside the ship, and the lucky ones had to climb the ladder, just like the pilots do.  Pretty thrilling for all of them for sure.

 

We were hoping the ship would have made a circle around the island, but at noontime, the bow was turned west, and away we went, the island getting smaller with every mile we went.  We will have a few more days at sea, then we will be in Tahiti, a favorite stop for us.

 

Working on photos took up most of the afternoon.  We even had room service Caesar salads with a shared club sandwich.  The salads are even better than the ones we order in the dining room at dinnertime.

 

Dinner for us was in the Pinnacle Grill at 8pm.  There were not many folks in there, and the ones that were, belonged to crew and officers.  We were greeted by one of the former waitresses we have gotten to know the last few years.  She had joined the ship in San Antonio after working on the Eurodam last summer.  Always nice to see the special staff that has worked here for several years.  Also nice that they remember us so well.  

 

No time change tonight, but we still have two more hours to go back to be on Tahiti time.  

 

Bill & Mary Ann

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Report # 104 Day at Sea February 18, 2020 Tuesday Partly sunny, showers, & 68 degrees

After five times changes with the clocks going back in about as many days, many guests are wondering why they are getting sleepy in the late afternoon.  We figured that when we left San Antonio, Chile, for instance, the time there right now is 2:30am.  Now the time here on our way to Pitcairn Island is 9:30pm.  No wonder we are having trouble staying awake through dinner.  Pretty difficult to adjust that quickly, in our opinion.  Still, we believe going ahead an hour that quickly would be worse.  And that is why we have never chosen to go on a world cruise that was going eastbound.

 

Events of the day involved the ongoing photo contest, which is once again repeating the same categories as the first segment.  We never did find out what the great prizes were for the winners.  At least you get to keep your $5 entry photo, which is reasonable for that size of a photo.

 

There was an unveiling of the Pitcairn Island t-shirts today in the Shops.  Mentioning that there was limited quantities always motivates the folks.  We do recall that the islanders will bring on plenty of souvenir t-shirts when they board the ship tomorrow.

 

The Polynesian group has continued their string of activities and talks, and are doing a fine job.  From exercise class to ukulele lessons, and a lesson on Hawaiian dancing, they have kept the guests entertained.  Who knew that the coconut bra was never worn by the Hawaiian native women?  Kainoa admitted that there were no coconuts big enough that would fit his two sisters anyway. He can be very funny. That practice was done by the Tahitians. 

 

For the first time in over three weeks, we finally made it back to the Seaview Pool for some sunshine.  It really was much warmer than the predicted 68 degrees, but there was also a nice comfortable breeze.  At least twice, we had some stray clouds drift over the ship, and we did get some sudden showers.  Using a towel, we just covered up and waited it out.  Actually it was rather refreshing.  The decks were dry within 15 minutes once the sun reappeared.  What a difference from this cruise to the Tales of the South Pacific as far as the deck space is concerned at the Seaview Pool.  Today we would estimate that about 12 people were using the lounges.  And we certainly appreciate that.  We are taking the sun slowly, however, so as not to burn.  When we reach Sydney, we intend to stock up on their excellent sunscreen, where they sell it by the quart.

 

It is nice to finally be caught up with backed up reports and photos.  The internet seems to be working, although, we don't want to jinx it.  Philip came to the aft pool briefly and we had a chat about what messed up the internet on this ship.  He said it was the provider, who has since made the adjustments to their service.  Will keep our fingers crossed……

 

Dinner was interesting this evening with a fish entrée called cobia in a banana leaf.  Bill & Heo ordered it and said it was the best.  The Hungarian goulash was chewy, but the General Tsao chicken was perfect.  Barb had ordered a small portion of the beef goulash, but did not care for it.  Instead, she had the quesadilla appetizer, which was delicious and the perfect size for her.  BY 9:30pm, the entire dining room had emptied out.  This is a sign that the folks are really tired. 

 

The show was a combo of a comedian, Scott Harris and circus acrobats of Yury and Nato, a duo from Russia, Greg said.  Woody said the acrobats had some pretty interesting and impossible moves. 

 

And the clocks went back that one more hour again.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

Report # 103 Day at Sea February 17, 2020 Monday Partly sunny & 61 degrees

The further west we travel, the warmer it has gotten.  There was an increase in the humidity as well, getting us accustomed to the change gradually.  During his PM talk, the Captain said that we were 300 miles from Easter Island and 820 miles from Pitcairn Island, our next sort-of visit.  We never get off of the ship there, but a group of the islanders come out to us, and stay onboard for a few hours.  More than once, the seas were too rough for them to come out, much to everyone's disappointment. 

