Month: January 2012

Our cruise days are flying by pretty quickly. Day five arrived and we were ready for another excursion. Today we arrived on the island of Dominica. I liked this island the best because we were on a bus off and on for five hours that took us through most of the island along with a couple of stops along the way.

Christopher Columbus landed in Dominica on November 3, 1493. Prior to his arrival, the island was inhabited by the Carib tribe who continue to occupy the island even today. They speak English in Dominica and the population is approximately 73,000 people. The currency here is the East Caribbean dollar although the U.S. dollar is widely accepted.

Our tour bus was waiting for us at the end of the pier. There were many guides available as different tour excursions were leaving from the same area.

After boarding the bus, we were driven up to the top of a hill. Looking down, we could see our cruise ship, the Caribbean Princess.

In addition, there was a small area off to the side where you could shop for local art or buy drinks. The bathroom was across the street and it has a bucket outside where you can contribute a U.S. dollar. Although I used the bathroom while I was there, I did not pay the “voluntary” dollar as the door had no lock (or handle for that matter) and another woman who needed to use the facilities walked in on me. A very embarrassing situation — fortunately I was washing my hands at the time.

I wasn’t quite sure why our tour bus took us up on this hill except perhaps to see the view as later we went back down the hill and up another mountain. The area is very lush and green. There are many (and I do mean many) potholes that our driver was careful to avoid. Besides the driver, a female guide spoke to us throughout the tour about the places that we were passing. I was surprised at how much knowledge she had of the area. Perhaps she has done this many times before. She also answered many of the questions that we as passengers had about the island.

Our next two destinations were a waterfall and a beach that has black sand. It took us quite a while (in my mind) to get to the waterfall. We were told that we had about 15 minutes at this location in order to spend more time at the beach so I think people were hurrying.

The name of the place where we were headed is called the Waitukubuli National Trail. Once we arrived, I was awed by the  dark greens that seemed to fill up my senses. (It reminded me of the song by John Denver called “Annie’s Song” which starts with the lyrics “You fill up my senses like a night in a forest …”   The tall trees, bushes and clean air smell left me feeling exhilarated. I “knew” that there were many creatures living in this forest.

My son spotted a “creature” on a tree. He has a really keen sense of when there are animals or creatures around. I’m not sure what it is. I showed the picture to my uncle who lives in Puerto Rico and he thought it was a grasshopper but I didn’t think so. It was pretty big and clung to the tree. I guess we could have made it move to see if it hopped but then I would have had a heart attack and wouldn’t have been able to blog about it.  (laughing)

Do you know what it is?

Our walk on the path had gone smoothly enough until we reached the steps that go down to the Emerald Pool.

It’s a long way down but somehow it didn’t feel strenuous as I was distracted by the trees around me. There were a lot of people heading to the pool.

We were told that we could swim in the water although it was cold and I was prepared to do just that. The pool looks like a grotto. It is a little chilly but not cold. I walked down the path which eventually became rocky. Taking off my socks and shoes I stepped on the rocks one by one until I was knee deep in water. It felt good. We were told that swimming in this water can make you feel 10 years younger. I must’ve spent about 10 minutes standing in this water. I had decided not to swim in it as I would then have to sit on the bus in a wet bathing suit as I had not brought along a change of clothing. (In case you’re curious, I did not appear 10 years younger when I returned home but perhaps that’s because I didn’t actually swim in the water. I can hear your disbelief but — who knows?)

The pool reminded me so much of a grotto that it brought back memories of a movie I had watched when I was a little girl that was called “The Song of Bernadette.” It was about a young girl who claimed to see the virgin Mary at a grotto. If one was dipped into the water of this grotto, which was located in Lourdes, France, (it has been said) that one could be healed of many ailments. The small town has a population of around 15,000 but approximately 5,000,000 tourists and pilgrims make their way to the here. Any of you been there?

Okay well, back to reality and not memories …

I made my way slowly back to the trail that I had followed to the pool. The guide was at the bottom of the trail and told me that there was another way back but it was 5 minutes longer. I decided to take the trail that I knew. Unfortunately I had forgotten my asthma inhaler and I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the top since the climb up was a wee bit steep. Huffing and puffing and moving very slowly, I finally reached the top of the trail.

