Boo hoo, but safety is the first thing Captain Jonathan thinks of. For Raratongo Cook Island there was 2 plans....because of the large swells and the reefs. Plan A was to anchor off the main downtown area and tender in. Everything was there except for the beaches, they were down where Plan B was. So the Captain tried to get in as close as he could and the swells were just to big for the tenders. So Plan B was the next thing to do. He took the ship to the other side calmer side and there is nothing but beautiful beaches there with the exception of the 2 shuttle buses to take us into the town. Well that didn't happened either, the Captain waited for 20 minutes to see if the swells we going to calm down to get the tenders out but it was just to rough. So he came on the intercom and said that it was just too rough and safety came first and he was sorry that we could not go onto the island. He stayed for about 15 minutes so people could get there pictures from the ship. So this is the first port we have missed in 24 days. Bob and I are having a wonderful time and chatting with Carol Manico lots especially in the mornings as she is a early riser like us.
So the next 2 days are Sea days and we love our Sea days.....
So stay tuned to find out more of our journey. Update this just was delivered to our room.
Far way to our west a tropical storm is brewing. This is going to affect our call at Alofi Niue. In a nutshell if we call as scheduled on Friday it will be right on top of us. Winds would be 40mph and waves 3.5 meters or around 12 feet it would be raining cats and dogs to boot. This would make the call to port utterly impossible. The Captain also says that he has no wish to subject us, or his crew to natural forces especially when we have a home to move. So we are cruising on a westerly track heading for Tonga and making a speed of 15 knots. This should take us south of the forecast track of the storm which should drop in far behind us after we have passed. There are no alternative ports to the west of Alofi other than Tonga itself. This is why we are heading towards it at a far faster speed than was initially required. Rather than to subject us to yet more days at sea waiting for Monday and our scheduled docking there we will be docking on their Saturday evening and don't forget we cross the International Date line and lose a day. We will now have the opportunity to have the evening ashore and 2 full days on Tonga the Sunday and Monday at which time we will resume our schedule and sail for Auckland.
So our new itinerary is as follows now:
Wednesday January 28. At sea
Thursday January 29 at sea
Friday January 30. Crossing the Internatioal Date Line. This day does not exist......
Saturday January 31. Nuku'alofa Tonga. 7pm arrival
Sunday Feb 01 Nuku'alofa Tonga. Overnight
Monday Feb 02 Nuku'alofa Tonga depart at 4 pm
************So there you have it.......stay tuned you just never know.....
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Day 22 ~ January 26, 2015 Bora Bora French Polynesia
We love this place and are so glad to be back here. We were brave and swam with the black tipped sharks and we were kissed by the stingrays in 2013. The water here is so blue well maybe a light turquoise color. Just breath taking. You can do lots of excursions here from off the beaten path on a 4x4 or glass bottom boat tours. Whatever we do we always try something different when we return to the same place. So today we are going to do the same thing because we just had a blast.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Day 20 ~ January 24-25 Papette French Polyneisa
We arrived here around noon and we have been to this beautiful island before. We always have 2 days here. Because they stock up on things. It is very humid so that why its so beautiful. This island has a name of the "Island of Love" Tahiti is the largest island in the French Polynesia and is home to the capital city of Papette which serves as a gateway for almost all the French Polynesia vacationers. There is a lot to do on this island from water sports to complex off road 4x4 system. Lots of interior hiking trails to climb. Climbs are steep but provide amazing views. Tonight there is a Polynesia bar-b-que on the lido deck which are always fun. As well the parking lotof the port comes alive with all these food venders. Vendors set up at dusk and the families come and enjoy all the different kinds of food. From Lamb on a spit to crepes for dessert.
Thursday, January 22, 2015
Day 18 ~ January 22, 2015. Taiohae, Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia
We are not hear very long today only until 4 pm. Taipival Valley was originally made famous by the American writer and sailor. Herman Melville (1819-1891). Whom deserted his ship and hid in this valley. Captured by the indigenous natives he lived for a few months during which he observed their way of life. This became the book Typee. More recently the valley was used for the base camp for the show "Survivor", filmed back in 2001. Black sand beaches here. So beautiful here.
We have been here before so we know where to find Wifi and beautiful people
"We travel not to go anywhere but to go....We travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move."
Robert Louis Stevenson
Rap up on the last 8 Sea Days .
We have done so much on these sea days. We made beautiful sea shell lei's called " Hei Pupu- Tahahitian style. We have learned and are still learning to play the Ukulele with a Tahitian song called "Vini Vini Vona Vona. Bob is doing the whole 6 days. We have been to many good lectures that are very interesting and some that have put us nodding our heads. Since we are sailing towards the French Polynesia everything is geared to that. From crafts to lectures. Also we have seen such great entertainment so far. Let see we had Bobby Brooks Wilson, son of the late Jackie Wilson. Wow he was fantastic. He also has a website check it out. We also have listen to a very good classical & Flamenco guitar player named Francis Diatschenko. He is Australian.
We also always listen to our favorite entertainer Debbie Bacon piano player and what a voice she has. Every night before dinner from 7-8 we listen to her. We have had our first Ball. It was the Black and Silver and started at 9:30. We put on our best FORMALS and slipped on our dancing shoes and had a very enjoyable evening. Yesterday we had 3 pm Tea up in the crows nest with Carol Macina. She is also from Fairway Village. Very nice lady. So we chatted for an hour with her. So as you can see we have been very busy. We have even had 2 naps so far
Gene Young a very talented Cruise Director
.........stay tuned
We also always listen to our favorite entertainer Debbie Bacon piano player and what a voice she has. Every night before dinner from 7-8 we listen to her. We have had our first Ball. It was the Black and Silver and started at 9:30. We put on our best FORMALS and slipped on our dancing shoes and had a very enjoyable evening. Yesterday we had 3 pm Tea up in the crows nest with Carol Macina. She is also from Fairway Village. Very nice lady. So we chatted for an hour with her. So as you can see we have been very busy. We have even had 2 naps so far
.........stay tuned
January 18. Seattle vs Green Bay Sorry it's late...no internet
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Day 14 ~ January 18, 2015 Happy Birthday
We have been at sea since the 13th when we left Manta Ecuador. We have 4 more sea days than we arrive at Nuka Hiva French Polynesia at 8am we leave at 4pm. So stay tuned
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Day 9 ~ January 13, 2015 Manta Ecuador. Its all about the Hats
Today we were here from 5 am to 9 pm. So we picked up our Harbour Pilot around 4 am this morning and we were docked by 5 am. Little history on Manta it is the largest city in Manabí Province. It has a pop of around 220,000. Currency here is the good old USD. Fishing especially for Tuna and that's is followed by Tourism. We are on a tour today. We are going to Montecrisite where the Panama Hats are made. The we are doing a button factory made from these nuts that are found here. They look a lot like ivory. We now have 8 sea days to enjoy everything from knitting to sunbathing, classes on the computer, Lectures from up coming ports. stay tuned for pictures... Will be posting a lot on Face Book as well.
The start of a hat
