Tahiti & Moorea, Society Islands of French Polynesia

Words can’t begin to describe the incredible beauty of the islands of Tahiti and Moorea! We arrived in Tahiti Friday morning, and went ashore to visit the colorful marketplace. The first floor was mostly fresh foods, and the second floor had a wide assortment of items to be purchased, from shell jewelry to beautiful pareos (sarongs). It was great fun browsing through the shops.

In the afternoon we took our first shore excursion – Tahiti by 4-Wheel Drive. I really lucked out when the tour guide asked if I’d like to sit up front because the back was just about full! I felt like I was getting a private tour! He was very interesting to talk to. He was a gemologist who had grown up in Bordeaux, France, and had come to Tahiti to work with black pearls. I got to use a little of my French, and enjoyed talking with him. The tour itself was really interesting! He took us way back into the mountains and little-traveled roads. As we drove, we frequently passed friendly Polynesians, who never failed to greet us with a smile and a wave. The waterfalls were spectacular, and the plant life was so colorful! We even saw our second drum tree, reminding us of our trip to the Amazon Rain Forest in Peru last year. After a brief stop for those who wanted a swim, we continued on to a reservoir, where the eels came to the surface to check us out. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing seldom-visited parts of Tahiti.

Early Saturday morning, we set sail for Moorea, a small island within sight of Tahiti, and we arrived there by about 8:00. The mountains recalled scenes from South Pacific, with their mysterious cloud-capped peaks. We’d been told that Bora Bora was Michener’s Bali Ha’i, but according to our tour guide, one of the mountain peaks was the one that was used in the 1958 film.

Today’s shore excursion was really a break from our typical excursions! We did a motu beach picnic and stingray feeding. As we pulled away, we were greeted by a humpback whale breaching just beyond the coral reef. Our guide explained that humpbacks seldom breach when they’re feeding, and these whales feed in Antarctica. He said that the humpbacks of the Northern Hemisphere and those of the Southern Hemisphere never intermingle – we thought maybe it was because of the opposite seasons. As we continued to the motu (islet) where we would swim and have our picnic, we were treated with absolutely spectacular hues of water – deep blues, aquas, sea greens, to name a few. We saw some black-tipped sharks swimming near some snorkelers, and we also got glimpses of dolphins near a resort. The most memorable experience was being able to “pet” the stingrays. I never would have guessed that they would be so soft! Our guide coaxed several of them over, and they took turns letting us pet them. When it was my turn, I got an added bonus. I was busy “petting” Jeannie, when suddenly the guide said, “I guess Maggie wants to get in on this too. You’re getting two for one!” They kind of climb up you and make these little slurping noises, and they have absolutely HUGE eyes! I also had my first taste of raw fish! It was a local dish made of fresh tuna, mixed with coconut milk, sea salt, tomatoes, and cucumbers. Like the cuy I’d tried in Peru, I can say I tried it, but that was about it! No thanks! Two of the Amsterdam cast members were on the tour today, so we got a chance to visit with them and find out about them. One was a dancer from Seattle, and the other was the lead female singer, whose home is near London. There are ten members in the cast, but we have yet to meet the dancer that claims Buffalo as her home. Having just met two girls today made tonight’s performance by the cast more interesting.

Our last few nights before arriving in French Polynesia afforded me a chance to do some great stargazing! The second of the two nights I went out, the Milky Way was absolutely breathtaking! The astronomer kept having to tell people who weren’t in the know, “That’s not a cloud, that’s the Milky Way!” I’ve never seen the stars so thick! But trying to identify constellations has been a challenge – they’re all backwards down here! For example, Cygnus seems to be flying in the wrong direction, and Lyra is opening the wrong way! Gone are the ever-present circumpolar stars of the Northern Hemisphere! It does make things particularly interesting!