Back on the bus, we started out for our next destination which was a black sandy beach. When we arrived, our tour guide gave us a coupon for a free drink which we quickly turned in. Finding chairs to sit on, we bought some chicken since we were pretty hungry by then. We donned our swimming suits and took a swim in the ocean. Black sand is hot! I practically ran all the way down to the water’s edge.

After an hour, we headed back to the bus and were taken to the cruise ship. But, before we boarded the ship, we walked around the downtown area. It’s really pretty. I had to visit the local church on this island also.

The stained glasses windows in this church were really pretty.

There were people in the church so I didn’t take too many pictures of the inside so as not to bother anyone who was praying. Back outside, we walked back to the ship. The streets are very narrow but there is a lot of architecture on this small island — old and new.

I love the colors that they use on the outside of some of the houses and apartments. They are so cheerful!

Compare this new house to the gas station we walked past …

Back at the ship, the afternoon activities included:

• Jenga Challenge
• Movie – The King’s Speech
• Xbox Kinect
• Seminar on Reversing the Signs of Aging
• Mr. Sexy Legs Competition (no, I did not attend this)
• Chanel Fragrance Event

There were many others — these are just a few that the ship highlighted in their daily activity sheet.

Dinner again was at 6:00 p.m. The entertainment for the evening was called Comedy Showtime from New York City with Sarge. I have to say that he was really funny. He’s a comedienne, piano player and singer and he does all three things very well. He used the band as his back up and asked the audience what we wanted him to sing. A few people shouted things out. Then I shouted “John Denver!” His response was “I must have the wrong audience.”

It was so funny. A woman a couple rows in front of me shouted that she wanted country music so he had the band play some country music while he sang. I decided to get up from my seat and sway to the music. After a couple minutes he noticed that I was standing and “swaying” so he asked if I would go up to the stage. Gladly! Before I walked up the steps to the stage (where he waited with his hand outstretched for me) I took my shoes off. His response was “Uh oh, she’s serious.”

He then had the band play another country song and he and I danced on the stage. It was hilarious and I had a good time. Meanwhile, my husband and son were trying to crawl under their seats pretending they didn’t know me. Such serious family I have!

I hadn’t had that much fun in a long time. Sarge performed his heart out even though, for some reason I couldn’t think of, there weren’t very many people there for this performance. Hmmm … I wonder if our time together was caught on tape. (laughing)

Bedtime, along with its chocolates, came soon enough.

Additional Cruise Posts

• Day One
• Day Two
• Day Three
• Day Four
• Day Six
• Day Seven
• Ship Tidbits
• Food on the Ship

Today we reached the island of Antigua. The people here speak English (with an accent) and there are about 85,000 on this small island. The currency they use is the Eastern Caribbean dollar but the U.S. dollar is accepted everywhere.

We decided not to take an excursion on this island but walk around the downtown area instead.

From the cruise ship, I could see the towers of a large church. We decided to walk towards this building.

The weather was really nice and perfect for walking around. Below are some of the pictures I took of the area where we walked before we reached the church building.

There are many small shops in the downtown area. This particular area must have had 40 shops crammed into small places the size of office cubicles. The people were friendly — sometimes too friendly. But they have a very short time to make an impression on the hundreds (sometimes thousands) of tourists that descend upon them. And they are all vying for the business.

As I mentioned in a previous post, there are jewelry stores recommended by the ship for special discount shopping. Most of these stores leave their doors wide open so the air conditioning comes out into the street. I thought it was a waste of electricity but perhaps they make enough money selling jewelry that it doesn’t matter.

While hunting for free internet service in Antigua, we came across this casino sign. Outside the casino there were a few people with their laptops open. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get our wi-fi to work. The ship does offer satellite internet service but it’s slow and expensive. (But not as expensive as when you use your cell phone. That would be a very very large phone bill!)

This Cola Cola sign made me smile and not because I believed what they were trying to get people to believe … that you are in paradise when you drink Coca Cola. Having said that, I did try a Coca Cola and it tasted quite different from the ones I’ve tried in the United States. It seemed less sweet. When I read the ingredients, the difference seemed to be that they don’t use high fructose corn syrup but plain old sugar. Who would’ve thought it would make a difference? It was really good!

