Day 10 - Kailua Kona Day 2

Morning started early (is that the most asinine sentence ever written?!) We had an excursion scheduled for 8:15 am for a boat tour in a glass bottomed boat so that we could appreciate the fish and the coral reefs of the harbor. We boarded the boat, the Marian, which had 2” thick glass built into strategic sections of the boat. The boat builder’s daughter led the tours and did an amazing job of telling us all about the fish we were seeing and the coral reefs near the shore line. It was amazing. We saw Nemo!

It was such a clear view of the ocean floor you felt like you were in the water, and I so desperately wanted to be in the water since I had first hand knowledge about how warm it was. But I restrained myself from jumping fully clothed into the water (barely) and enjoyed the 1-hour boat ride around the bay.

Back to the ship and air-conditioned glory. I can’t bear to think about what life was like before AC. Barbaric! Quick lunch and then I decided it was time to finally try the swimming pools on the ship. After being so tantalizing close to the ocean and its warm embrace, it was high time to go swimming. I went up that deck amongst all the crispy critters who have been hanging out there since the beginning of the cruise and jumped into the pool. Such bliss! Such rapture! Such happiness!

I spent 1/2 hour in the pool just floating around in absolute bliss not even caring when it started to rain. Why would I care about rain when I’m already wet, she asks incredulously! I was so damn happy. Life was/is good. After returning to the cabin, Mum and I indulged in a couple of games of cribbage. I won the first round and was totally obnoxious about it with a 24 hand (29 is the highest and extraordinarily rare). Mum retaliated with a win in the next game so my glory was brief. She also ended the game with a “Bing” which is her way of making us insane when she wins. The last peg of the board is the winner so when you do that you are supposed to be gracious (allegedly). Not Tikki-Boo! When she wins, she likes to say “Bing!” to emphasize that she’s just won. You either find it adorable or enraging - there’s no middle ground.

After cribbage, we went on an excursion of the ship. We discovered that there was a group/coven/pride of quilters on the voyage who were hanging out on the 14th deck in their own private den of inequity. How Mum had not heard the cry of the quilters from the 8th deck, I’ll never know. They brought their sewing machines and projects and had been quilting their little hearts out for the last nine days. Of course, Mum (aka quilter extraordinare) had to meet her people so we went on a safari to find their room. Success! We found it, Mum met the lead quilter, and I got the hell out of there as quickly as possible. I didn’t want to get quilter cooties (it’s a thing!).

After Mum returned from her coven of quilters, we decided on an early dinner so we could either watch a movie or see the show in the theater. That was a lovely plan totally upended by the amazingly busy dining room. Dinner was an incredibly slow process tonight capped by the procession of the dining crew. Apparently, at the end of the cruise, the kitchen staff and waiters are appreciate by the guests by having a conga line through the dining room set to rock music. It was fun and funky at the same time. The kitchen and dining staff work their asses off throughout the entire cruise so it was recognition that was earned.

By the end of dinner, it was too late to see either the show or the movie so we went to the music lounge on the first floor and listened to the band and people watched. Why have we not done this on the other nights? The people watching was next level and there was so much to observe - especially the dancing! You could definitely tell in which decade they had their heyday. The 80’s seemed to be the predominant era. Lots of stiff, robotic movement and not a heck of a lot of rhythm. As an 80’s child myself, it was not a proud moment.

Back to the room after that and the prospect of a sleep in since we don’t arrive in Honolulu until 7:00 pm. Until then, Aloha!

 Day 9 - Kailua Kona, Hawaii

What a fun day it’s been. Our organized tour didn’t begin until 12:15 so it was a blissful day of sleeping in. We’ve quickly become jaded about traveling from port to port, and didn’t even bother to get up for our arrival in Kona. We came awake long enough to feel the engine stop, and then rolled over and went back to sleep. Doesn’t take long for us to feel like seasoned cruisers!