For the past several days we’ve been treated to a different cable news station! We lost the CNN signal just a few days out of L.A., and we were without television news for several days. We were thrilled when the cruise director told us at the last HAL Chorale rehearsal that they’d contracted with the Internet Provider to get Fox News until they were able to pick up the CNN signal again near Cairns, Australia. Most of the people we’ve talked to seem very happy with the change! In fact, when the announcement was made, a cheer went up among the Chorale members!

A big thanks goes out to my DAR officers, especially Martha Hoffman, for taking over for me at the last DAR meeting. Thanks also to Angie Brannigan, who gave me a heads-up as to what we might enjoy seeing while here – you’re right, Angie, it was absolutely beautiful! We’re also wondering if either Cheryl or Dennis Paben has any big news for us???

Barb

Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia

During our nearly full week at sea, we have had leisurely breakfasts in the LaFontaine dining room, meeting quite a few new. After chatting with couples once, I am recognizing faces but can’t remember names or which couple is from San Francisco, San Diego, or Vancouver. I have tried to walk laps around the deck but sometimes have to split it up into two different times during the day in order to get a minimum of three miles completed. The lectures have been quite fascinating and we have attended most. There are three lecturers on board, each with their own specialties. All of them are fascinating and are able to tailor their talks to lay people. There is a historian whose specialty is in the history and culture of the Pacific rim who presented fascinating lectures on the border conflicts between the US and Canada as well as how the Pacific islands were discovered and settled. Most of it was information that I didn’t know or about which I only had superficial knowledge. The naturalist gave extensive information on the fauna and flora of the area and how the various species thrived (or in some cases didn’t thrive) in the area. The Meteorologist (who our cousins, Chris and Geoff, and Aunt Dorothy will be interested to know received his PhD from University of Wisconsin) gave excellent lectures on the skies of the Southern Hemisphere as well as an extensive look at the planet, Mars, and other planets in the Solar System. On Tuesday night, Barb joined him on the top deck for a view of the skies in darkness. She was quite pleased to point out Sagittarius to him because he hadn’t spotted it!

One day, I had to miss the first part of one of the lectures because on another part of the ship, they were explaining the navigational system of the ship. Not that we had any concern, but after days with absolutely no sign of life or scenery off the ship except water to the horizon in all directions, we were pleased to know that the navigators seemed to know where they were headed! Before we reach each port, the port lecturer tells us what to expect in each location including what to find on shore, what to buy and not to buy, the kind of transportation we might expect, and much much more. I have been impressed how she talks completely without notes about places like Nuka Hiva, which probably most readers of this blog, will, like us, have little knowledge about.

As Barb said in her last blog, she joined the chorale which will be doing numbers from “100 Years of Broadway” which our church choir has done. The chorale director is also the ship’s cruise director and is an outstanding musician in his own right. He gives chorale members a heads up on a number of issues that have not yet been shared with the whole ship.

After nearly a full week at sea, we finally reached LAND! Today we are in Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia. It has a small population and there are few services and no tours available. We boarded a tender and went into the small village of Taiohae. Nuku Hiva is one of ten of the Marquesas Islands and we stopped here primarily because we had been at sea for the last six days and it is still two days until we reach Tahiti, obviously a much better known island in French Polynesia. We had been told there was practically nothing to do in Nuku Hiva and it would take 1 to 1 ½ hours maximum to see the village. I found it quite interesting and spent about 3 hours wandering and exploring. After the food, craft and tee shirt market, we walked along the shore. The harbor with its mountains and view of the ship was great. And this is considered the LEAST interesting of the islands of French Polynesia! If that’s the case, I can only imagine the beauty ahead.

We came upon an elementary school in session and noted the book bags hanging on hooks outside as well as the windows decorated for Halloween. I walked up to a small church and viewed the inside and then continued along to Notre Dame Cathedral, built in 1975, and beautiful wood carvings inside. Likewise I passed a college which seemed to have a larger number of students than I might have expected. Several were outside playing basketball and there were a couple of guys showing some girls how to throw the javelin. Weather was warm in the morning but after a warm shower that didn’t affected anyone significantly, it became hot and humid. Barb’s thermometer showed 89 degrees with 57% humidity.