 

With all of the news revolving around the deadly virus, we are not certain of any of the upcoming ports.  This ship has not been to China recently, where the virus originated, but these days, many other countries are being more careful as to who they will allow into their ports.  For the first time ever, we received a health questionnaire for French Polynesia.  It is required for every guest and crew member, we assume, to complete the form stating where we have visited in the last fourteen days.  The questionable phrase on this form is: For the territory of French Polynesia to remain free of any contamination, prevention measures have been established.  None of us knows exactly what this means.  Many cruise ships have been denied entry in other places in the world, and now we are in fear that will happen to us.  We do not have any ports in China this year, but will that matter?    No doubt, this is a new experience for everyone, and we are sure that the company will do their best to keep us all safe, even if that means cancellations. 

 

On another subject, we got a notice that we can have an official Pitcairn Island immigration stamp put in our passports for $10.  Now we are not sure why we would desire to have this, especially when the extra space in our books is important.  On our last South Pacific voyage, we were warned not to get the offered passport stamps while in Vanuatu or Fiji, as they could make our passports voided.  Can you imagine being out of the country with an invalid passport?  We recently learned that even worn pages in an older passport book can also make them invalid.  So no stamps for us.

 

The Polynesian group continued their classes with pareo tying, dance lessons, and learning about the canoe, something that is found in every corner of Polynesia.  One other activity included a port to table session with Chef Petr and Kainoa, who is really expanding his talents on this cruise. 

 

A special invitation had been sent to all of the President's Club members last week for "amuses" around the pool.  Beginning at 6:30pm, we entered the Lido Pool area to be escorted through a receiving line of the Captain, hotel director, and the cruise director.  We guess you could call this a mini dinner, since the tastings began with skewered fruit, followed by many delectable vegetable-based items.  They included Caesar salad with anchovies, mussels served in a shell, scallops, jalepeno peppers, little lamb chops, beef wellington, and lasagna.  Then tiny desserts were served like tiramisu, a lemon ball of something gelatin-filled, and fruit.  None of our group knew this much food was going to be served.  And of course, any type of drink was offered.  Actually several drinks if you wished.  Many of our friends had just gotten into this club and it was nice to see them join the party.  The Captain and his officers circulated among the tables for the entire hour.  Neither of us ate too much…mostly the jar of mixed nuts, because we wanted to save our appetites for dinner.  Truthfully, we had made reservations in the Pinnacle Grill, but cancelled them because of this party. 

 

So all of us did show up at our table, and enjoyed it regardless.  Both of us ordered the meatballs and spaghetti, and agreed it was really good.  Sometimes the simple meals can be most satisfying.  Conversation continued with more new stories evolving from the spread of the corona virus.  More cruise lines have re-routed their vessels, or have taken their ships away from the Orient.  The internet seems to be ahead of the TV news also, as many passengers and crew members have been communicating with friends and families on other lines.  Once again, time will tell.

 

Entertainment tonight was another performance from Abba Fab.  By 9:30pm, most all of the dinner guests had left the lower dining room, so we assume they either went to the show or called it a night, and went to bed.  Of course there are other things to do like listening to the Station Band in the Crow's Nest, go to the Wajang to watch a movie, or stay and play slots all night.

 

And once again, the clocks went back one more hour this evening. 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

Report # 102 Easter Island, Chile February 16, 2020 Sunday Chance of thunderstorms & 77 degrees

Well, will we or won't we?  That was yesterday's biggest question of the day, and the final answer was…..we did.  We made it to Easter Island, and we were able to tender ashore, much to the delight of everyone.  But it wasn't quite that easy, as we will explain a bit later.

 

Easter Island is part of Chile, although it is separated from the country by many miles.  It's about as remote as it gets.  A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the main attraction to this small island is the imposing stone statues called "moai".  The big question is who were the people that carved, moved, and erected these eerie stone statues?  What do they mean, and where have these people gone?  Anthropologists and travelers like us are still trying to find the answers.  And that is primarily what folks come here for….the mystery of it all. 

 

There are about 900 statues that were created by the Rapa Nui natives that lived here since 300 AD.  When a Dutch ship arrived in 1772, they gave it the appropriate name of Easter Island.  There was an estimated 2000 people on the island, but their resources had been depleted.  By the 1900's, only 111 of them survived.

 

Hanga Roa is the main town complete with a fishing harbor, restaurants, and craft markets.  It is walkable, but many of the passengers book tours, especially if this was going to be their first visit.  The ship's tours included drives to see the moais that are located around the island.  One excursion included a trip to see the quarry, where it is believed all of the carvings took place.  Another pricey tour had a lunch where the food was cooked in the ground at Anekena Beach.  Several years ago, we did a similar tour with a buffet BBQ lunch, but it sure did not set us back $470 each.  Of course, it did not cost us $80 to enter the national park either.

