People have asked us what was the highlight of this trip. The answer is “Everything!”. Everything went smoothly, we did not get sick and it all was new, interesting and exciting.
3/14/16
Left the Bay Area on a 3:45 PM flight to Ghana via Amsterdam. We took a limo service to the airport. Talk about spoiled; it will be hard to go back to getting there in the usual ways. Luanne was not stripped searched at airport security because she was carrying rock crystal salt in a shaker. They only took the suspicious item to their drug testing machine. It was not an illegal substance, so she got it back.
We are well and enjoying the benefits of business class flying. Nice lounges, departing gifts when you get off the plane (blue and white Delft china models of famous Dutch buildings), meals that are non-dairy on the plane and the real surprise was the Dutch flight crew (KLM Airlines) thought we were Dutch. Apparently “Lansing” is a common Dutch last name. They were somewhat disappointed to hear we had no family in the country and that the last name was actually made up when my father came over (and he did not come over from The Netherlands). All the time changes are annoying. It is 3 AM PDT as I write this, but 11 AM in Amsterdam. Oh well. When we land in Ghana it will be 8 PM local time, so going to sleep should be normal and welcomed. More Chinaware buildings to take home after landing in Ghana.
3/15/16
Ghana is hot and humid. We've never had to show a passport so many times just to leave an airport. And nicely they actually check baggage claim checks against the tags on the bags. Just to add to the excitement of a new continent, someone had a seizure while waiting in line to clear immigration. He eventually was able to walk out with help. The 20 minute ride to the hotel showed that Ghanians are in their cars day and night; traffic at 9 PM too. The hotel is very nice; good shower and comfortable bed. We got up at 8:15 AM. Whew!
We board the ship the next day in the early afternoon.
3/16/16
Leave the hotel for a 20 minute ride to the ship. Very interesting. Our guide offered libation to the spirits for a safe trip. The drive there goes past shop (shanty) after shop, where everything from food and plastic patio furniture to coffins and tires are sold at the curb. He jokingly calls this the Champs d’ Elysees of Ghana. We board the ship and make it to our stateroom. It is very comfortable with a queen-sized bed, marble bath, walk-in closet and sitting area with a sofa, table and chairs and a sliding door that opens onto a veranda. It is quite hot and sticky.
Our suite butler (what can I tell you) is quite helpful; later we meet with the head maitre d’ who completely understands our food needs, and the meals have been quite good so far. We also find out that our stop at the Ivory Coast port has been eliminated because of a terrorist attack last weekend 25 miles from where we might be; so one extra day at sea.
3/17/16
Arrive today in Takoradi, Ghana. Quite hot and humid. We take a 6 hour tour (2 hours of travel each way) to the Kakum National Park where we do the canopy bridge walk through the tropical forest. Well supported but very high suspension bridges strung throughout the treetops afford good views of the area and flora. An interesting experience, but not great. Really hot and humid. Again the ride there and back are as interesting with lots of shanty shops, people and cars.
The ship is only about 2/3 full and we have met some nice and interesting people already.
3/18/16
The first of three days (one extra since Ivory Coast was cancelled) at sea. Spa time! Wonderful massages.
We met a couple from Wisconsin who seem to be on our wavelengths: Sarah and David. She is an acclaimed artist; watercolors and sculpture. He is a retired architect and built their current home in rural Wisconsin. 7000 square feet, 120 windows, 4 miles of walking paths, 53 acres of restored environment with tall prairie grass. We had lunch by the pool with them today. A lot of fun. Tonight is a formal dinner night but we will eat outdoors, off the coast of Africa under the stars at The Grill, where they cook your food table-side on hot stones.
3/19/16
A very leisurely day at sea. Lecture on the European screw-up of Africa and the resulting problems today. At lunch we were invited to sit with Ronnie and Arnie, the couple who provide on-board bridge activities (we had met them through Sarah and David). They are from Brooklyn and now live in Florida, but do one or two cruise instructions each year, and have been doing so for 18 year. He was an actuary before retiring awhile ago.
We had dinner with Sarah and David, a long, leisurely affair. David seems to know all the staff, if not everyone on board. Good company and an enjoyable evening.
3/20/16
Sea day—spa time!
We attended a lecture in the morning on gold, it’s place in the world and Africa. South Africa used to be the #1 gold producer in the world. Interestingly, India is the #1 consumer of gold products.
We had lunch at La Terrazza, and ate on the outdoor aft patio, with a view of the Atlantic Ocean that went on forever. Tonight we will dine with Arnie and Ronnie. Tomorrow we are docked in Gambia.