After returning to the ship, we learned of a major earthquake on Vanuatu which we visit on October 22, between Fiji and Cairns, Australia. The 7.8 quake led to another tsunami warning in the South Pacific and included Australia and New Zealand. A few days ago, we had heard that we probably would be able to be able to visit American Samoa on October 17 as planned, but have heard no official word.

Chuck

At Sea

It seems incredible that we’re in our fourth of six straight days at sea! We’ll have more interesting things to write about once we get to the ports, but we wanted to update you on what’s happening. So many people have asked us, “How will you stand being at sea so much?” Rest assured that we have not been bored in the least!

I’ve been working on recovering from a sinus infection, which I first noticed in Long Beach (L.A.) and thought at the time that it was allergies. By Friday I decided I’d better visit the shipboard doctor and get it taken care of before it went into bronchitis. This was my first (and hopefully last) experience with visiting the medical center. They were very efficient, and I’ve been on medication now for three days. Friday I hibernated and only came out for meals and the evening entertainment. Hopefully the worst is over – still have the sinus headache and congestion, but I’m feeling much better and have felt like doing things the past two days. I’m just glad it hit when it did: I’ve had several sea days to recover, and I can do as much or as little as I want!

We’ve both enjoyed attending some of the lectures they’ve provided. The astronomer is extremely interesting, and we’re looking forward to more of his lectures. We’re also going to have a wonderful chance to see the Leonid meteor shower (in mid-November) from the middle of the ocean – with none of the normal distraction of Chicago lights on the horizon! We’ve also enjoyed the historian, who’s given us insight on the explorers of the Pacific Ocean, among other things. Neither of us had heard the fascinating story of the Pig & Potato War, which played a role in helping determine the border between Canada and the United States! This morning we went to the interdenominational church service and had communion, though no mention of World Communion Sunday. This afternoon I’m planning to go and participate in the HAL (Holland America Line) Chorale, a choral group they’re organizing.

It’s truly amazing to experience the enormity of the Pacific Ocean. We haven’t seen a single sign of life outside our ship since setting sail from Long Beach on Wednesday, with the exception of sighting a whale soon after sailing. We’ve watched the ocean pass by and haven’t seen so much as a bird or a ship! The only thing that helps us know what direction we’re going is that we’re on the port side of the ship, which gets the morning sun – meaning we’re headed south. As of noon on our fourth day at sea, the captain announced that we were at 9°N, so we still haven’t even crossed the Equator! As this is written, we are due west of Panama. Even though the Pacific is supposed to be “peaceful”, we’ve done our share of rolling and pitching, but amazingly, I haven’t had any symptoms of seasickness, thank goodness! The ms Amsterdam is like a little floating city – so many things to do that we’ve found the time passing by very quickly!

We’ll be in Nuku Hiva, Marquesas in three days, just as a stopover, probably for supplies and fueling is my guess. There’s little to do there, but we’ve heard it’s a beautiful little island. Then we’ll have another day at sea before we get to Papeete, Tahiti. All of this is in the Hawaiian time zone, so at this point we’re four hours behind Chicago. We’re still trying to figure out how it all works with the International Date Line as well as daylight saving time in the Northern Hemisphere and standard time in the Southern Hemisphere!

The crew of the Amsterdam had a benefit show that helped raise funds for the Filipino and Indonesian crew members whose families suffered damage from the natural disasters that hit in those areas. It brings it much closer to home when we know some of the people affected.

Barb

L.A. & At Sea

Our introduction to our Grand Voyage was completed with our last port in North America at Long Beach, CA. We were docked right next to the Queen Mary which is now a hotel and tourist attraction. Our last opportunity to shop at American prices was there, so we, along with many others, took the free shuttle from the dock into Long Beach. The port lecturer reminded that we ought to have beach shoes, so we congregated with other from our ship in the shoe department at Walmart. There was little choice at the end of the season, but I checked three other nearby stores and finally found something acceptable at one, so we considered our mission accomplished.