Celebrity Cruises does a lot of things very well but organizing tours and logistics for going to shore is not one of them! We heard distant announcements from various locations about where we were supposed to go for the tender to shore but nothing that we found particular useful. We finally went to the excursions desk and they set us straight on what to do to get ashore. We are parked/anchored/moored about a 1/4 mile from shore and we have to be motored in on the lifeboats (which for their purposes are called tenders). It’s a helluva process that is fascinating to watch and since we are two hard-core people watchers we were in 7th heaven.

After getting to the pier, we were finally assigned to the tour van with Wes, the driver. Poor Wes tried his best but after Albert’s magnificence from yesterday, he was a poor substitute of a tour guide. He drove us to the Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park where we got to wade into the Pacific Ocean amongst the green sea turtles floating near the shore. And as a life long user of the Atlantic Ocean, I have to admit that the Pacific Ocean is so much freaking better! The water was warm and inviting and I was so wishing I had my bathing suit and could go swimming.  OMG! It was absolute bliss. The turtles were adorable but wading in the water was the highlight.

After I reluctantly left the glory of the Pacific Ocean, we got back into the van and drove to a Cloud Forest Sanctuary, a.k.a., a rain forest. Wes, the substandard tour guide, took us through a 45 minute hike of a rain forest and it was magnificent (the rain forest, not Wes). The plants and flowers were spectacular and Mum and I wished we could have used apps on our phones to identify what we were seeing. Poor Wes tried but, alas and alack, not really having much success. Note: Mum would like to come to Wes’s defense here and say that he is newly assigned to this particular tour and has a tad to learn about the details of what we saw. Kathy’s Note: Mum is a much nicer person than me.

After the rain forest trek, Wes took us to a local coffee roasting shop where the touring company must have a contract with them because otherwise I’m not sure why we stopped. I must admit the views were stunning so all was not lost for the non-coffee drinkers on the tour (moi!). After that, it was back to the pier and onto the ship which made us ever so freaking happy to be back in air conditioned bliss. Hawaii is gorgeous but seriously hot and humid. Fathom that!

After a quick respite in the cabin, it was up to the dining room and I was finally reunited with my most favorite sommelier, Sachin who immediately brought be a glass of prosecco. Sachin is my favorite for a reason. Dinner was amazing. Mum got salmon for the 5th time (not exaggerating!) and I got an Indian dish that was my favorite of the trip. We finished in time to catch the 7:00 show in the theater. It was the Hawaiian Folklore Show which comprised of Hawaiian musicians and dancers. They were very good and Mum and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

It’s been a really fun day of exploring Hawaii but we are ready for bed! It’s an early morning for us with a glassbottom boat ride of a reef tour. Could be either amazingly hokey or wonderful. Either way, we are looking forward to it.

Aloha from Hawaii 🌺

 Day 8 Hilo, Hawaii

Note: Super disappointing news about adding photos to the blog. I have a plethora of amazing photos on my phone with no way to get them to my iPad to post on my blog. I need my tech support (i.e. Bill) to fly out to Hawaii to figure this shizzle out! There’s something hinky about the ship’s internet because it won’t talk with my phone that is on the data plan. Color me confused!

We’re here! We arrived in the port of Hilo, Hawaii at 7:00 this morning. We went out on the balcony in our pajamas and watched the shore line slowly approach. It was a slow process so we both had time to take a shower and then come back out to see what progress was made. It was all so very exciting yet boring given how long it took.

We finally arrived and docked in the industrial section of town so it wasn’t much to look at yet still interesting. Our scheduled excursion was at 9:15 so we made our way out to the terminal on the dock and found an amazing amount of chaos. I figured the cruise line would be a model of efficiency about signage and where to go and where to wait. WRONG! There was one poor guy running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to get senior citizens to listen to him (fat chance) while trying to get the tour guides in their proper places. By some miracle we got on the right bus to go visit Akaka Falls and the surrounding area. 

