Land Ho!

After breakfast I walked outside and the heat has really arrived or should I say we have arrived in the heat and humidity. Our latitude is 1 degree north. in the morning. After the one class we wanted to attend on languages we went outside on the deck but in the shade. We are told to expect temperatures in the 90’s while we are on the river. Suits me!

Around lunchtime we started to notice the “muddy” ocean, the closer we come to the river the muddier it has become.

This afternoon, on Christmas Eve, we finally came to the coast of Brazil. The photos are of the mouth of the Amazon. http://community.webshots.com/user/pins4 The first is the north shore and t.he one far off is the south shore. It is truly a wide channel into the river. As I took the photos the water looked like milky hot chocolate. It is almost unbelievable the amount of sediment this Amazon puts out to discolor the ocean in this way.

The ship has slowed down to 14 knots from an average of 25 knots so all the passengers are happier.

Merry Christmas friends. The ship is quite festive and Santa is coming tomorrow afternoon after he has delivered presents to all the world. Aren’t we lucky?

We are sitting on the Equator as I write this

Life at Sea

Life at Sea;
This morning there is no doubt that we have left the Caribbean Sea behind as the color of the ocean waters is now a deep sort of Prussian navy blue. In class this morning we received a lot of information about the formation of the Amazon River Basin from the resident geologist. Last night again found us on a very choppy sea. He jokingly asked if we all experienced the “Ship Tectonics”. A geologists joke I guess. Anyway we are told now that the winter seas are always more “choppy” with lots of wind. Now they tell us! Tomorrow we cross the equator and it will be summer. Yeah, we shall see. Today is lovely though and we are thankful for the wind. Sitting in the sun is just a 1 hour activity unless you have leather skin and do not burn. Not only is the sunshine hot but very strong and clear, sunglasses are a must. I guess it is the same feature of no pollution in the atmosphere.

We are told when we are about 150 miles away tomorrow we will see the color of the Atlantic being changed by the Amazon. Instead of that deep Prussian jewel blue that we've been seeing we will see some green and muddy gold. The flow from the Amazon has so much volume that the fresh water from the mouth, in one day, would provide enough fresh water for New York City for 9 years. Think about that. The salt in the ocean is reduced up to 150 miles just from the fresh water from the river. It is mind-boggling. Here is another thing for thought: We are taking an ocean ship up a river. Well, ok, ocean tankers go up the Mississippi, but as Jack reminds me just past New Orleans not 900 miles. Yes, we will be traveling about 900 miles “up” the River, which runs west to east. So 900 miles up the old “Miss” we have Minnesota and the last 200 miles would have to be by canoe. YIKES!!!
We are anxious to get there not just for smooth water but just to fulfill one of our goals, on what Jack calls our "Bucket List", to see the Amazon and the Rain Forest. I cannot believe Christmas is just 2 days away.
No new photos today on webshots.

Barbados:
Did you know that George Washington left the United States only once? He was about 19 years old. His brother had asthma or some other respiratory ailment and he went with him to Barbados. They have restored and saved the house they stayed in. Also, George, while in Barbados caught smallpox during an outbreak, met the British head of the military, who taught him military strategy and studied the government structure. Well, he used the strategies in fighting the British and when smallpox broke out in the Continental Armies George Washington was immune so he could continue to lead. Our constitution reads a good deal like the Barbadian one which came first. Hmmmmm Divine Intervention?

Also are you aware that there is a connection with South Carolina and Barbados? South Carolina was settled by people from Barbados and our first 4 governors were from Barbados. They came into Charleston area. That was all new to us so I thought you might like to know it too.

Education, from nursery school thru college is free, as is health care. The literacy rate is 99.7% from age 15 and over.

The music is Calypso and Reggae but I think you already knew that. The people seem fun loving, conservative and very spiritual. The play cricket, which is the national sport. Many of them are employed in the tourist industry. Their old fashioned homes are called Wooden Chattel Homes. They are built on blocks so they can be moved in case of disputes with landowners. The homes have corrugated roofs and lots of Victorian type “gingerbread” trim. The colors are all brilliant and many are multi-colored

There are many Christian churches, from Anglican, the most prevalent, to Spiritual Baptists, Muslims, and Quakers are represented there too and 1 synagogue. The synagogue is the oldest one in the Western hemisphere. That seems like a very good fact given that we celebrated the first evening of Hanukkah last night, on board the ship.