3/21/16
Docked in The Gambia this morning. We took a bus and traveled through Banjul, Serakunda and Bankau. The whole place, except for bank buildings and gas stations, looks like abandoned buildings; except they are not. Were they ever new looking? There are many, many schools filled with children, but it seems like too many people have nothing to do. We went to the Gambia National Museum, a history museum in an old house. The entire museum had the appearance of a junior high school history project, but was still informative. Af terwards we went to a batik “factory”, really nothing more than clothes lines and a few tables set up with piles of goods on display. There were a couple people demonstrating how colors are mixed and wax applied for batiking, but they also were sales people. Even so, the work was attractive, wherever it came from. Then on to another museum, this one more cultural and a crocodile park. To get there we had to walk through part of a neighborhood; except for the people present, it too could have been abandoned. At the park there was a huge interesting babao tree, and a well-fed crocodile you could pet. Great photo op! On the way back we walked through the Banjul Marketplace, a huge outdoor arrangement with most anything available. Lots of produce, fish (smoked, dried, raw), shoes, more produce, peanuts, grains, etc. Interesting to see but not particularly inviting.
3/22/16
We docked in Dakar, Senegal. This is the most modern city so far of any in the three countries to which we have traveled. Even so, it still lacks so much. It does have highways, and the traffic jams to go with them. There are not many (any?) traffic signals; instead they put speed humps in the road to force slowdowns. There are numerous overloaded trucks that go very slowly so getting many places is not quick.
We road out to the Bandia Reserve, an open game park with free roaming animals. They drive you around in open trucks to spot the animals. No roaming carnivores, but we saw the following: warthogs, ostriches, zebras, giraffes, rhinos, elan, urdu, monkeys, assorted birds. This is where the live, and it’s Africa! And when we got back to the parked bus, monkeys had broken the back window. Not sure what they were going for, but totally smashed out.
We drove to the coast to a resort hotel for lunch. High security there; this place was similar to the one that was shot up in the Ivory Coast. Lunch was good, with a few native dishes.
Afterwards we went to see a presentation at a school, consisting of local music and dancers in tribal garb. Interesting to see and apparently not staged for us. It was the cabbage harvest celebration.
The seas and wind picked up during the night. The rolling really was not too bad, but the smashing waves were so noisy and they set up a vibration that felt like an earthquake while lying in bed. Did not get too much sleep.
3/23/16
Good thing we don’t have much to do today; today and tomorrow are sea days on the way to the Canary Islands. We are both tired after the “earthquake” night, and the slight rolling does add to the enervation. We did get in our walk, although the 30 knot/hour winds moved us down a deck. The spa is having a special we will take advantage of later today.
3/24/16
Making our way to the Canary Islands, which means a sea day, which means spa time! The weather was variable today; sunny, cloudy, windy, sunny, windy. We still manage to get in at least our 10 laps, which is equivalent to a mile or more (depends on the circuit we take). The food onboard is quite good and they are always so accommodating to our needs. There is also a lecturer on the ship who does presentations and is quite knowledgeable about history and geography. He always relates his talk to our travels and it is quite informative. Other than hanging out with people on board, that’s about it.
3/25/16
We docked in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain. Weather was mild (high 50’s to mid 60’s) with varying overcast and sun. Our tour today covered the northern part of the island with a lot of detail. Since today was Good Friday most of the island was closed, but on the plus side virtually no traffic. We went through Las Palmas and drove to the little towns of Moya, Arucas and Firja. All very charming with interesting sights. A rare three spire neo-Gothic church, the beach area where the “sand” is actually smoothed stones, a walkway with large model maps of each island in the Canary Island (the map included a tile picture of each island’s crest and a representative scene also in tile) bordered by beautiful tile inlay benches that commemorate various districts on the islands. Much of the island was given over to agriculture (bananas) and fishing. Now, however, it is more efficient to raise the crops in large hot houses that cover the slopes and to farm the fish. Both enterprises are fairly successful, but it has resulted in many of the original farmers’ houses being abandoned. This leaves some of the countryside with a slightly bombed out look. Our guide Tomas was quite good and one of the few Jews to be found in the area. We ended the day with lunch at a plantation that grows oranges, grapes, coffee beans and more. They make their own coffee, picked and processed by hand, as well as their own wine (so-so, but the lunch was quite good).
3/26/16
A fascinating tour day on the island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. Our tour guide was very enthusiastic and passionate, especially about Cesar Manrique. Manrique was an artist and architect who designed and caused to be built many of the island’s museums and centers and emphasized preserving the environment and as a result, integrated the environment and local culture into his works. Lanzarote had active volcanoes less than 300 years ago, and their eruptions have shaped the landscape.
