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The Golden Princess docked at Hilo, Hawaii
After enjoying other December vacations as a family, we started investigating possibilities for a winter vacation back in the summer of 2008. When we read a Princess cruise brochure for a two-week round trip voyage to Hawaii leaving Los Angeles on Dec. 10 we were intrigued. Karen affirmed that by using some "comp" days she could get away that early in December. Mark had an open period between his world travels. So, we contacted Costco's travel department and by early August all was arranged. On Mark's advice, we arrived in Los Angeles a day before our ship would leave. In December the weather could be iffy and flights could be delayed. Arriving a day early was insurance that we would not have to swim to catch up with the ship! Mark could not get a flight back to Austin on the day we would return to Los Angeles-- Christmas Eve. So, he arranged to stay overnight near the L.A. airport and fly home on Christmas Day. As it worked out, the weather in much of the country was VERY "iffy" by Christmas Eve. We were to learn a new travel lesson: "In December, expect flight delays and bad weather. Plan accordingly."
And, here's the tale of our winter vacation.
We left Avamere at 9:30 a.m., arrived at Karen’s by 10:30, and with Sharman as our airport shuttle, we headed for PDX about 11:30.
After running the TSA gamut, we had time for a lunch at Wendy’s before boarding our Southwest Air plane. Apparently we didn’t need our “A” boarding pass to get a prime seat—the plane was only about 2/3 full. We had a good look at the Golden Gate and Oakland Bay bridges as the plane circled Oakland for its landing. The second leg of our flight found the plane even emptier. We asked the attendant which would be the best side for views, she replied “Well, probably the right side, but just hop back and forth as you wish—no shortage of empty seats. Such a novelty after our last chock-full flights.
We watched the lights come on, 25,000 feet below us, could easily distinguish Monterey Bay, and a gorgeous red sunset followed us most of the way to Los Angeles. Coming in from the ocean approach to Los Angeles, the view of the city below was spectacular. It must be the best “light show” anywhere. It also reinforced the idea that WAY too many people live in the L.A. basin now.
Along the way, we exchanged text messages with Mark, via cell phone. He left Austin a bit later than we left PDX, then his plane had a computer problem in Denver, so it was 10 p.m. before he arrived at our hotel, the Sheraton Four Points at the airport. In the meantime we quickly caught the hotel shuttle, and had been to Burger King and back before Mark arrived. No worries about him not having dinner—flying first class all the way, he had been well wined and dined. We had room 613 and Mark and Karen were right across the hall in 614. They had the view of the high-rise buildings adjacent to the airport, while we could watch the incoming planes. At night, it seemed that they were lined up to land right at our hotel!
After a Burger King breakfast, we got checked out and on the hotel shuttle back to the airport before 10 a.m. Apparently this was a mistake. When we found the Princess guides, we were immediately put on a Princess bus—but NOT to the ship. Instead, we were taken right back to the airport "hotel row" and deposited at the Sheraton Hotel. There we were directed to a small dining room, invited to have beverages and sweet rolls, and learned we would not go to the ship until noon! Had we been a tad later, we would have gone directly from the airport to the ship, as Glenn and I did last October. Got very boring on those hard dining chairs! They did most of the ship boarding paperwork at the hotel which no doubt helped at the port, but we never got to make use of our higher-status Platinum Captains Circle card, which was supposed to whisk us through processing (as it did in October).
The trip to San Pedro went smoothly, no traffic jams and warm, clear skies. The smoke from many wildfires had dissipated earlier but apparently it covered even the airport with ash at the height of the fire storms.
As we approached the pier, there was the Golden Princess looming up—it would have been impossible to miss it. We had sailed on this huge ship once before—in the eastern Mediterranean in May, 2006. And we had sailed on her older "sister," the Grand Princess through the Western Caribbean in 2005. The ships have identical deck plans and being a bit familiar with them probably speeded up our learning curve of understanding what was where on the ship.
We located our cabins, on opposite ends of the “Caribe” deck (10). Having booked our cabins at the "guaranteed" Category "BF" at minimum cost for a balcony cabin, we ended up with "BB" category cabins, a considerable upgrade. However, Princess chose to put Mark and Karen way aft, in Cabin 715, while Glenn and Barb were in Cabin 239, way forward. Considering that I had requested adjacent cabins, this was about as opposite of my request as possible! Our cabins had the same layout and a much bigger balcony than we have had before (except for the HUGE balcony in the handicapped cabin we were given as an upgrade on our Mediterranean cruise on this ship). They also mixed up the bed arrangement—we got twins, Mark and Karen got the queen bed! But they got that straightened out by bedtime. Mark’s bag was slow to arrive, but it too, finally appeared at his cabin door.