Our bus driver’s name was Albert and I can’t wait to add his photo here. He had a greased up Mohawk and big glasses and was the nicest guy. He was both the bus driver and the tour guide and I was impressed that he could do both at the same time. Mad skills.

I also want to let you know that a major milestone in our family was achieved today. My mother, Mum/Tikki-Boo, visited her 50th state today by stepping on Hawaiian soil. I’ve posted a picture of her on both my Facebook and Instagram pages if you would like to see a wonderful picture of Jeanne Soule ❤️ achieving this goal.

We stopped at Akaka Falls first for a 1/2 mile loop around the area with the highlight being a stunning waterfall. I hate that my photos aren’t working because it was an incredible sight. But what was even better was a particular Banyan tree along the way. If you haven’t seen one of these, google it because it’s an amazing system of roots that creates a tree that looks like many small trees put together into one. Fascinating and beautiful. 

Next up on the tour was a visit to the Pana’ewa Zoo and Gardens. We were mostly interested in the gardens but really enjoyed the zoo aspect as well. The flowers and greenery in Hawaii are spectacular and we really enjoyed our time there. From there it as a quick stop at a candy factory (not mad about that!) and then back to the ship in the early afternoon.  We thoroughly enjoyed the morning activities but were happy to be back in the air conditioning cause it’s stinking humid here! 

We recovered in the cabin for the afternoon and then had a 6:00 reservation at one of the speciality restaurants on the ship. Tikki-Boo’s accomplishment needed to be properly celebrated! We had the most wonderful waiter, Bayu, who had trouble pronouncing Mum’s name, Jeanne - so she invited him to call her Mum and he spent the remainder of the evening calling her Mama. He really made dinner so much fun. Our seat couldn’t have been better. The restaurant was at the rear of ship with big picture windows so we could watch the shoreline of Hilo disappear into the evening as we sailed out of port. It was quite magical. 

And the food was mostly good too. We started off with a very disappointing calamari that was the bounciest damn thing I’ve ever eaten. I’ve decided that bouncy found is a hard no for me. There are rules about these things that must be adhered to, thank you very much. The entree made up for it though as we both got the filet mignon and wowzers. The heavens sung and the angels wept it was that good. It was the perfect way to end a monumental day for my mother. 

We are currently sailing to the other side of Hawaii to Kona and will arrive there at 7:00 am. Brace yourself for another day of touring Hawaii.

Aloha and snoopers*

*For those who are unfamiliar with “snoopers”, it’s a term that Mum’s father, Poppy, would use for kisses 😘 

 Day 7 Last Full Day at Sea

It was our last full day at sea today and we’ve enjoyed the heck out of it. It’s been a super relaxing and fun time. We’ve enjoyed reading, crafting, listening to lectures and learning the Hula dance on Tikki-Boo’s part. As of 8:30 pm Hawaiian time, we are 120.9 miles to Hilo and we’ve traveled 2,288 nautical miles. We arrive at Hilo at 8:00 am tomorrow morning and our first excursion departs at 9:00. We are so excited!

But in the meantime, it’s been a rather slow day for us on day 7. There wasn’t much in the way of lectures today that we wanted to attend although we did go see Celia (the nature lecturer) talk about how she got to this point of her career. What a fascinating family she comes from. Her parents were laid off from their job when she was 11 and they decided it was the perfect time to take their family of 5 to the Appalachian Trail to hike the entire 2000+ miles the following spring. Damn! It was a fascinating talk about taking risks and making dreams come true. Celia has lived an amazing life already and is only in her 30s.

We returned to the cabin after that and enjoyed the breeze off the ocean as we read and did our crafts on our respective beds for the next several hours. We emerged from our cocoon for a couple of hours to see the film “The Ballad of Wallis Island”. It was a mostly good film with some plot lines that just didn’t make sense to me. But we were both highly impressed with the acting of the male lead, Tom Key. He was awkward and endearing and was the highlight of the film.