We drove to Timanfaya, the home of the volcanic landscapes and a visitor center. The entire countryside is dominated by the dormant volcano crowns, and the terrain (called the Bad Lands) consists of desert-like ground that is really fine pellets spewed out of the volcanoes, and cooled lava that has formed into rocks of all sizes. At the visitor center (designed by Manrique) they demonstrate the residual heat by creating steam geysers, igniting brush just by contact with the earth (a few feet below the surface) and even roasting potatoes over the deeper holes. It is quite amazing to see this landscape, and we drove through a special area (buses only allowed) to see it close up. Because the climate is temperate but dry (20 days of rain per year) and the land harsh, the early settlers brought in camels instead of horses or donkeys. The camels still remain on the island.
We then went to the Monumento Campesino, designed by Manrique. This is a monument to the peasant workers and a recreation of an environmentally integrated home that is also a large restaurant. While everyone else had traditional Lanzarote Easter foods (breaded fish or meat, bean soup and a fried crepe dessert), because of our allergies, we had a wonderful salad, grilled vegetables and fresh fruit. We continued our drive through the countryside to a marvelous roadside viewing site (designed by Manrique), Mirador del Rio. The entire structure is perfectly integrated into the hillside and overlooks four of the five islands that are also part of the Lanzarote archipelago. The views are absolutely beautiful and amazing. We made a brief stop at a local winery to sample the product (ehh). What is fascinating is how they grow the vines. Because of the volcanic soil, little rain and trade winds, each vine is planted deep in the soil and then has a volcanic stone wall built part way around it to protect it from the northerly winds. In some places volcanic soil is actually carried in to provide a two inch or so layer of topsoil. All the harvesting is done by hand.
From there we proceeded to the Jameos del Agua, a creation of Manrique. What he has done is taken a lava tube (the entirety of which stretches for about 5 miles out to the sea) that was created by a flow that cooled on the outside, but still had hot lava flowing through it. Eventually the flow stopped, but the enclosed hot gases erupted and blew holes in parts of the lava tube, which was now a tunnel-like structure. Manrique created an entire resort that begins at a higher elevation of the tunnel and continues down to a below-sea level part. The latter is home to a rare, very small blind albino crab. The rest of the tube contains a restaurant, auditorium, pool and museum, all within the lava tube or built from the lava rocks.
Every island in the Canaries is different, and this one was most interesting.
3/27/16
We docked this morning in Agadir, Morocco. Nice weather and we hopped a bus for about a 90 minute drive to Taroudannt (as spelled on the highway signs). This is an old walled fortress city (16th century) with a Berber heritage. They have an interesting market place and you can also see them making “Moroccan oil” from the nut of the argan tree. This oil is used extensively in the USA in cosmetics. And speaking of trees, on the way there we saw—apparently not too uncommon in this part of the world—goats in a tree. The marketplace was very interesting; literally everything and anything available, from coffee, dates and olives to soap, plumbing and motorcycle parts. There is a Berber section and an Arab section, although the two are fairly indistinguishable by content. The Arab section seemed to be more storefronts, while the Berber was more stalls. On the way there we stopped at a fairly upscale hotel for a pit stop and (for those who could) mint tea and Moroccan pastries. A comparatively short but interesting stay in this port.
A wild night on the ocean. Not necessarily high waves, but deep swells that cause a side-to-side rolling. It was bad enough that glassware and other items were thrown on the floor during the night. The crew did an amazing recovery and there was little to no sign of damage in the morning.
3/28/16
Arrived in Casablanca. A fairly modern city, but still with lots of old world feel. Definitely Islamic by dress and decor. We saw King Mohammed V Square, which is surrounded by lots of new and ongoing construction. We then arrived before all the crowds at the Grand Mosque. This is a beautiful building, both architecturally and spiritually. Our guide was extremely knowledgable and she willingly demonstrated prayer techniques and methods of ablution prior to prayer. Quite moving. We drove along the coast and through the different districts of the city. We walked to the current king’s residential palace (only used when he is in Casablanca), which is another magnificent structure. Along the way we went through the Medina (older city within the city), passing numerous interesting doors and windows, indicative of some of the older styles of buildings. A final stop at a “government controlled” (i.e., no bargaining, but no hassling and still good prices) souvenir shop; lots of leather, silver, argan oil, etc. We picked up some gifts, leather purse and belt and a new kaftan.
3/29/16
The Rock. Or at least the one that this part of the world calls by that name. Gibraltar. We did a walking tour of the city. There are many, many different cultures here (4 synagogues, all Orthodox), but British civility seems to prevail. Lots of history. It is definitely uniquely situated, but there is a “compact” feel about the whole place and someone said it reminded them of Sausalito; not too far off a description. Later we lounged on deck around the pool on a warm, sunny day. Felt good to relax outside.