We lunched in the Lido buffet about 2 p.m., then had to get ready for lifeboat drill, held in two theaters, at 3:30. About 4:30 p.m. we enjoyed sailaway up on the top deck, with beautiful views of the brightly-lit San Pedro harbor and its many container shipping cranes. In December, nightfall came quickly and we had a big moon to enjoy. The ship’s cruise staff got busy right away, giving hula lessons to the assembled sailaway crowd. Instead of learning to hula, WE scooted down to the casino which promptly opened as soon as we were beyond the boundary of the USA which seemed to be about 5 miles off shore. I tore away from the casino long enough to get to the ship's library and check out a Clive Cussler novel—with two weeks, I expected to have ample time to read one of his page-turners.
We met in the buffet at 7:30 for dinner, then off to the 10:15 p.m. show in the Princess Theater. A very sparse audience for this introductory show, but the absent cruisers didn't miss much. Very poor comedian and very LOUD music. They have increased the size of the speakers in the theaters and cranked up the sound to a painful level. We quickly learned to bring ear plugs if we wanted to enjoy the shows. Another tilting at the slots wound up our first day.
When we woke up, and opened the balcony drapes we were greeted with calm seas and solitude. No other ships, no birds, no sea life at all. And, this would be the case for the four days that the Golden Princess sailed on to Hawaii. At first, we didn't think too much about our apparent isolation, but at times, we did wonder…..what if the ship should have an emergency? Was there anybody else out there on the wide Pacific within range to come to our aid? Luckily, we never had to find out the answer to that question.
It was easy to realize that we were heading for Hawaii—the Cruise Director, David Cole, had developed a complete program of events around the theme of Hawaii—naturalist lectures every day we were at sea, hula and lei-making lessons, even a special TV channel that had excellent videos on various aspects of the Islands, plus Hawaii-themed movies, like Blue Hawaii. We came to really appreciate Director Cole—he did an outstanding job, was a talented singer, and brought genuine enthusiasm to his role. Best Cruise Director we ever had.
We all breakfasted in the "Donatello" dining room, then Karen and Barbara tried to sign up for the lei-making class, but the long, long line discouraged us. We tried later and successfully booked our class—for a few days later in the cruise.
We went to the first port lecture, on the Big Island, expecting the usual jewelry shop recommendations, but no! Mr. Cole actually told us lots of very interesting and helpful things about our port, Hilo, and other portions of the island we might want to see. This was a refreshing change, for sure! David Cole was followed by the ship's naturalist, Carole Berk, a resident of Oahu, who had a string of degrees behind her name, but hardly looked the part of an academic. In her 60's, she was not native Hawaiian, but she had the bulk that often comes to Hawaiian ladies in their later years. Whatever her appearance, she seemed to know her Hawaiian lore, and we continued to attend her lectures while at sea. We all learned something too!
By noon today, the ship had traveled 370 miles from Los Angeles and while it was a pretty day, the air temperature was definitely on the cool side. We were still a long ways from tropical air! After lunch we tried the aft hot tubs, which seemed none too warm, but then a lot of cool air was blowing over them. Mark also tried the Lotus pool.
Mark had hauled two boxes of very nice Costco wine aboard and we had pre-dinner wine in their cabin before dinner. Barbara and Karen were the only ones interested in the theater entertainment tonight—a singer named Joni Butler. She was very good, as was indicated by the packed theater. We got about the last two seats, way at the side and near the stage.
While Mark and Karen slept in, Glenn and Barbara had breakfast in the buffet. Later we had a family council about any excursions while docked at Hilo. We decided to cancel the reserved "Waves & Waterfalls" tour ($59 each) in favor of renting a car and driving into Hilo and to a nearby beach for snorkeling. That was followed by more informative lectures: David Cole telling us all about Honolulu and Oahu, while naturalist Carol Berk filled us in on "Wonderful Whales & Delightful Dolphins."
We lunched in the dining room and our table partners told of their round-the-world cruise, which they are taking in segments. One lap to go from Singapore to the Suez Canal, which they plan to do in a year or so.
One possible drawback to a cruise with 8 "at sea" days is that the casino is available 24/7. This could get expensive! But, not so far. We tried our favorite pool—the Lotus Spa pool which is adults only and tucked into a sheltered area so that it is pleasant even if cool winds are blowing (as they were today).