We finally reached the destination we had headed for — the local church which is called the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. The Cathedral and its churchyard are surrounded by a brick wall and the iron gates at each entry were erected by the Vestry in 1789.

The present Cathedral was completed in 1847. The twin towers are 70 feet high. The south gate which is the original main entrance is topped by two figures representing John the Baptist and St. John. They are said to have been taken by a British man-of-war cruising the Caribbean in 1756 from a French ship that was destined for Martinique during the Seven Years War between Britain and France.

The building is being restored as it is pretty dilapidated.

In the front of the church is a graveyard but the upkeep has not been the greatest. The view from the front yard looks toward downtown Antigua.

It’s really not strange to walk through graveyards, is it? I mean, I didn’t walk to the church expecting to find a graveyard. Perhaps that is more common on these islands than in the United States mainland. Here’s another grave marker. I wonder who this person was and why he had such a large marker?

He died so young at age 44 and the marker says he was an affectionate brother. Hmmm … I wonder what they’ll put on my tombstone. Nothing! I hope to be cremated but I hope someone says I was affectionate.

As I was leaving, I stepped into a small building where a woman and man were sitting. I asked questions about the church and was told that the Cathedral was severely damaged in the last major earthquake in 1974. The public gave funds to help with essential repairs. Today, termites, minor earthquake tremors and general wear and tear have taken their toll on the church and now it needs major restoration.

In December 2009, someone fell through a crack in the stone floor and engineers examined the building and concluded that the floor was unsafe. The building has been closed for worship and to the public.

An old schedule still hangs outside the church.

They anticipate that it will cost about $5 million U.S. dollars to restore and enhance the Cathedral. There is a website that you can visit to get additional information if you choose to donate to this project.  www.stjohnthedivineantigua.com

On our way back to the ship, we passed the local museum but did not visit it.

We also came across a woman who was standing with a pineapple on her head. The sign says she will dance for you so you can take a picture of her IF you put money in her basket. I decided I didn’t need to see her dance and took a picture of her from afar.

Seems like it was a long day but it really wasn’t. We probably took 3 hours walking around before we headed back to the ship. Sometimes you get to see more of the culture of the island when you walk around instead of taking excursions to beaches or other places of interest.

Back on the ship the afternoon activities included (the list is not all inclusive):

• Card Making
• Wine Sampling
• Afternoon Tea
• Seminar on Arthritis pain
• Afternoon Trivia
• Ping Pong Challenge
• Salsa Dancing Basics
• Karaoke

As usual, we just hung out, read and watched everything that went on around us.

Dinner came soon enough. We decided we would arrive “late” at 6:00 p.m. instead of 5:30 p.m. It didn’t really matter since our table was reserved. I’ll talk more about the food in a different post.

The evening entertainment was called “Caribbean Caliente” which means hot Caribbean. It consisted of the cast dancing different types of dances. Again — it was okay if you like Las Vegas style entertainment.

Back in our cabin, with chocolates waiting on our bed, we laid down for the night.

Day 4 of our cruise was now completed.

Additional Cruise Posts:

• Day One
• Day Two
• Day Three
• Day Five
• Day Six
• Day Seven
• Ship Tidbit
• Food on a Ship

We were blessed with another beautiful day on our arrival to our 2nd port in the southern Caribbean — Tortola.

The shuttle ride to Prospect Reef Port where we would swim with the dolphins was about 15 minutes. The port has 2 lagoons that contain the dolphins who have been here for a few years and are specially trained.

Once we arrived, we were directed to remove everything from our persons except our swimming suits (shoes included) and put our belongings in cubby holes. Then we were given life jackets and sat down to watch a video on what to expect along with safety rules for us and the dolphins.

Each group was assigned a letter. After the video, the guide said “All those with the letter E please follow me. You will be riding with the dolphins.” We were excited since we had the letter E. Unfortunately, a woman in another group was heard complaining rather loudly. She was not in our group but thought she had paid to “ride” with the dolphins. The guide told her she would have to take the matter up with the cruise line as she had not paid for the extra bonus of “riding.” I felt sorry for her as she had been all excited and now was disappointed. I feel the company should have offered to take an extra payment to accommodate her.

As we were heading to the lagoons, a photographer was taking group pictures. We declined. She was quite insistent that she wanted to take our picture and I was quite insistent that she not take it.