 

Now this is where things get complicated, in our opinion.  Because the chances of getting over to the island are a toss-up due to the changing swells, many passengers feel forced to buy a tour in order to have the best chance of making it to the island.  If nothing else, the tour groups will make it over there.  In the past, those who have the highest priority tendering privileges have been mixed in with these tour groups.  These days those folks are the President's Club members, as well as deck seven passengers.  This group does not have to get tender tickets, as we simply line up at the door down to deck A.  Not too many of us were there waiting in the hallway at 8am, but we were left waiting there for over an hour.  Turns out, the tour groups were being taken down the inside stairs to the tender boats, without filtering in our group.  Many of us did send messages down to the platform via the "nice guards" at the door.  Eventually, they began taking us down to join the tenders.  Although we did not hear the words said, we are sure someone will say, "There are too many of you now".  We think it is bad enough that the 4 and 5 star Mariners have no chance at priority tendering as they do on other ships in the fleet.  But now, this is beginning to include every Mariner, regardless of their status.  And with shore excursions that were costing from $250 to $470 per person, you can see where we are going with this.  Money rules…….

 

We have been so lucky to have made it to Easter Island several times over the years.  We have visited every site there, and have experienced some wild adventures tendering to the alternate landing place at Anakena Beach.   With some damage to the tender boats and pontoons, we have had to crawl over the front of the tender boat to enter through the front window.  Oh those were the days.  So we do not take tours here anymore.  Just go off on our own, and walk for miles.

 

The When & Where advertised a scenic narration at 7am for the arrival to Easter Island.  But someone should have told the narrator that it was dark that early, as the sun did not rise until much later.  We know, because one of us had risen around 5am, a common habit these days, to see if there was an internet connection.  It was working for a short time, but looking outside our window,  all that we could see were the lights on the island.  And passing rain showers.  In addition, a line had already formed sometime after 4am on deck five for the folks to get tender tickets.  The time tickets would be handed out was 8:30am.    

 

Getting into the tender boat this morning was slow-going.  The swells were making the transfer very dangerous.  Seems that they doubled up on the expert crew members that assist every passenger.  It took up to 40 minutes to load one boat, and only about 10 minutes to bring us into the small harbor at Hanga Piko.  By now, the time was 9:45am, which turned out to be just right for us.  The area was crammed with vans and private cars and trucks to take the folks on tours.  The souvenir tables were already crowded with customers, as the early birds might get the worms, figuratively-speaking of course.  Wiggling through the confusion, we followed the very muddy road to the main street.  By the way, it had rained heavily on the island before the sun came up at around 6:30am.  It was slippery in parts with some deep potholes along the way. Most all of the guests had joined the ship's or private tours, so we were among the first ones to head towards town.  So nice to be free of that mess, we encountered a few island dogs, one of which insisted on following us.  Good thing they were friendly.

 

Today was Sunday, so the locals and vacationing people were not out and about yet.  This rural road was dotted with cafes, restaurants, and hotel facilities all the way from the harbor to the next town of Hanga Roa.  One nice thing was that there was little traffic, with some older kids riding horses.  Many horses reside on this island, often seen grazing in fields tied to a rock. Several of the ship's recommended restaurants were in this area, but were far from being opened.  We intended to come back to this area on our way back, when they should all be opened for business.  And it was here that we were joined by one local dog, who insisted on taking a walk with us.  Figuring he was territorial, this first dog bailed at the next set of bungalows, where he obviously lived.

 

The surfers were out in full force in this area of the island.  Fun to watch, they were experts at staying away from the dangerous volcanic rocks that filled the shores.  The waves were pretty impressive today, but that water sure looked cold.  In this same area was the street full of tented handicraft vendors.  About one dozen tents had many tables of treasures from t-shirts, hand-made jewelry, island clothing, hats, honey, body oils, and the biggest array of Easter Island trinkets you could ever want.  Small to large moais were available as a reminder of the visit here.  Naturally, we already have one at home.

 

Continuing up the road, we walked past the crossroads where a small boat marina held many colorful wooden fishing boats, and a street lined with cafes and bars, most of which were not opened.  Close to this area is a stage-setting for outdoor concerts and other entertainment.  This area has built up over the recent years, and now it looks like a real attraction for the visitors that vacation on this remote island.  Another friendly dog escorted us through town, but stopped at the edges.

 

We passed by the somber cemetery, where many of the relatives of the oldest residents now have a commanding view of the Pacific Ocean. Since today was a Sunday, there were several family members among the grave markers.  Beyond here, we lost the paved sidewalks, and had to hoof it on the graveled muddy road.

 

Along the way, we came across the Tahai complex, where many restored moai were perched, facing inland, staring without the obsidian eyes that had been inserted into the faces.  Only one was complete with the eyes and headdress, which may be a hat or their hair.  Most of the tour vans were stopping here, and one group of them were already piling out to get their photos.  Lucky for us, we got the snapshots well before the ceremonial grounds were invaded.  With the sun at our backs, the lighting was excellent for photographing.