This night was the first of the "formal" nights. Glenn suggested we use this opportunity for a family group photo, so we lined up with all the other people in their party clothes and were posed on the winding staircase descending into the atrium. Mark discovered (way too late) that he had brought old pants that could only be buttoned if he held his breath. But, he suffered through the long wait, declaring "This is it! No more formal nights!" As soon as the photographer finished with us, Mark dashed back to the cabin for more comfortable trousers, and we all managed to claim a couple cocktails during the "Captain's Gala Cocktail Party."
We had some time before dinner, and adjourned to the Game Room for a quick game of Yahtzee. After our "anytime dining" dinner in the Bernini Dining Room, Mark headed back to his cabin. The other three of us went to the production number called "Words and Music." Glenn and Barbara realized they have been on too many cruises, when they recognized the show from a previous cruise. Still, it was one of Princess' better productions and very enjoyable.
We never cease to be amazed at what Mark can pack into his single suitcase! Besides the two boxes of Costco wine, he also tucked in the family's Monopoly game! While perhaps not quite old enough to qualify as a "collectible" edition of Monopoly, it goes a good long way back in our history, and it was fun to reminisce about earlier games while we played it in Mark and Karen's cabin. Nothing much had changed over the years: at the beginning Glenn was unable to land on any un-owned properties, but by the end, he was the only player left—with all the property and all the money!
Back to the buffet for dinner—they have quite an extensive choice of entrees in the evening, and being a buffet it is quicker. Nice to have so many alternatives for dining.
We crossed the Tropic of Cancer this night and yes, the air is warming up a bit. Around midnight, we were treated to a lovely bright moon with its light reflecting in the clouds above and on the waves below our balcony. The in-room TV channel that displays a map of the ship's progress showed that we are now 1500 nautical miles from Los Angeles, with 500 more nautical miles before we reach the first port, Hilo, Hawaii. It's getting farther from the ship to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean as well—the maximum depth the ship crossed over today was 17, 267 ft.
Today dawned with pink-tinged clouds all around the horizon, but bright sun overhead. The air temperature is now about 74 degrees—just swell for some sunbathing around the Lotus Spa pool.
Until today, nary a sign of life in or above the ocean but on an early-morning turn around the walking track, Karen spotted a seabird as it flew alongside and across the ship. It was later identified as a juvenile Masked Booby. That was it for open ocean sea life. Would sighting that bird have been a sign to the ancient mariners that land was not too far away? We didn't have to rely on such natural clues; the ship itinerary clearly stated that we would arrive at Hilo on Monday, Dec. 15. and we had faith in that.
Barbara and Karen reported to the Bernini Dining Room at 9:30 a.m. for their orchid lei-making class. Everyone was given a long (10-inch) needle, scissors, strong, but thin white twine, twenty lovely purple and white orchids and—a lot of clear plastic drinking straws. We cut the straws into short lengths—they were the "spacers" between the flowers. The short stems on the orchids were snipped off, and we threaded our needle with sufficient twine to make the lei. Poking the needle through the front center of the flower and then through a straw length, we quite quickly created pretty leis that lasted almost until the end of the cruise. And this was even a free activity. Gee!
Proudly wearing their leis, Karen and Barbara joined Mark and Karen for today's Hawaii lectures: " Maui" and "Colorful Coral Reef Fish." This was followed by lunch, then Mark suggested we explore the "Skywalkers Lounge" which sits high, high atop the aft of the ship. A nightclub at night, it is a fine place to relax on a comfy couch with a good book during the day, if you aren't too distracted by the views of ocean, or….bikinis! Just below the lounge are two big hot tubs and lots of deck chaise lounges. On this balmy, sunny day probably the bikini-watching was more interesting than the horizon! Glenn and Barbara recalled how much they enjoyed these hot tubs on the Mediterranean cruise and all agreed we'd be back later to soak in the tubs.
Before hitting the hot tubs, some of us went to the afternoon movie WALL-E in the Princess Theater. A little visit to the casino, and then we met at the hot tubs and even tried a little shuffleboard. The now-tropical air was so pleasant and balmy, even as twilight came on, we could be comfortable playing shuffleboard in our bathing suits.
When we used the Internet Café to check on e-mail, the folks we left behind in Oregon were all complaining about the nasty, COLD weather that moved in just after we sailed from Los Angeles. Snow, freezing rain, more snow—eventually this became the winter storm that wouldn't leave and we were feeling quite smug to have escaped the worst winter in western Oregon since 1950.