As we walked down a boardwalk next to the lagoons, we saw a dolphin jump out of the water. From the video we watched, we knew what to expect but the anticipation was compelling.

One by one each person in our group headed into the water. On the side of the lagoon there was a 3 foot platform where you could stand. The guide had the first person swim out to the middle of the lagoon. He threw a fish into the water near them. We were directed to put our left hand on our chest and to hold our right hand to the side and in the water.

The dolphin came around each person and when he swam under your right arm you were supposed to reach for his fin, hang on and then reach for his other fin. He would then glide you over to the other side of the lagoon. When you let go of the dolphin’s fin, we were shown how to make the dolphin play with us. Then we could kiss the dolphin.

I watched as the first 4 people went through. Everything went smoothly. Then it was my turn. I swam to the middle of the lagoon. All of a sudden I was on my back. Not good. The life jacket had not been properly pulled tight on me so I was having a hard time “standing” in the water. The guide threw the fish but since my feet were flailing the dolphin just passed me by. They don’t know what to do when the “right” steps aren’t followed.

The guide yelled at me to stand still and straight. I tried pulling my life jacket down but the back (which should have been on my  neck) was still up on my head. Finally I was able to get it down. Here came the dolphin. I grabbed his fin with my right hand. Got it! Then I reached for his other fin with my left hand. Got it! I felt giddy.

When we reached the guide at the other end I let go. The guide then said “Since you are having problems swimming we’ll just have you stand on the ledge here.” It wasn’t my fault! I felt like screaming. Instead, I was able to play with the dolphin for another 5 minutes.

All of this was photographed.

After each person in our group went through the same steps, we all swam out to the middle of the lagoon. There we clapped our hands in the water and the dolphin swam and jumped around us.

Then it was over. We had swum with a dolphin.

Getting out of the water, the photographer again tried to take our picture. Again we said no. She insisted. I told her no. It wasn’t until later that I understood why she was so insistent.

Across from the lagoons is a building where you can go and look at the pictures that they have taken. They offer you a “package” deal. Of course, if they don’t take all the pictures then the package deal kind’ve falls by the wayside. They wanted $25 per photo (4×6’s I believe) or $159 for the package deal since we were a family of four.

I thought it was absurd. We paid $169 per person for this “once in a lifetime” experience and that should have come with something.

The photographer then told another woman, in Spanish, that she would take care of me because I had “issues” with her. She continued trying to sell us the package. Again I told her no and we walked away.

Quite an experience. I should have told her I knew what she said. I didn’t have issues with her. We simply didn’t want our pictures taken. And, of course, they wouldn’t allow us to take a camera with us.

Oh well … at least we swam with the dolphins.

 

Back at the ship, we changed into fresh clothes. It was now afternoon so we headed to the buffet and had a quick bite to eat. There were more activities planned for the afternoon if we wanted to participate:

• Taboo Challenge
• Wii Resort game
• Afternoon Trivia
• Line Dance Class
• Nikon Photography Class
• Ceramics
• Xbox Kinect Sports
• Seminar on Back Pain solutions
• Abs workshop

Again we just relaxed in a chair and read. The nice thing about cruises is that you can be as busy or lazy as you want to be.

After our 5:30 p.m. dinner, we went to the Princess Theatre for the entertainment of the evening. A comedian by the name of Carlos Oscar was performing. He was really good. I liked that he did not use profanity during his show. Afterwards, he alluded to the fact that “one does not have to use profanity for a show to be good.” He was right.

Back in the cabin, the chocolates were laid out on the bed. The moon was full tonight. It was so peaceful and I was glad we had a balcony. Sleep would come quickly again as the slow swaying of the ship lulled me to sleep.

Day 3 was now completed.

Every cruise line has excursions that you can select from and Princess Cruise was no exception. Excursions are trips that you can take when you are docked at a port. There are several selections for each port. We were able to select ours even before we left the house.

On our recent cruise, we stopped at five (5) ports — one each day of the week, Monday through Friday.

Our first port was in St. Thomas which is part of the U.S. Virgin Islands. The ship docked right next to the pier. (Sometimes ships dock away from the pier and you have to take a tender (a smaller boat) that takes you to shore.)

