Da Nang, Vietnam

Friday we are docked in Da Nang, Vietnam.  At least, this is the port for the city.  Bob is feeling a little better but not 100%.  So no swimming and a very light breakfast with tea instead of coffee.  He thinks that something he ate in Vietnam did not agree with him.  Maybe the elephant ear fish!  So we cancelled our tour for today and will spend the day on the ship.

I tried to upload the pictures but found I had not brought them over to my desktop so I returned to the suite where Victor was making it up.  Was able to upload them from the suite as most of the passengers are now off the ship going on their tours.

I decided to do my swimming as the ship was almost empty.  So while I swam, Bob roamed the ship taking some pictures.

There is not much out here by the port.  They are still constructing it.  Maybe someday it will be finished.

Just more of the dock area.

I had the pool to myself.  It is lonely with no one to talk to and it makes the hour swim seem longer.  But I did the entire hour as I had eaten a cronut yesterday.

Tradition has it that you fly the flag of where your ship is registered on top and then the flag of the country you are docked in on the lower right or left depending where you are standing.  This is in the front of our ship.

It is rare to see the ship like this. If you look close, you can see some people but not many.  I am in the water but you can't even see me.

The stairs in the front of the ship along with the glass elevators.

This is deck 4, atrium.  Off the atrium is the casino, the Voyager Lounge, the Constellation Theater, and Compass Rose.

The entrance to the Voyager Lounge.  Every night they have a duo play and sing.  It has a small dance floor.

After my swim I came back to the suite and did some needlepoint until lunch.  Lunch was almost as empty as the pool.  Had a lunch of lo main noodles.  Bob ate light.  He is getting better as time passes.

A good nap and then Bob decided to take his swim and I worked on the computer.  I have a hair appointment at 4 pm today.  Need to do something with this mop.

The rest of the day will be like all the others with cocktails up in Observation Lounge and dinner in Compass Rose.  As tomorrow is our anniversary, we need to speak with Gami to see what Enzo arranged for us.

Sea Day

Thursday we were again at sea.  Our day started the same way with an early morning swim with Ossie.  The hot tub was just lukewarm so did not stay long.  Showered off the salt water and back to the suite to clean up for breakfast.

After breakfast I headed up to the Observation Lounge for needlepoint.  Today it was early.  But we sat up there for over an hour talking with the ladies.  Then I headed for the coffee connection to work on the blog.

When I got back to the suite, I found Bob napping.  He is not feeling well so I had lunch alone.  Just some lentil soup and water.

Afternoon needlepoint and tea.  Today the chef made cornuts for tea time.  This is a cross between a donut and a croissant that is fried and cream filled.  So you know I had to try one.  Pretty good.  Ours were not as large as the original ones in New York so not as many calories.

Tonight is the repeaters party.  And then we were to have dinner with Ray (cruise director) but Bob is still not feeling well so I have to go alone.  I spoke with Ray and told him Bob would not be able to come but he wanted me to come alone and I did.  I sat with Marlene from California during the party.  And after the party I went to the Voyager Lounge and sat at the bar with Marilyn and Bob for a bit till time for dinner with Ray.

At the table with Ray was Dr. Bill and Christine (don't remember the last name) from Colorado.  He is retired PHD from GM.  Electrical engineer.  We had a nice dinner and then I returned to the cabin and read for a bit and then lights out.  Bob sleeping.

Day Two in Ho Chi Ming City, Vietnam

We decided to take the tour we signed up for as it was short.  Panoramic Saigon.  Had a light breakfast and then got ready for our tour.

We drove into Saigon while our guide told us about the area.  This was really a bus ride with only two stops.  The first stop was at the post office and Notre Dame Church.  This time the church was open so we were able to go inside.

The outside of the church.  It was a beautiful day.  Clear blue sky.

And the inside of the church.

A beautiful ceiling.

A better picture of the outside of the church.

And this is the post office.

The tradition in Vietnam is for the bride and groom to have pictures taken before the wedding so they will have an album for the wedding guests to see.  This young couple picked the square in front of the Notre Dame Church the day we were there.  So I thought they were adorable so I included them in the blog.

They will need to photo shop out all of the tourists.

The second stop was at the Rex Hotel.  The Rex Hotel is famous as it was where the foreign correspondents reported about the war.  It is a beautiful hotel.  We were able to walk around inside of the hotel.  Then back on the bus for a ride around Chinatown.

The Rex Hotel.  In Ho Chi Ming City there are lots of very high end shops.  A little out of my price range.

In front of the Rex Hotel is a square that contains this statue of Ho Chi Ming.  It is said that he loved children but had none of his own.  So the statue is him holding a child.

And wires all over the place.

Back to the ship in time for lunch.  Then our nap.  No needlepoint today so Bob and I went up on 11 to swim.  We did one hour while we sailed down the river to head to our next port of Da Nang.

We had cocktails up in the Observations Lounge.  The waiter asked if we wanted our regular drinks so we said yes.  Well, he brought us a dirty martini with blue cheese olives made with Gray Goose and then Gray Goose on the rocks.  Either he had us mixed up with someone else or his memory is not as good as it used to be.  So I put the olives in the rocks glass and gave that to Bob and I drank part of the martini.

Dinner in Compass Rose at a table for 4 made for 2 for us.  I had the prime rib and Bob had a chicken dish that he said was terrific.  Back to the suite and read and bed.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - Updated with pictures

Tuesday we docked in Ho Chi Minh City.  This was known as Saigon but changed its name after the Communist victory in 1975.  It is the largest city in Vietnam.  It has a population of around 10,000,000 persons.  Our tour today is "Mekong Delta in Depth by Van".

We did not swim this morning as we will be on a tour all day.  The ship is small enough that it can travel up the Saigon River to get closer to the city.

The vegetation is so thick you can understand why fighting in this area was so difficult.

We gathered in the theater to get our van number and our landing card.  You must carry the landing card while you are traveling about the country.  We were van number 14.  Each van carried only 6 guests.  We rode with Shelia and Kirk from Denver and Bob and Carol from Amelia Island.  Small world.

The ride to the Mekong River took over 2 hours.  Bumpy roads and scooters  all over the place.

We boarded our boat and rode around the river for a bit.  We stopped by a coconut vender who gave us each a coconut to drink.  When the coconut is young, it has "milk" in it.  And no coconut flesh yet.  The people in Vietnam use all parts of the coconut tree.  We continued around the floating market.  Each boat has different items for sale.

The Mekong River is loaded with these river flowers.  The local people use all parts of the plant.

This boat brought us the coconuts.  Notice the woman is doing most of the hard work.  All he did was chop the coconut with a large knife so we could drink the milk.

These are some of the homes along the river edge.

Please note that I am covered from the sun.  Drinking coconut milk.

We then stopped at a place where they demonstrated how to make puffed rice and coconut candy.  I had to be careful because the candy was like taffy.  One could lose a filling or a cap if you weren't careful.  But they were good.

This is making the puffed rice.  The rice on the right is placed in the wok over high heat and they stir real fast and it puffs like popcorn.

Next they take the puffed rice and place it in the mixture of sugar and malt to make a candy.  The coconut they make like taffy.  Outside of this area there was a gift shop where you could buy just about anything including the snake wine.

To get the snake in the bottle, they go in through the bottom of the bottle and then seal it up.  No thanks.

Will post this now and then update with more pictures later.

We then walked to a place where they served us tea with local honey from the bees.

I stayed clear of the bees.

Back on the boat where we rode around the canals and then stopped at an ancestors home.  And here they served us local fruits.

They paint the front of the boats with these eyes.  But not the fishing boats as they feel the eyes will scare the fish.

In the ancestor home they make an altar for the ancestors.  They use a lot of inlaid furniture.

More scenes from the river.

And a fisherman with his nets.

Back on the boat for more riding until we arrived at the resort for our lunch.  We had an interesting lunch.  Elephant ear fish, deep fried sticky rice balls, etc.  It was all good although some in our group did not eat the fish.

Our menu for lunch.  Plus they had a buffet of some salads and desserts.

This is the elephant ear fish.  Fried so crispy but good.

And a sticky rice ball which also is deep fried.

But hallow in the center.  She cuts it with scissors so we each got a slice.

We walked back to the van and headed back to the ship.  Another long ride.

When we got back to the ship it was time to get ready for dinner.  We had cocktails with Marilyn and Bob and also dinner in Compass Rose with them.  Bob and I are light as we had had a late and large lunch.

Back to the suite to read and lights out.

Sea Day

Monday and we are sailing toward Viet Nam.  Routine more of the same.  Swimming first thing in the morning.  Ossie was already in the pool.  They now say they will open at 7am.   So we did our hour and then changed for breakfast.  Yesterday at breakfast there was a man who was so rude to the staff.  It appears he wants cream and not milk for his coffee.  Said he had to wait 25 minutes for the staff to bring it to him and he was promised it would be ready for him when he arrived.  Now, how are they to know when he is coming and where he will sit.  So of course, the waitstaff takes the blame instead of him just going with the flow.  He decided to report it to the Head Waiter.  Some people!

Today we did have needlepoint.  Up to Observation Lounge for about one hour.  Trying to finish the project I am doing so I can get another one and work different stitches on it.

Lunch in La Veranda where I spoke with Cristian to arrange a table for 4 in Signatures tonight instead of 2 as Bob and Marilyn will be joining us for dinner.  So he was able to arrange it for us.

A great nap and then back to needlepoint and tea.

Meeting Bob and Marilyn for cocktails in Observation Lounge.  More about dinner later.

At dinner we had a nice table for four.  And this time the service was perfect.  They seem to rush tables of only 2 persons as lots of people like them.  At any rate, dinner was good.   I had a spinach tart, mushroom soup and lamb.  All good.  After dinner we started to go to the show, but Bob had other plans so we went back to the suite.

Tomorrow we start our Viet Nam journey.

Thailand - Day 2

Sunday found us still here in Thailand.  We did overnight here.  So the ship was quiet.  We got up early and went up to 11 to swim.  The pool was opened.  We thought that Ossie had it opened but she did not come until almost 8am.  So maybe they will open it at 7 since Bob and I get up there at that time.  We did our hour in the pool and then to the hot tub.

Breakfast in La Veranda of Eggs Benedict and Caviar for Bob.  We actually split the order so we each had one egg serving.  Better that way.  Then I headed to deck 6 in the atrium to work on the blog.  I do get internet in the suite but it is way faster in the center of the ship.  So when I need to upload pictures, I bring the computer to the center.  Otherwise, too frustrating.

Last night we overheard some people talking about the shuttle to the beach and they were not impressed.  So we will stay on the ship today.  Plenty to do onboard.

A very quiet day on board.  Most of the passengers are out on the tours.  When we spoke with Ossie this morning, she was on a tour to see the Golden Buddha.  When they arrived at the site, the guide told them it was 5:30 and the site closed at 5pm.  What a waste.  And you had to pay extra for the tour.  I would want my money back.

We were scheduled to leave at 4pm but the Captain came on the horn and said due to technical problems, we would not leave until 5pm.  Do not know what the issues were but finally at 5pm we set sail for Viet Nam.

Cocktails in Observation Lounge and then a nice dinner in Compass Rose.  Both Bob and I had the same dinner, dumplings and then vegetable lasagna.  No dessert again.

Back to the cabin to read and lights out.

Laem Chabang, Thailand

Saturday we are docked in Laem Chabang, Thailand.  We did not arrive until 10 am.  We were scheduled to do Bangkok on our own but with the unrest in the city, we decided to cancel our tour yesterday.

We swam for an hour with Ossie again.  She had them open the pool at 7am.  We arrived at 7:20am and joined her.  Later I found out the pool opens at 7:30 am but we are on a mission to change that.  We will see how we do.  So we swam for one hour and then changed and headed to breakfast.  Service was not the best.  I ordered eggs over medium and they never came so we left.  Went up on deck 12 to watch us dock.