We took a 45-minute ride to an animal reserve and Jack took some really nice photos. I was so surprised at the hilly terrain of Barbados. Most all photos are of the beach areas, which are lovely, but the hills and valleys are pretty too.

Back on board I realized how many photos Jack took so I started another album on Webshots. http://community.webshots.com/user/pins4

A quiet evening followed this 5 hour tour and we are now underway toward the Amazon. 1 day at sea and then we enter the Amazon River. Tomorrows lectures will prepare us for that adventure.
Good night I am really tired

St Barths:
We spent several hours on this lovely 8 square miles island. Imagine living in just 8 sq. miles. It is truly like a paradise but so small. There are 14 beaches on this very hilly island. Each beach is just a lovely as the next. French is the language of choice. It is a tax-free island but making a living is very hard unless you are a native. There are 2 gas stations and lots of “smart cars”. Children must leave the island to get an education after grammar school. How hard must it be to send your 12 or 13-year-old child to another place during the school year? There is neither unemployment nor major industry of any great import. Agriculture and tourist services are the main jobs. They are 53 % men and 47% female on this island. The major religions are Catholic, Protestant, and Jehovah Witness.

This, our second, visit to this little paradise was spent just walking around and enjoying the vistas. Some folks on the ship were upset that we are only on this island for 7 hours but I think they will be satisfied when they see just how small the island is, plus being Sunday not much will be available and even if it is the prices here are for the rich and double so with the dollar versus euro exchange rate. 1 euro = 1.40 us
We started to walk to the lighthouse, but Barbara gave up about half way there and returned to Main St. Check the photos in web shots for some lovely lighthouse vistas and to see the fake cannons. Jack was the only soul strong enough to brave the hill, so he had the place to himself. He said he went to put his foot on the cannon to steady himself to take a photo and the cannon surface gave. It was made of fiberglass over wood, but sure looks real.

Back onboard after lunch we had a very nice worship service. There is a retired pastor on the ship and they gave him 10 minutes notice to make a sermon. Short and strong was the result. We are having a meeting in the next day or 2 to prepare our Christmas service. I intend to go to see if we can come up with a choir. After worship we had an Enrichment Class to prepare us for Barbados, which covered history, culture etc, but that will come to you later after we have been there, tomorrow. Let me just say that it was lead by the Consulate Representative of Barbados who is traveling with us, and a professor who has been knighted by Queen Elizabeth for his work in compiling “Bajan” history and promoting Barbados. It was by far the most entertaining class yet. We are under way and going to pass by Montserrat, an active volcano tonight around 7 and will have view of it from the lounge at the top of the ship. We hope to make it up there for that too but must find time to eat, very important on a cruise, and be to our next class “The Ebb and Flow of Brazil’s Business Trends at 8PM. Classes are late because of the land trips today. So you see we have full days to do or to not do many things available.

At Sea

Dec. 17th , We walked Bay Street in Nassau... hasn't changed much, still kind of dirty but trying to selling jewelry,clothes and perfumes. The straw market is really a disaster! just mostly cheap "knock-offs". It is funny to see Christmas decorations in an island environment. So far just one Nativity Scene but plenty of Santa Clause. We see a lot of Rastafarians about the streets, so I wondered about their beliefs? This is what I discovered: Rastafarians are members of a Jamaican messianic movement dating back to the 1930s; in 1974 they were estimated to number 20,000 in Jamaica. According to Rastafarian belief the only true God is the late Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie (originally known as Ras Tafari), and Ethiopia is the true Zion. Rastafarians claim that white Christian preachers and missionaries have perverted the Scriptures to conceal the fact that Adam and Jesus were black.

We have chosen to relax onboard and enjoy the sunshine and cool breeze today. Check the photos as we have been joking about the Bahamian Navy ships(2) and there is a photo of one. A fellow passenger said the navy consists of 1 man and a phone with a direct line to USA and a recorded message "HELP"!!!