St. Thomas is really pretty. The population is approximately 51,000 according to the 2000 Census Bureau. The weather has year round temperatures ranging from 73-89 degrees Fahrenheit. English is the primary language and the currency used is the U.S. dollar. It was established as a trading post by the Dutch West India Company back in 1657.

St.Thomas was named after one of the apostles who was also known as doubting Thomas because he temporarily disbelieved that Jesus had risen from the dead.

There is plenty of shopping that you can do at each port. The cruise lines tend to push jewelry, more specifically diamonds. Since I’m not a jewelry person I discard the paperwork they send and don’t listen to the recommendations of the shops where you can get good discounts. Diamond International is one of the recommended shops at almost every port.

Our excursion on this island was called “Turtle Cove Catamaran Sail & Snorkel.” We grabbed our bathing suits, sunscreen and headed to the pier where we signed off on a disclosure stating that we wouldn’t hold the company liable if anything should happen.

The man who met us was kind’ve gruff. However, the catamaran staff was excellent. The name of the catamaran was The Cat.

Sandals were not permitted on board so we took them off and dropped them into a netted bag that they kept stored for us.

The weather was perfect. We sailed past many hillside houses and stopped at another pier to pick people up from the Marriott Hotel.

We were handed snorkeling fins and mouth/goggle pieces that had been cleaned in a special solution so that “you won’t kiss the person who previously had it.” After a brief talk on safety and the water guide we would get, we were helped down the eight (8) side steps of the catamaran. The water was perfect (after a couple of minutes).

While snorkeling we saw turtle, coral and different colored fish. We didn’t see the really large turtles that had been seen by other snorkelers though. It was nice. The water was pretty clear. After the guided water tour, we had a little time to venture our for ourselves.

When finished, I had a little difficulty getting back on board as the steps were too high for me to reach with my feet. I almost fell backwards. The guides though were right on top of things and told me to sit on the bottom step then turn around and walk up. It worked perfectly.

(Note: One myth about snorkeling is that if you wear glasses you can’t snorkel. That is not true. I’ve snorkeled before without my glasses. The water seems to amplify my vision and, although not perfect, is good enough to see the underwater life.)

Back on board the catamaran, lively music was playing, chips were set out for hungry folk and rum with punch drinks were served. For those of us who don’t drink alcoholic beverages they served an orange pineapple drink.

The trip back to the pier was very relaxing. Once we arrived our sandals were lined up waiting for us.

On the short walk back to the ship, we saw iguanas basking in the sun.

A tourist fed one of the iguanas a piece of bread even though the animals are not supposed to be fed.

And here comes company to share the bread …

Notice the camera that was videotaping the iguanas …

Our excursion lasted about four (4) hours. Back on the ship, we changed into clean clothes and found a place to sit. Too much sun can make you tired.

There are many activities you can attend such as:

• Ping Pong Challenges
• A seminar on acupuncture
• Ballroom dance classes
• Basketball shootouts
• Ceramic class
• Advanced Photography class
• Water volleyball
• Big screen movie theatre with 3-4 movies a day

There is an all-day buffet that you can go to that closes at midnight. I was disappointed that the fruit was not fresh. Lots of watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew — but not ripe.

Dinner was at 5:30 p.m. in the Coral Dining room. It was not our first selection (the room nor the time) as we wanted to eat later but this was what was available when we booked. (More on the dining room itself in a later post).

Today was formal night so we had to dress up. Suit jackets with ties or tuxedoes for the men and dresses or nice pantsuits for the women. A person can choose not to eat in the dining room and instead head to the Horizon Cafe where the buffet line is. The food served is almost the same and you can dress casually. Dressing up was nice though and my husband and I had a formal portrait taken.

After dinner, we attended the Captain’s Welcome Champagne Waterfall Party. There were approximately 700+ champagne glasses and the Captain and part of his crew came and started pouring champagne on the very top one. The champagne then cascaded down to the other ones.

Each evening there is a show in the Princess Theater. Tonight the show was called “Do You Wanna Dance.” The cast performed different dances. It was okay. They certainly put all their hearts into it.

From here we went to the cabin where the cabin steward had made our beds for the evening and left us two pieces of chocolate.

Sleep came quickly. Day 2 had now ended.

Additional Cruise Posts: