Monday, May 6, 2019

Final Thoughts on World Cruise 2019 & Our First Week Home

Our First Week Home:

Well, our first week back “home” here at the Marriott Residence Inn and I’ve finally caught up on the laundry and we have gotten almost everything back in storage.

It’s been a week of doctor and dentist appointments for both of us. I had my pre-op/well check appt. The surgery was moved to May 23rd and I see the ENT on May 13. So, our road trips will have to wait until my recovery is complete. The dentist did our routine cleanings and I have a plan for a new bridge for the tooth that had to be pulled due to the root growing up into my sinus. I go in next Tue to start that. My hope is that it will be done before I go in for surgery. My dermatologist froze a few sun spots.

We made a couple of visits to our new neighborhood. They have built a lot of homes and at least 14 are now occupied. Our street is pretty much built up with 3 spaces left for our house and 2 others sold about the same time. We talked to our sales agent and he said he isn’t privy to the scheduling of when they will start building, but we will get a call from the builders on that. It isn’t supposed to be started until July or August, so unless they are ahead of schedule, that won’t change.
Saturday, we bought a new car and returned our rental. We got a Honda CR-V Touring model is Modern Steel. Ironically, it was exactly 2 years to the day that we bought our last car. (the towed/toad) 



 

Greg only put on about 5 lbs and I put on 7 on the cruise, so we are back to eating “normally” to lose the weight and back on Nutrisystem. On our walks we see that the pair of Sandhill Cranes here have a pair of adorable babies. 


I have been working on the last of the photos and also reorganized the scrambled ones.

Here are the links to the newly added albums:







Now, I will go back and add them to my blog as I have time.

Final thoughts on World Cruise 2019:

First, I want to say what a fantastic journey! I enjoyed this one as much as our first one in 2013. 



While 2017 had great ports, the cruise experience was lacking. From the cruise director on down they put more emphasis on segment passengers than they did people doing the full world cruise. Even more irritating was that they acted like those that did the round trip from Ft. Lauderdale didn’t count; stating numerous times that the “official” start of the world cruise was Los Angeles. We both paid the same for our 111 day cruise. Even the patter started over day 1 of 111 once we hit LA. After some passengers complained they then put LA on one side and FL on the other with the differing days completed. The entertainers came on and acted like we were on a 7 day Caribbean cruise. (first time cruiser jokes etc.) Entertainment was not as good or varied. There were just lots of little things that made 2017 a bit disappointing.

So, this time it seemed they listened. They recognized full world cruisers from either LA or FL and they mentioned the segment people. Entertainers made mention to how long we had been on the ship to better relate to us. The entertainment was varied, and all were good even if they weren’t to your personal taste. The only complaint was the last segment where the performers each did 4 shows. (just too much of the same thing) The food was good to great for the most part and the service was very good. While of course meals repeated, they did a good job of mixing them up and occasionally putting a menu out that we had never seen before. Having more Sunday brunches was a nice surprise. The cruise director Neil and Jonny and Tobi were very personable, and they did help set the tone for the cruise. 
The ports for this cruise were amazing. I know everyone wants to know what our favorite port was. Every place has its own special charms and it’s very hard to pinpoint just one. Oftentimes, it’s more the experience we had there than the actual port. Sometimes, the weather is perfect, the tour mates are super, the tour guide is fantastic, and the day just works out making it a special day.
I normally try to list my top 10 in no particular order (Greg’s may be different):
1.    I really loved Madagascar. Holding the lemurs and chameleons was really fun. I also loved the smiling and friendly people.

2.    Playing with tigers in Thailand was very special. I love Phuket and street market shopping.

3.    Cape of Good Hope & Table Mountain was the most special day. Sunset was amazing. (combination of excellent sites, weather, tour mates & just the best guide ever) Sharing Table Mountain with Cathy & Tom made it extra special.

4.    Hard to pick just one snorkeling favorite, but the Maldives were amazing as was snorkeling with the sharks in Raiatea. Huahine was natural & not so touristy. The motu experience there was the best.

5.    Komodo Island (the national park closed just a few days after we visited) was amazing to walk so close to the Dragons. Snorkeling at Pink Beach was also pretty with all the lovely soft corals. The lunch on our boat was very good.

6.    The safari at Arathusa was an awesome experience. While it didn’t compare to the herds of animals seen during the Great Migration in Tanzania, the lodge and service were amazing, and we did get to see lots of rhinos. (we saw all of the Big Five except the rhino in Tanzania) Sharing the experience with Harriet & Charley was very special.

7.    We had some great birding guides in various ports. Stewart Island, New Zealand was very special as was Kelang, Malaysia. We loved the “Malaysian Indian food” at a local hole in the wall. I need to get a count of new birds seen on this cruise, but it was quite a few.

8.    Sri Lanka was fascinating (despite our tour guide issues). How sad about the bombings that happened shortly after we left there.

9.    Both ports in Namibia were interesting. Diamond Mine ghost towns & giant sand dunes and amazing desert landscapes.

10. Reunion Island, Mauritius & St. Helena were all very diverse in scenery and sites to be seen.

I even have a hard time naming just 10. Honestly, there isn’t any place that we have been that we have negative feelings about. We enjoy something about every place we visit. We only missed one port due to weather. (Tonga again) We had fairly calm seas and good weather for the most part. 
We knew quite a few people that had medical issues (and even death) this time around. It really isn’t any different from being at home. Life happens no matter where you are. It’s just so much more inconvenient when it happens while traveling.
Unfortunately, there were very few people that we knew from 2013 (we missed you all), but there were some from 2017 so that was nice. (special shout out to Bob & Phyllis, Tom & Cathy, Harriet & Charley, Horst & Mark and Kris & Andrea) We did meet some new people as well, and it’s always great to make new friends. Some of us are signed up to take the WC in 2021 on the Island Princess. 
There are always some interesting characters on board as well. One that stands out is someone we referred to as “uniform lady”. She must have done the 111 days with 1 carryon. She wore the exact same look from breakfast, lunch, dinner and in the ports. She had black tennis shoes, black jean style pants (maybe she had 2, but if so, they were the exact same style) and 4 or 5 shirts that were all the same style, but different colors. She had a rain jacket, a sun hat and maybe a warmer jacket for ports. Her hubby seemed to dress “normally”. We never saw her do anything on the ship except walk the halls almost day and night. Not saying there is anything wrong with her approach to packing, but it did make her “interesting”. I’m guilty of taking very few bottoms, but lots of tops to change it up. 
Well, now to plan for 2021! Looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and exploring new places.
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