By the time we returned to the ship, the Los Angeles arrivals, numbering about 550, were boarding and giving the ship its nearly full compliment of guests. At dinner we met our new dinner companions, couples from Texas and Florida. The latter had originally lived in Rye, New York, in the southeastern part of the state. They had heard of Hamburg and she had graduated from Syracuse University! That made 1/3 of our table Orangemen!

We set sail across the Pacific a little after 5 PM on September 30 and will be at sea for six consecutive days before reaching the sparsely populated island Marquesas Islands on October 7. Some friends have commented that they feared boredom with so many days at sea. Just as an indication of our first day, October 1, here is a sampling of activities. We had breakfast served in the dining room. I had the time to walk the outside deck 8 times which is slightly more than 2 miles before attending a lecture from the shore excursions department at 10. We remained for the interesting Meteorological professor who began a series of lectures on astronomy. Today he described the appearance of the sky in the Southern Hemisphere. We had to leave early to attend a reception at noon to meet the captain for those who are in our stateroom category. At two, we went to the movie The Proposal, which neither of us had seen. After an afternoon break of about an hour and a half, we went to dinner followed by the evening entertainment which varies each day. Yesterday’s was done by the ship’s cast, a group of young entertainers who put on a show of music and dance which cruisers always enjoy.

We followed with interest the selection of the host city for the 2016 Olympics this morning. Unlike a lot of Chicagoans, we both were hoping that Chicago could beat out Rio for the games. We knew that Rio was the favorite and that South America had never hosted them so it was a fairly long shot. However, it came as a surprise to have Chicago eliminated first. We haven’t heard much analysis, but we are guessing that local opposition to hosting the games was heard in addition to awareness of Chicago’s reputation for political corruption and the national publicity on the killings of school students. Chicago is a magnificent city with so much to offer, but in addition to the sentimentality for selection of a South American city for the first time, these were difficult issues to overcome.

We've heard about the devastation in American Samoa caused by the earthquake and tsunami. We're scheduled to go there on the 17th. Needless to say, the ship has been in contact with the authorities there and will not stop unless it's safe to do so. We'll keep you posted!

Chuck

Seattle & Vancouver

On Saturday afternoon our cousins Deb & Pete delivered us to Pier 91 for our embarkation. The ms Amsterdam will be our home away from home until December 2nd, and we were really anticipating seeing our stateroom.

The embarkation process was the quickest and easiest we’ve ever experienced, partly because we didn’t arrive exactly at the scheduled time, and partly because so many people had opted to embark on the cruise in L.A. on the 30th. We sailed through the process (no pun intended) and were escorted aboard the ship and to our stateroom. A few minutes later our luggage began to arrive. With five large suitcases and three small ones, we were in a complete state of upheaval for the entire first day, which was only interrupted by the mandatory lifeboat drill and dinner. After two days, we’ve finally pretty much found places for everything and sort of know where things are now.

We spent a marvelous day Sunday in Vancouver. We’d booked a tour with a private company which would show us the venues for the upcoming Olympic Winter Games. Much to our surprise, a van pulled up, and the driver indicated that we were the only people booked for the tour. So we had a private tour of the city, which was adapted to suit what we wanted to see. We couldn’t have been happier with our very knowledgeable Hungarian-born tour guide, who kept up a steady stream of information about Vancouver and its environs. He was quite obviously very proud of his adopted home and loved to show it off! Especially interesting was the Richmond Olympic Oval, site of the speed and figure skating events, where we had the opportunity to view the interior of the facility. We also visited the Cypress Bowl, which will be the location of the snowboarding and freestyle skiing events, and we were rewarded with a spectacular view of Vancouver on the way up. Distance prevented us from getting to Whistler Mountain, which will host the alpine events. When we watch the games in February, I’m sure they will mean even more after having seen the various venues.