Among the extra amenities we enjoyed on this trip was a $20 credit toward a bottle of wine per cabin—this was courtesy of Costco. We decided to cash in one bottle tonight while dining in the Donatello dining room. However! When the service charges, etc. were included our "free" wine actually cost $8. beyond our credit. Mark's Costco wine boxes seemed a great bargain in comparison!
As promised, very early in the morning, while still dark, we peeked out the balcony window and could see lights twinkling along a dark shoreline. As it lightened, we could watch our ship sail into Hilo harbor but NOT under sunny skies. Dark rain clouds were rolling down the slopes of Mauna Loa volcano, and it didn't look promising for our planned car tour to a snorkeling park. Well, we were in Hilo, famed as the wettest city in the USA—and it was proving that distinction at the moment. The ship's log showed that we had sailed 2,140 nautical miles from Los Angeles to Hilo.
We had a family council during breakfast, decided to cancel the rental car, and dawdle on the ship for the morning, hoping that the rain might blow away. Just loafed in our cabins, had an early lunch of pizza or hamburgers by the covered pool and headed for the free bus stop for a ride into downtown Hilo. "Sorry, the bus shuts down over the lunch hour."
So, we settled for a cab to the "Pacific Tsunami Museum." http://www.tsunami.org/visitor.html#exhibits
Besides being the wettest U.S.A. city, Hilo's other claim to fame is that it seems to be a magnet for destructive tsunamis. The city has a long history of being washed by these earthquake-generated waves and two very destructive tsunamis hit the city in the mid-20th century. As Wikipedia explains:
"April 1, 1946, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake near the Aleutian Islands created a fourteen-meter high tsunami that hit Hilo hours later, killing 160 people. In response an early warning system, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, was established to track these killer waves and provide warning. This tsunami also meant the end of the Hawaii Consolidated Railway, and instead the Hawaii Belt Road was built north of Hilo.
On May 23, 1960, another tsunami, caused by a 9.5 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Chile the previous day, claimed 61 lives allegedly due to people's failure to heed warning sirens. Low-lying bay front areas of the city on Waiākea peninsula and along Hilo Bay, previously populated, were rededicated as parks and memorials.
Glenn has some personal history connected to the 1946 tsunami. He arrived at Pearl Harbor Naval Base in the early morning darkness on April 1, 1946. After a brief night's sleep, at breakfast he read the Honolulu newspaper with its bold black headlines about the tsunami that had hit Hilo just that morning. Being a stranger to the Islands, Glenn didn't find this so unusual—perhaps tsunamis hit Hawaii all the time? He soon learned that was not so and the April Fools Day, 1946 tsunami he barely missed was deadlier than the later 1960 event.
With this background, we all found the Tsunami Museum worth the visit. Hilo boasts another acclaimed museum that we had hoped to visit—the "Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii" located on the Hilo campus of the University of Hawaii. But, this was Monday, and of course, that is the day most museums close. We were lucky even the Tsunami Museum was open!
We took a short stroll along "old" Hilo's main street, where only grassy parks adjoin the sea wall (the city is apparently resigned to the fact that it is fruitless to build structures within tsunami range). On the "high" side of the street, the buildings all appeared to be of the 1940's era. While today they are filled with cafes, and souvenir shops, their facades hold names such as "Kress" (the "dime store" that morphed into K-Mart). The Tsunami Museum was one of the few buildings to survive the 1946 earthquake—because it was the bank building and constructed of solid concrete.
We found the free bus stop and climbed aboard for what was the "scenic tour" route back to the Golden Princess. This little municipal bus is basically for the shoppers and the students, so we got good views of the big Macy's mall, Wal-Mart and the handsome campus of the University of Hawaii at Hilo.
Back aboard the ship, it was the special "ice cream hour" when complimentary ice cream is served in the buffet. At all other times the ice cream bar is happy to scoop up a cone or dish for you, but at a hefty price. (Seasoned cruisers learn a few things!) The sun was now actually peeking out a bit, and it was pleasantly warm, so we hit the hot tubs for an hour.
Hilo was a disappointment due to the soggy day, but even more disappointing was our route as we left the Big Island. In the Princess tour book, it showed our ship sailing around the south end of Hawaii, right past the lava flows that continue to pour into the sea. That was a main reason for taking the cruise—since the lava flows are difficult to reach by land, and the huge steam clouds and red lava are a spectacular sight at night we thought a cruise would be the best way to view Kilauea's eruptions. But nope, our ship left Hilo in the opposite direction, sailing around the east side.