Here is more information on the Semester At Sea program: The University of Virginia is the Academic Sponsor but students come from all over to spend a semester travelling the world and earning a minimum of 9 credits. Spring semester 2009 is from January 19 to May 6 and goes around the world. Bahamas, Spain, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, India, Thailand, Viet nam, China, Japan, Hawaii, Costa Rica and finally Miami. The summer semeter is from June 16 to August 22 and covers one geographical area. In 2009 it is Spain, Italy, Croatia, Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Egypt, Morocco and ends in Charleston SC. For those of us who love learning there is a Lifelong Learning Program so we can study with the young people. We passengers at this time are just getting a sample of the semester

First Day at sea:The breeze has become a strong wind and the seas are very rough. We are not permitted outside on the bow because of the force of the wind. This is not very pleasant. We do remember when we passed this way, east of Cuba, on the way to the Panama Canal we also had rough seas, but not the wind. Classes today were: "Critters on Islands: Getting There is Only Half the Problem" Learning why certain creatures are on certain islands and how they adapt. "Environmental Issues of the Caribbean" The issues are almost exactly the same as our issues. "Dance of the Continents, with a Caribbean Rhumba" This one was Jack's. It was a overview of the plate tectonic theory and how it has influenced the developement of thCaribbean region. He told me from reading he was already aware of most of the facts. Silly me just went to a craft class and made a little "Bahama Mama" ornament. Critters plus the Environment were about all I could absorb this "rocky" morning. Don't get the worng idea, there are games, cards, yoga, socializing and the wellness center spa sure looks appealing for later maybe! There is plenty of exercise equiptment, which I am nonchalantly avoiding. LOL The computer center is never empty so I am glad we have our own and the free internet extends to our cabin which is where I am compiling this entry between sessions. I will finish and post it later.

We were told that the ship population ages from 2 years old to 94 years young. The 2 year old is one a family of 3 children but the parents brought the Nanny too so we hardly know they are about and the program includes activities for children.

The rocking has settled down this evening as we prepare for the Welcome Aboard party. We just remarked how nice it is to not have a photographer dogging our steps like on the "luxury cruises".

Long entry today but learning a lot.

Photos at http://community.webshots.com/user/pins4

MV Explorer

We have arrived on our new home for the next 3 weeks. The trip down was relatively smooth, just a glitch in Ft Lauderdale… our last leg of the flights was delayed 2 hours so we arrived later in Nassau and had to deal with a lot more people checking in, so that was long and slow. Finally lunch at 2:00 but it was worth waiting for, Yum!

Jack has made the rounds of the ship and already taken many photos. We have 3 of the hotel, LaQuinta, that we used in Atlanta. You can see photos, so far, on the website http://community.webshots.com/user/pins4

The ship is so much more than we expected. We were told not to expect a luxury ship but it sure is close to what we would call luxury. You will see in the photos. I'll keep adding photos to the webshots page as I get a chance. It is so nice sitting in the Faculty lounge with the large windows and working on the laptop. We also have free wireless internet from the desk in our room. Oh, our fellow senior citizen passengers are in the majority but we appear to be among the younger ones. What a nice feeling to be one of the kids!

D Day

Today is D-day, that’s departure day. We leave the house at 9:45 when Karen and Kelly take us to the “great” Myrtle Beach Airport so we can fly to Atlanta for overnight and catch our flight at 7:10 am Wednesday 12/17 to meet the ship in Nassau.

I have been asked about 3 times; “How many suitcases do you need for 3 weeks?” These folks do not know Jack the packing-king. We have 2 suitcases to check through and the computer case to carry on. Well, I also have a small tote for our travel documents and to stash my purse. Remember it is very warm at the Equator so we do not need bulky clothes; lots of shorts, light shirts and bathing suits with a few dress-up items.

We are spending the night on board the ship the 17th, as our hotel, so we have no stress trying to get to the ship before it sails. This will give us almost 2 full days in Nassau. Not really all that great as we have been there before and were not too thrilled with it. Perhaps time has made it nicer. We hope to spend the day just relaxing and learning the ship. Probably next time I log on we will be under way. The itinerary calls for Enrichment at Sea on 19th & 20th then next stop is St Barts on the 21st.