Monday was our first day at sea, and we had a chance to do some exploring of the ship in greater detail. We’ve checked out the shops, and we’ve also been up to the fitness center. Angie will be pleased to know that I did some time on the treadmill and the bike. When we went to the dining room for lunch, we discovered that Deris, our dining steward from our Norway cruise, was here. We’d seen him last year on the Zuiderdam, so we were quite surprised to cross paths with him once again! We’ve also met some very nice people, but are still sorry that our friends Al & Carol had to cancel out. It would have been so much fun to share the experience with them!

Many thanks to Deb and Pete for a fantastic stay with them in Seattle! It was great fun to spend some time together and see a little bit of the Northwest.

Barb

Seattle

Greetings from Seattle! Our voyage has begun. We flew from Chicago to Seattle yesterday, arriving in Seattle approximately 45 minutes early. Our only "incident" involved the fact that since our package included first class seats on American Airlines, it showed that we were entitled to a "snack" onboard. Barb checked at the gate agent who confirmed that it would be a "snack" and not "lunch". It seemed a bit strange, but not flying first class very often, we bought a lunch and took it on board. Since our flight was to depart at 11:25 and was to arrive about 4 PM Chicago time, we knew we would be starved when we got to Seattle. Early in the flight we pulled out our lunches and the flight attendant told Barb her sandwich looked really good. Five minutes later, she came by asking for our choice in lunch! We felt a bit foolish but explained what we had been told and even showed her the itinerary. She was quite surprised at the fact it said "snack."

We enjoyed the evening with our cousins, Deb and Pete Keane, in Edmonds, WA. This morning they asked us what we would enjoy doing today, and having been to the top of the Space Needle and toured the city on other visits to Seattle, they suggested we might enjoy driving up to the town of LaConner where we could have lunch and visit the shops in town. The weather was perfect, and we commented that there was a lot of variety and many items were high quality at a reasonable price. However, our “real” last minute shopping was done at places like Costco and Walmart!

Tomorrow we meet our new home for the 67 days and will settle in on the ms Amsterdam. Much thanks goes to the Chicago Tribune, whose stock I had purchased in the 1980s and whose value had increased quite nicely before newspapers hit hard times. In late 2007, it went private and I decided to take the funds and spend it rather than reinvest it. Having always wanted to go to Australia but not wanting to fly that distance, we decided to take the cruise. A huge "thank you" to our friend and travel agent, Marcia Marcett, in the Joliet AAA office, who put in many hours making detailed arrangements. And thanks also to Dale Sandoval and Pam Floyd, our Lincoln-Way High School friends who have organized adult trips for teachers/friends and with whom we took our first cruise in 2004 to Alaska, followed by a cruise of the Baltic in 2006. Certainly we appreciate friends that are looking after our things at home: Pat Edgett who is receiving and sorting our forwarded mail, Rick Hammond who is checking our homes, neighbors, Sam and Sue Fiore and Gerry Werner for keeping an eye on our houses, and Jen Wozniak, Lincoln-Way sub caller, who we told we would be unavailable for so long, but who indicates she will be calling us again when we return.

Chuck

Peru 2008

In June 2008, we traveled to Peru with a group of teachers and friends from the local Lincoln-Way schools. Having traveled with them on cruises to Alaska in 2004 and the Baltic in 2006, we quickly decided to join this group in our first venture to South America. We would not have decided to go there on our own, but with this group it was a good opportunity to see the beauty of the Andes Mountains, the mystery of Machu Picchu as well as the Amazon rainforest.

On the first morning we were given a tour of Lima, a very poor, and for the most part, a not very attractive city, by our excellent Peruvian guide, Marco. First we visited the Main Square of Lima and seeing several churches, including the burial spot of St. Rose of Lima, and some government buildings. What took our eye in the Main Square were the tanks sitting right out in front of one of the buildings. We were told that those were there in case they were needed for water cannons in an effort to break up unruly demonstrators. Our next stop was at a nearby Pachacamac ruins, an Inca site. After climbing a gentle slope, we had to go down the steps. But on the way down, Barb lost her balance on one of the steep steps and fell but fortunately had sat down rather than falling forward. It was a sprained ankle and she was told to keep the leg elevated and to stay off her feet for at least a couple days, and to keep it iced. Barb announced it was impossible to keep it elevated for two days as we were were flying to Cuzco the next day and she was NOT going to miss Machu Picchu in two days.