3/30/16
Set foot on the Spanish mainland in Cartagena. This city seems to have more Roman influence than Moorish. There are ruins of a coliseum and an amphitheater. We toured the city center and then took an interesting elevator on a hillside up 15 stories. From the top you have 360 degree views of the city and the Roman ruins. As you descend you go through some of the ruins and then enter the amphitheater. The weather is great, in the high 60’s to low 70’s. We strolled down the commercial streets which are pedestrian only. Lots of cafes and shoe stores. May have been for tourists, but it was not too touristy.
3/31/16
We docked in Valencia this morning. Another charming city that hosted the America’s Cup in 2007. The Marina District was built up for this event and reflects it. We took a full city tour that included the Opera House and the Science Museum. These are part of the Arts District and all the buildings in the complex are part of a park and are architectural wonders. We toured the Opera House and it is amazing; wood, ceramic, Ferrari leather seats. Beautiful. The Science Museum is also quite modern with many hands-on exhibits. We then drove on to the city center, which is also charming and historical. A cathedral of course, that catered to the Borgia Pope. Is that why the rain gargoyles around the roof are topless women fondling themselves? An indoor marketplace with many, many stalls that only have fresh products. There is another building that used to be the 17th+ century commerce center, the Silk Trade Building, that has some unique architectural features (cf. ceiling and Escher-style floor). We walked through this area, but it was extremely and uncharacteristically windy so we headed back to the ship (only about 10 minutes earlier than expected).
4/1/16
Docked in Barcelona early this morning. Our last stop and we are on our own. Great cruise!
A short drive to the hotel, which is in a great location. Two blocks from Las Ramblas, 5 blocks from the Gaudi House and 11 blocks from La Familia Sagrada. We walked to all of those (after heading off in the wrong direction for about 20 minutes) and of course you need advance tickets for everything (who knew?). So tomorrow we have arranged for a tour to those places, more of Gaudi and beyond.
Today it rained for pretty much the entire day; our first rain of the entire trip. Not too cold but a slight damper on things. We had authentic paella for lunch. 3 on a 5 scale. Had a wonderful dinner at a very Castilian place: Restaurante Flamante. Great atmosphere, very good food, doesn't open until 8:30 PM. Plus they momentarily lost our orders. Even so it was a very entertaining evening. Walking distance to the hotel and everyone is out and about at night.
4/2/16
We took a wonderful guided tour today of the “highlights of the highlights” of Barcelona. We saw the port area, Including the Judaic Mountain, an old Jewish cemetery area that has great views of the entire city; the Olympic area, the Spanish Village (built to display all of the Spanish provinces for the World’s Fair in one area; quaint and charming), the Gaudi houses and of course, the cathedral La Familia Sagrada. We had a wonderful docent led tour of the church. It is visual beyond belief, and once more of the meanings, etc. are explained to you, it is even more incredible. Pictures do not do it justice. Luanne has an FA contact in Chicago who has an FA contact here in Barcelona. We met him and another FA friend of his for drinks (only me) at the hotel. Everyone shared and it was beneficial all around. We then had dinner at the “best seafood restaurant” in Barcelona, Botafumeiro Restaurant. Very nice, good food, pricey, but probably would not go back again—unless you want 3 foot long platters of shell fish (we had cod and black paella). Tomorrow, home.
Now the truth can be told about Barcelona. At best it is cultural, at worst it is poor design, but their signage is mediocre to poor. Whether it is a street sign, a directional sign in an airport, hotel or building, their guidance ability is weak. Yes, they have signs, but not necessarily where you would expect them (street signs attachd near the corner of and on a building that blend in with the color of the building and are very small) or they do not provide enough direction: for example, an arrow pointing to the right, but there are then numerous options to the right, or to the right is a wall or it is an unknown distance (usually large) to the right. We only got lost 1-1/2 times.
4/3/16
Bottom line, everyone and everything got where it was supposed to be when it was supposed to be. The flight from Barcelona was great, just long (8+ hours). Our business class “pod” was incredible and certainly made the trip healthier all around. We arrived at JFK with 1 hour and 45 minutes (on paper, in reality 1 hour 25 minutes) to make our connecting flight. It was probably one of the more crowded days for passport control, customs and security checks. We got our bags through customs, although the expediting GOES machines were not all working or not working properly, which slowed us down. We then had to trot/run down the gate hallway to get to our flight, but we made it, probably with 5 minutes to spare. Plus, we were not the only ones, so they held the plane an extra five minutes. Otherwise, the flight was very good (even a little early) and again business class saved us.
Wonderful trip with no problems.