Loves' 2023 World Cruise

January 27, 2023? Our entertainment crew is always looking for something to celebrate and reduce their champagne inventory.   Yesterday was CROSSING THE INTERNATIONAL DATELINE.   So a good celebration we had.     We crossed it last night and January 28 disappeared.   We woke up to Sunday January 29.   Saturday January 28 just disappeared.     So, it happened that so did Vera’s birthday!   So she gets to stay 82 for another year! (Smile) As we head West we’ll lose an hour every 500 miles or so (time zone change).   So by the time we get home we’ll have given back the day we gained and be back on good ole Central time and the right date. We spend our days reading, walking around the ship (4 mi day), listening to music and Vera sometimes works on the community jigsaw puzzle.   There’s a wildlife expert on board who helps with sightings (birds, whales, flying fish) and talks about how to preserve their habitats.   There are presentations in the theater throughout the day on historical even

 January 24, 2023 Papeete, located on the island of Tahiti, is the capital of French Polynesia.   The population of French Polynesia is about 287,000 spread over 121 islands and atolls, but more than 60% (or about 180,000) live in Papeete.   So Papeete is a big city with all the features, commerce, problems and opportunities of a big city.   People commute from other islands by ferry or plane to work here since the nearby islands are mostly tourist businesses which are seasonal.   Our ship docked at Papeete after a short 10 mile trip from Moorea on Monday night.   We had an opportunity to walk around the central commercial district Tuesday morning before our excursion that afternoon.   Papeete is a smaller version of Monte Carlo so we saw some impressive yachts of the rich and famous — one was a converted oil tanker with all the bells and whistles. Tahiti, similar to Bora Bora and Moorea, is an island formed by a volcano eons ago and is surrounded by coral reefs.   It sports beautiful

  January 23, 2023 Moorea, (Mo-oh-rea) is one of the “Society Islands” of French Polynesia which includes Bora and Tahiti.   French Polynesia includes some 120 islands and atolls that stretch some 1,200 miles in the South Pacific Ocean.   As we understand it, French Polynesia is like a U.S. Territory. France provides funding of about $1.5B/year and collects taxes on goods and services sold on the islands.   Citizens get free heath care and education through high school (which is mandatory).   Moorea is about 10 miles from Tahiti and some residents commute daily to Tahiti by ferry for work. Moorea, an island formed by a volcano a million or so years ago is known for its jagged mountains and pristine beaches.   There is a crater in the center of the island where pineapple and sugar plantations are located.   They export pineapple juice but consume everything else raised there.   The island is surrounded by a coral reef that has three openings where rivers from the mountains flow to the s

 January 22, 2023 On land again after 6 days at sea - Bora Bora, the beautiful French Polynesian island made famous in James Michener’s South Pacific. The Island is only 15 square miles and is surrounded by beautiful coral reefs. We walked around the little village where our ship was docked. Lots of shops selling all kinds of goods made by locals—emphasis on black pearls which are found here. We toured around the island in a small boat piloted by a colorful, laid-back islander who Rich thought looked like Derek. A light rain fell but with air temperature at 80 degrees it wasn’t uncomfortable. We stopped in shallow crystal clear water and one of the boat captains got in the water and using some bait attracted sting rays and medium size lemon sharks. We saw beautiful beaches, the lush green covered remains of the volcano that made the island, thatched-roof resort hotel cottages on stilts above the water and coral on the ocean floor. On the way

January 19,20  Last night we crossed the Equator, a first for Vera, a second for Richard (Singapore business trip several years ago).  The staff and crew seem to look for things to celebrate, so of course - an Equator-crossing celebration around the pool at 2PM on the 19th.   Members of the staff/crew who had never crossed were sentenced to a jump in the pool fully clothed while we cheered them on sipping an equator-crossing rum drink.   All in good fun. We have several dining choices on the ship.   Most casual is the World Cafe where the main buffet offerings change daily: several salads, main dishes, pizza, sushi & other oriental dishes, and desserts.  More formal is The Restaurant (no shorts, etc.) where we order from a menu that changes daily.  Restaurants needing a reservation are Manfredi's (Italian) and Chef's Table offering special culinary creations paired with special wines.   In the Explorer Lounge are unique Norwegian dishes (great waffles & pastries, soups,

January 15,16  We arrived in Honolulu Sunday morning with perfect weather greeting us.   It was great seeing land again after so many days at sea (longer because we had to skip our stop in Santa Barbara due to the storms). We toured the Pearl Harbor Memorial - a very moving experience:   On December 7, 1941 ("a day that will live in infamy"),  Japanese planes from 4 aircraft carriers made a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor which was home to the bulk of the US's Pacific naval assets.   2,400 Americans died that day....mostly young men; another 1200 were injured.  19 ships were sunk or damaged and 350 planes were damaged or destroyed.   It was a total disaster that 'poked the sleeping bear".   Sunday night we watched the movie Battle of Midway where Admiral Nimitz and a bunch of young heroes began delivering payback.   Many historians regard that decisive battle as the turning point of the war.    As we visited the Memorial we had fond thoughts and memories of JT Cr

January 10, 2023 We are on our way to Hawaii, having left Los Angeles just before the latest rain deluge hit.   We thought this might be a good time to describe our ship, the Viking Neptune, which is on her maiden voyage.  Well, actually the first leg with paying passengers was from Barcelona to Fort Lauderdale where we boarded.  The ship was officially christened while we were in Los Angeles where the chairman of Viking and his daughter MC'd the ceremony.   Retired astronaut/aquanaut Nicole Stott (named Godmother of the ship) actually christened the ship. The layout is the same as the other Viking ocean going ships - explorers lounge in the bow, multiple bars, main restaurant, two specialty restaurants, buffet dining, an indoor large pool/hot tub (with retractable roof), a smaller outdoor pool/hot tub, a theater, spa, fitness center and several shops.   We are amazed at the decorating detail and the beauty throughout.   Here are a few pictures that we hope capture the decor.