 

 Pastures had been roped off for the horses, that seem to roam these slopes, but also cut off access to some of the sights.  We did find an opening, where a playground was built complete with wooden benches.  There is a small shrine which faces the ocean here, but the info is written in Spanish.  Nearby, there is an Anthropological Museum Artifacts, Sebastian Englert, dedicated to a German priest who lived here.  Most certainly, this shrine is tied to him.  And this is a spot where one of us takes a break, relaxing on one of those benches.  Perfect spot to contemplate the mysterious history of this island.  The final conclusion is that without the remains of the moai, there would not be much to draw travelers here, other than its remoteness and fresh clean air.  Keeping the mystery alive is the magical secret to their success in the travel industry.

 

After exploring the furthest moias and mixing with a herd of horses at Hanga Kioe, we re-united and make our way back towards Hanga Roa, passing through the now-crowded Tahai area.  The few vendors there were doing a brisk business, although their prices were a tad higher than at the harbor.

 

Now we had time to check out the treasures of the vendor tents, spotting some unique beaded jewelry that had possibilities.  Trying not to be impulsive, one of us thought about the selections, and did go back after lunch.  By the way, lunch was at the same restaurant we went to last year called Pea. It was noted for upscale Latin-influenced seafood, empanadas, and salads.  But they did have more selections.   Now the good thing was that it was on HAL's port guide, but was mismarked as to the location.  Better, because it would not be overflowing with guests.  We were able to choose our table by the railing, where we could watch the green turtles of all sizes rolling up in the strong surf.  Difficult to film, we counted five at a time, trying to eat algae near the volcanic rocks.  Kids were entering the water here with surfboards and boogie boards, but the turtles seemed indifferent to this.

 

Anyway, we ordered ice cold Heineken beers in bottles, and added a large BBQ bacon cheeseburger to share.  It did come with some deep fried potato slices , so we asked for an order of French fries too.  Perfect and tasty.  Later, we split a slice of Torta Pea, cake topped with meringue.  Also decadent.  The sun had come out, but the breeze was most enjoyable while we sat under the roof-covered deck that expanded over the water. It did not come cheap, but then, we rationalized that we did not spend $940 for a tour with a lunch, so we got by good.

 

We were back at the pier by 4pm with the help of a few more dogs, including one cute puppy.  Some folks were just making their way towards town after being dropped off of a tour.  They would have a short time to get deeper into the island.  At the pier, we all had to get a tender ticket to board a boat back to the ship.  Tents had been erected so the waiting passengers were out of the sun and sitting in chairs.  That gave us some time to peruse the treasures since we had #14 and they were boarding #10 through #12.  It was moving rather quickly at this end, because the tender boat was protected from those impressive  waves.

 

Back at the ship's tender platform, it was a different story.  The wait was long as the previous boat had problems off-loading their guests.  It had to be done very carefully so the folks would not get hurt.  Later on, we did hear of some accidents that cause some people to get injured, but we are not certain where it happened.  Once again, the crew were wonderful at assisting every one of us.  We bet that all involved with the operations today were going to be glad when this day was over from the sailors to the officers and especially Captain Mercer.

 

The internet was still not working when we got back to the room.  Not a surprise, but perhaps they took this opportunity when most folks were off of the ship to try to fix it.  It did come back later in the day, at least for a while.

 

The sail away was held in the Crow's Nest instead of the aft deck.  Most times when we leave a port during the dinner time, there is no organized sail away outside.  We went to deck nine and watched while the rest of the late tour folks got back to the ship, and stayed while the tenders were loaded back into their slots.  That is quite an operation watching the sailors attempt to hook the boat up to the cables.  Dangerous is an understatement here.  The ship left shortly after the Captain gave a late talk.  We could hear the relief in his voice that we made it to this part of the world, then he gave the predictions for tomorrow's sailing.  We could expect much of the same with some occasional showers.  Fine with us.

 

Dinnertime was fun as we all shared stories of the day.  Greg and Heo were table-hopping, making our group of five easier to serve.  Dinner was a Rapa Nui theme (meaning Easter Island), but the biggest part of that had to be the decorations of a plastic moai with a turquoise light on it as a centerpiece.  The chairs had been draped with silver and turquoise covers, making the dining room special.  Our waiters were dressed in the tweed vests and top hats, resembling the moai hatted heads we guess.

 

Entertainment was different tonight with a circus-acrobatic duo, Yuri and Nato, performing in the Mainstage.  Most all of us were totally beat, so we did not attend.

 

A couple more sea days, and we will be  making a brief scenic stop at Pitcairn Island, another remote place in the world.

 

Bill & Mary Ann   

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