Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining . . .

The seas were rough when we arrived at Hiva Oa.  Tendering in was not possible and we missed seeing this beautiful island.

We moved on to the smallest of the inhabited islands of the Marquesas, Tahuata, population 671.  It was fabulous – we were able to visit a Polynesian island which had not seen many tourists.  It was very tropical, with coconut trees climbing up the mountains, beautiful paths leading into the jungle, and so simple and peaceful.  Unfortunately the winds were increasing and our visit was cut short, but we are grateful that we were among the 80 passengers who were able to visit this little paradise.

The crew had its hands full positioning the tender alongside the Silver Spirit in order to get us and the tender back on board.  As we returned to the ship, guests were lined up on every deck watching our little adventure.

Today we are at sea, heading for Rangiroa, the 2^nd largest coral atoll in the world.

1st Port of Call - Nuku Hiva

Tendered into Taiohae and received a warm Marquesian welcome.

The Marquesians are a very artistic people, specializing in wood carving and bead work.

A very rugged island, with cliffs dropping directly to the sea, Nuku Hiva’s few beaches are black sand.  After walking through the warm waters, we ended up wondering how to dry our sandy feet when Chuck miraculously found a small blue towel hanging from a coconut tree.  At the same time I noticed a spigot in the tree, which led us to discover a valve and stone platform.  Inadvertently we had found an outdoor shower, just what we need – problem solved.

We proceeded to walk around the bay to Pearl Lodge, a beautiful hotel, where we had drinks and lunch overlooking the Silver Spirit anchored in the bay.

Five Days at Sea . . .

It’s Tuesday and our fifth day at sea is coming to a close.  The seas have been calm throughout.  We have been meeting people, taking part in shipboard activities, and just taking time to relax.  There are approximately 360 guests on board, with a crew of 376.  Thirty nine percent of the guests are from the United States (ten percent from CA), eighteen percent are from Great Britain, and the remaining fifty three percent represent countries throughout the world.  On Thursday we will dock at our first port of call, Nuku Hiva, a small Polynesian island, population 2,700.

Today we were treated to a Galley Lunch and were able to view the area where food preparation for the main restaurant takes place.  The galley area was wall-to-wall food and the desserts couldn’t even fit and had to be laid out, buffet style, in the dining room.  Chuck  attended his second Italian class, spent time at the pool, and worked out.  I learned how to tint paper with dyes, attended my French class, took my second dance lesson (the waltz today), and participated in the daily trivia gathering/competition.  We both attended an informative presentation about Nuku Hiva, our first port, as well as a rather dry lecture, “How to Look at a Painting.”

We have found that being pampered and catered to is really fun . . .

Half Way to the Marquesa Islands

Second day at sea and the weather is great.

First Day Observations

19JAN11

We will never forget Dally’s eyes looking back at us out of the rear window of our car as Lauren left us at the SF airport the morning we left SF, a memory that will be with us for the entire trip.

Arrived LAX, whisked off to San Pedro Harbor, boarded and immediately received a glass of Champagne.   Many returning guests; a real family atmosphere.  Then off to our stateroom where all of our bags were awaiting us, along with Anita from Bali, our butler.  Next off to our first of many meals, lunch at La Terrazza.  We spent the rest of the day wandering the ship and watching the ship being loaded with a vast amount of provisions, and then attended the World Cruiser’s welcome dinner – fabulous food.

20JAN11

We finished unpacking and organizing our room around Noon (Everything fit, with room to spare!), just in time for another lunch.  The afternoon was spent catching up with administrative details – dinner reservations, spa/salon appointments, accessing the Internet for the first time, etc.  We set sail at 7:00 pm just as we were enjoying a cocktail on the Observation Deck and enjoying the view of a full moon.  Have met people from Savannah, Houston, Virginia, England, Santa Barbara, Zurich, Hamburg, as well as staff from Bali, the Philippines, Kiev, Scotland, England, Poland, Italy, Portugal, and France.

21JAN11

Up early to bright sunshine and room service.  Off to the gym and then the pool.  The sea is a deep blue, the ship is white, and the sun sparkles everywhere.  The temperature is a comfortable 65 degrees, warmer tomorrow as we head south.  First “formal” night tonight – we’re interested in seeing what this really means.