Back to the suite and when Victor wanted to make the room up, we went to coffee connection and I had a snack.  Ray came and sat with us for a bit.  Bob showed him his pictures from the Snake House.  We had decided not to do anything today.  We have been to Bangkok several times over the years and the ride from the dock to the city is 2.30 hours.  They do have a shuttle going to Pattaya but might do it tomorrow as we stay here overnight.

So the day was a quiet one.  I worked on my needlepoint and knitting while Bob did the pictures.

We went up to the Observation Lounge for our cocktails.  The ship is quiet as the tours have not returned yet.  They are long tours.  Then to Compass Rose where we had our choice of tables.  Not crowded at all.  I had Pepper Pot Soup and the grilled salmon with sautéed spinach.  Could not finish.  No dessert.

Back to the suite where we watched an old episode of NCIS.  Then lights out and bed.

Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Friday finds us docked in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.  Cambodia used to be called the Kingdom of Cambodia but in 1979 the Khmer Rough was overthrown and the Vietnamese-backed People's Republic of Kampuchea was established.  In 1989 the Vietnamese withdrew the last of their troops and the government renamed the country State of Cambodia.  Cambodia today enjoys a parliamentary system with one prime minister, Hun Sen.  A constitution was adopted in 1993, the same year King Norodom Sihanouk returned to the throne.  His Majesty remains a symbol of national unity.

Our view from the ship.  We cannot figure out why there is a plane on the building.

These boats are all over the harbor.  They chug along.

Our tour today is Highlights of Sihanoukville.  We started with a stop at the Snake House.  I had not read what we were doing and our guide speaks English with a strong accent.  So she kept saying "snack house" and I thought we were going to stop for a local treat.  Not so.  Have never seen so many venomous snakes in one place.  My family knows how much I dislike snakes.  So I walked through the place at a record clip.

This fellow kept hissing at us.  Thank goodness for glass.

They shed their skins and I think they just leave them in the cage.  No one wants to put their hands in the cage.  And I can't blame them.

As you continue to walk you come across a few birds.

This guy looks stuffed but he is alive.

And then tons of crocs.  Thailand has lots of critters around.

And one happy monkey.

Next we stopped at Wat Kroung.  This is a temple and home to the monks.  While visiting this site, I got very lightheaded and decided to return to the bus.  Lots of children around trying to sell you stuff or just begging.

These are small temples for families to honor the dead.

Lots of gold everywhere you looked.

I did not have a camera to take a picture, but one monk was sitting on the front porch of the library using his computer.  A sign of the times.

We then drove to Psar market.  The people in this part of the world do their shopping every day.  So in this market you could buy fish, meat, fruits, scarves, dresses, shoes, or get your hair done.  Whatever.

Along with the fresh fish, they have dried items also.

And some will cook the stuff for you.

No part of the pig is left.  They will eat the whole animal.  He is kind of cute, don't you think?

Lots of fresh fruits are available.  And they are good too.

This is a major form of transportation.  Called a Tuk Tuk. I can be hired like we use a taxi.

Notice this scooter has four people riding on it.  Lots of scooters around the city.

We did drive around the Lion Roundabout.  It is named the Golden Lions Monument (Vimean Tao Meas).  It is located in the center of a traffic circle between Sokha and Ochheuteal beaches.  It was built  in 1996 and has recently received a new coat of paint.

Not sure what the ball in the mouth means.

Last we drove to Sokha Resort.  This is a very nice resort on the coast.  We had one drink (Coke) and then while some walked the beach, I did my needlepoint.  Then back to the ship.

We were greeted by these folks.

The resort was really very nice.

This fellow was our meeting place.

Tonight was the Block Party.  We met several of our new neighbors and then we had to go to the conference room to have our pictures taken for the visas we will need since we are staying on land one night next week.

Up to Observation Lounge where we sat with Marilyn and Bob.  They were having dinner with Anne Louise and Jim and invited us to join them but Bob said it was our date night so we sat at a nice table for two and had Maria as our waitress.  Bob had escargot and lamb while I had soup and pasta.  Back to the suite to read and lights out.

Pictures to come.