Back to the cabin for a bit and then an early dinner at 6:00. We shared the table with three other couples, two of whom were very chatty and engaging, and a third couple who did much better with one-on-one conversations. Dinner lasted for two hours (forever in cruise time) so it’s a damn good thing we enjoyed each other’s company.  Mum and I had considered going to the show tonight which was Broadway something or other (see how excited I was about it) but it was an hour until the next show and once we got back to the room, that was it! Pajama time!!!! We had been in our fancy schmancy clothes for precisely 2.5 hours and that was our limit. 

We can’t wait to experience Hilo tomorrow and share all of our fun adventures with you.

Goodnight on Day 7

 Day 6 at Sea and I hate Elvis

We are 1,795 miles into our cruise with 612 miles until Hilo. We’re getting pretty used to this ship stuff at this point.

Our lecture of the day was from Miss Celia who taught us about sea birds yesterday. Today it was animals who adapt to extreme conditions. She started with bears and discussed why they have to fatten up for the winter. She said that bears don’t hibernate! Say what?! They go into torpor instead which means their metabolism slows down along with their heartbeat, breathing and body temperature but they can still wake up if they smell food. Go figure. We also learned that Koalas sleep for 22 hours per day to digest the toxic eucalyptus plants they eat and Giraffes sleep for 2 hours per day for no more than 2 minutes at a time because their blood pressure gets thrown out of whack if they lay down for longer than that. Who knew?! The things you learn on a cruise ship!

After lunch, we went to see the theater to see the movie, Blue Hawaii with Elvis, hence my title of today’s blog that I now hate him. Because A) he is a ridiculously bad actor, B) he treats his girlfriend and the other women in the movie like dog doo, and C) he’s a bad actor (it bears repeating). And he’s constantly singing in the most idiotic places. My favorite was the scene in jail where he conveniently had his back up singers WITH THEIR INSTRUMENTS in the jail cell with him. Jeezum Crow! I know that the movie was made in another time and he was a heartthrob at the time but Jeez-O-Pete! That was a train wreck

After the movie, Mum and I ventured down to the medical center to see if I could get some more cold medicine but apparently even over the counter medicine requires a doctor’s note. Disappointing but fortunately Mum brought enough to get to the first port to buy some more. The cold is still kicking my butt so I think I’ll load up on some when I get the chance.

Dinner was fancy dress up again and we complied but were both secretly wanting pajama night in the dining room. I bet that would be super popular. Dinner was a bit of a hit and miss for me like most nights. The appetizer was delicious and the entree was a disappointment. My entree tonight was veal which usually is served as a flat hunk-o-meat. Tonight it was more of a tower-o-meat that in no way shape or form resembled veal but rather roast beef. It was baffling so I requested more wine and the dessert menu and no longer cared what curious form my veal was in. Chocolate lava cake for the win and a successful end to the dinner. We also had a great time talking with the couple at the table next to us. I initially admired his snazzy watch and that was all it took for them to share their life history with us - they are from British Columbia, he is retired, she is not, they have 5 grandchildren, and now you are all caught up too.

Tikki-Boo, my personal cruise director is currently going through tomorrow’s options and it looks like slim pickings but as long as Elvis isn’t included I’m going to be sanguine about it.

Aloha from Day 6 

 Day 5 - Day of Learning

We woke up to the full sun beating against the curtains heating up our room. It’s obvious we are getting much closer to Hawaii just from the temperature alone. It’s a balmy 77° and we’ve traveled 1458 nautical miles and have another 950 to go until Hilo.

We decided to attend several lectures this morning that Tikki-Boo, my personal cruise director, had selected the night before. The first was the history of Hawaiian shirts by a lecturer from Vancouver, British Columbia. Not sure how he was selected to lead this lecture but he had done an adequate job with Google and presented the basic facts (the shirts were first created in the mid-1930’s) along with a lot of other information about himself that I really couldn’t have cared less about. I don’t think we need to see another lecture from good ol’ Roy again. Is that harsh? It feels harsh but Roy was a disappointment to be sure.