O n June 20, we headed for the airport for our short flight to Cuzco. Cuzco is a beautiful city in the high Andes at an altitude of about 12,000 feet. They offer free oxygen at the airport and several availed themselves of this opportunity. After checking into our hotel, we walked through the nearby Main Square to our restaurant. Since we were there at the time of a major Inca holiday corresponding to their winter solstice, there were people in their festive holiday outfits in the main square so it was fun observing this as we went to our restaurant. While there, one of the young teachers fainted from the altitude, but she recovered quickly. A man in his 50s felt lightheaded, so was able to get to a sofa and recline on that. We had been told that it was impossible to determine who would be affected by the altitude and that it had nothing to do with age, gender, or physical fitness.

On June 21, we headed for Machu Picchu, first by bus and then the last part of the trip to Machu Picchu by train. On arrival at the Machu Picchu site, we were inspired by the beauty of the ruins. Way up in the Andes, we tried to imagine how a community with such complex architecture could be built under such primitive conditions. Barb got to see Machu Picchu but didn't risk the walking on uneven surfaces and similar climbing as there had been the day she sprained her ankle. Most of us took most of the tour. We had a group picture taken at a site where the solstice is celebrated. We left Machu Picchu happy that we had had the opportunity to visit one of the great wonders of the world.

The next day, we were up early for our trip to the Sacred Valley and to stop at the market town of Pisac. We enjoyed the market and the bargaining for the best deals. We returned to the town of Ollantaytambo where we had gotten the train the previous day. Not as famous as Machu Picchu, but the Inca ruins of Ollantay fortress there were also very impressive. On the return back to the hotel, we saw people in their colorful native dress, one place in particular where the family pig was tied to a leash at the front of the house, and at one point, I saw a farmer walking two cows through the small town square.

The next morning we were off to the airport again for our trip to the jungle, arriving at Puerto Maldanado, the hub of the rainforest "civilization". It's a very poor village with people riding bicycles and motor bikes. We visited the market and got our suitcases stashed away in a secure building since we were only allowed to pack essentials in our carryon case. We went down to the Madre de Dios River which is a tributary of the Amazon. We boarded our motorized boat for the two hour boat ride to our rainforest site at Eco Amazonia. We arrived there, climbed the steep, uneven stairs, and were assigned our individual bungalows. It was quite rustic! It was one room with two twin beds, but behind was a room with a pair of hammocks. In between was the bathroom which had water, but no hot water! Showers were very quick! There was a single 60 W bulb in the ceiling to provide light for the entire cabin. There were generators that gave some light early in the morning and for a few hours in the evening. But, ready or not, lights were out at 10 PM! The porches were screened in but it became very still at night as it was pitch dark.

Late in the afternoon, we traveled to Monkey Island and enjoyed seeing the monkeys swinging from the trees and a few climbed on some of our hikers. They were safe but we were warned not to try to touch them and to let the monkeys decide if they wanted to climb on a person and not to try to force the money off them. After dinner, we boarded a motorboat to search for caimans. Later in the evening, armed with flashlights, we took a walk into the jungle to experience the sounds of the jungle at night.

The next morning some of us took a jungle walk, checking the foliage and thick brush, seeing the Lake Apu Victor and observing it from a watchtower and riding a small boat on the lake. Although we were in the jungle near the equator, it was still rather cool. We were told that the temps had set a record low when we were there -- somewhere in the mid to upper 60s.

The last day was a long one, with an early morning boat ride back from Eco Amazonia to Puerto Maldonado and their airport for the plane trip back to Lima via Cuzco. In Lima, we toured the archaeological museum, had dinner, and back Lima Airport for the trip home via Miami.

The trip was excellent and we had lots of new enriching experiences with excellent travel companions.