The next lecture was called “Birds of the Sea” by Celia Garland and we were both super impressed by her presentation style and content. It was a great lecture and I learned more about sea birds than I ever thought necessary but loved every minute of it. So from yesterday’s blog I teased you with the information that Puffins have divided tongues and it creates two compartments within their mouths. One compartment scoops up the fish and the upper compartment holds those fish in place while they continue to scoop up more fish. They then take their collection of fish back to the nest to feed the pufflings. Fascinating lecture! Celia is supposed to be giving another lecture tomorrow and we’ll be sure to be there to learn more about whatever the heck she is going to talk about. We’re Celia groupies at this point.

After lunch, it was back to the room for an afternoon of reading for both of us and me catching up on a few shows on my iPad that I like. And then on to our next lecture because Mum has us hopping! Back to the theater for Amade, which according to the newsletter blurb is an “experience on Mozart and the work of other classical composers inspire, evolve, and connect to modern music” Huh! We’re going to be so stinking smart after this cruise!

Ok - so we are back from Amade and we have so many questions! Like where was the Mozart? Where was the connection to other music? Basically, it was a knock-off Hamilton meets a knock-off Cirque de Soleil with absolutely no Mozart. The talent and the skill of the cast was undeniable but I think they billed it that way to get all the old farts into the theater. We were bamboozled! The indignity of it all. More than a few people walked out in the middle of it. Mum and I exchanged a few looks during the production and had a lot to talk about at dinner.

Back to the cabin for bedtime and for Kiki-Boo to select our activities for tomorrow. Apparently, Elvis is going to be a part of my day. Pray for me.

Aloha from day 5

 Day 4 At Sea 

Hey Folks - time for a quick update. I’ve been fighting a cold and feeling like crud so I’m doing this a day late. I’ll try to get caught up either tonight or tomorrow depending on the dinged danged cold. I’m currently writing this at the back of the theater at a table while Mum sits up front learning about sea birds. Works for us.

As of the beginning of Day 4 we had traveled 1,079 nautical miles and were still 1,329 miles to Hilo. It was a slow morning for us thanks to moi. A leisurely breakfast followed by reading in the cabin until Mikko needed to do the morning cleaning and then we skedaddled up to the library again to work on our embroidery/cross-stitch. They are coming along nicely.

Tikki-Boo has been religiously studying the days events and highlighting what she thinks would be fun. After lunch there was a hula dance lesson so you bet your bippy Mum wanted to go to that one. It was located in the lounge at the front of the ship where you had to pass by the two pools and all of the people frying themselves into a crisp. How fascinating! It was quite the party atmosphere with a DJ and an incredibly busy bar. There are definitely areas of the ship that we just don’t go to like the pool area and the casino with the slot machines. We are the library and lecture type people on this cruise…and hula lessons. 

So back to the hula lesson - Mum was the brave one while I sat in the audience cheering her on. The instructor was wonderful and patiently taught everyone the hand and hip motions. Tikki-Boo was wonderful! I was so proud of her for learning the hula and she had a big smile on her face at the end. Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures given that there were too many people between us but trust me that she did a great job.

After the hula lesson, we went to the movie theater to watch a movie neither of us had seen before called “Fly Me To The Moon”. It was a good movie that we both enjoyed and nice way to spend two hours. After that we had 3 hours until dinner. We discovered that we like going to the late seating of dinner as it’s less frenetic and much more relaxing. So we sat out on our veranda for several hours reading and just enjoying the bejesus out of the evening. 

At dinner, we got a different waiter but the same sommelier (go Sachin!) and it was all very tasty again. It was an enjoyable ending to our enjoyable albeit quiet day. Mum has highlighted four different programs for tomorrow so lots more to report tomorrow. Sneak peak to tantalize you for tomorrow - Puffins have a split tongue. Who knew?!

Aloha for Day 4