A good show in the Theater tonight, "Caliente" which really showed off the dancers' talents. Before the show, they passed out paper leis and balloons to the audience. This turned into a game of "keep the balloons in the air" and was very colorful, as the balloons bounced up and down throughout the room. That was followed at 10 p.m. with the "Hawaiian Tropical Deck Party" including, you guessed it—more food!
What we did NOT do this day, or while the ship was in the Hawaiian Islands, was to gamble in the casino due to local Customs regulations. Probably saved us a little bit of money!
Arriving in Hilo harbor had been dark and dreary—not so as we pulled into the famous " Aloha Tower" pier where the fabled Matson Liners docked in pre-World War II Honolulu. For the last few miles, as the ship slowly glided toward the city, we were treated to a blood-red sunrise with Diamond Head and the city skyscrapers silhouetted. As the dock hands were securing the ship's mooring lines, we heard singing. Going out on the balcony, we could see a band and singer down on the dock, welcoming us to Honolulu and playing, what else? " Aloha`Oe." This was probably the greeting given to the passengers on the Matson Liners lo, those many years ago!
We were booked on an all-day excursion on this island:
"Honolulu—Polynesian Cultural Center. $129. each. 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Explore Oahu's Pali Coast, travel past pineapple fields and pay a visit to a center that preserves the customs and cultures of old Polynesia."
And, at 8:30 we left the ship, walked a short block to our waiting bus and were off on a circle route around most of Oahu. We had nice views of downtown Honolulu including the very colorful Christmas displays set up along the main drag. Some had a slight Hawaiian twist to the traditional characters, but the snowmen, with their scarves looked rather out of place in their tropical setting!
The bus wound its way higher and higher into the Koolau Mountains behind the city, finally reaching the spectacular Nuuanu Pali Lookout with much of windward Oahu spread out below us. The guidebooks say this is one of the windiest spots on the island, and it was proving that today! There were clouds scudding over the peaks and you needed to keep a firm grip on the railing at the overlook. The guidebooks also say that historians hotly debate the legend that says that in 1795, King Kamehameha I, the unifier of the Hawaiian Islands, forced thousands of his opponents to jump from the cliff to their deaths but definitely, that first step would be a very long one!
With our lungs full of fresh Hawaiian air, our bus wound down through a tunnel carved in the mountains and we emerged on to the H-1 freeway. Today, we were witness to Honolulu's answer to the traffic jams on this freeway. Our driver announced that we were just in time to watch the "zipper" at work. A moveable concrete barrier with multiple sections that give it a zipper-like appearance, the "zipper" barrier was gradually swinging over one lane, right in front of us! Very impressive and apparently it has shortened the average commute time for the local drivers.
The bus soon passed the turn-off for Pearl Harbor. Glenn gave Mark and Karen a little background on his Navy service at Pearl Harbor in 1946 and 1947. During that time, the military did a reenactment of the Japanese attack in December, 1941 and he said it was a chilling experience to watch the "Japanese" planes coming in over those mountains, flying toward Pearl Harbor.
The bus passed the big Army Schofield Barracks. Another name that is familiar because of its association with the Pearl Harbor attack and the beginning of World War II for the USA.
The tour made a stop at the Dole Pineapple Plantation, just the epitome of a "tourist trap." A large, handsome building surrounded by stunning tropical landscaping, the Plantation was first opened as a fruit stand back in the 1950's when pineapple cultivation was the dominant industry on Oahu. When Glenn and Barbara made a visit to this island in 1990 the fields for miles around the Plantation were covered with pineapple plants. But, today the only pineapple to be seen was either on sale inside the store, or growing in a tiny demonstration garden outside. Seemed very odd, to stroll through this shop where almost everything they were selling at least had a pineapple logo on it, but outside—nary a pineapple plant to be seen for miles! We spent most of our allotted time strolling through the demonstration gardens or checking out the local birds.
During the next portion of our trip, as we headed due north through these highlands, we could see acres and acres of fallow land, slowly growing up in Hawaii's versions of weeds. So, where are those Dole pineapples coming from, that are in our local grocery stores? Try the Philippines and Thailand.
Our bus driver gave us all an education on what it is like to be a resident of Hawaii, trying to stay in the middle class and stay employed. Not easy, as most of the early economic mainstays have disappeared—but the high cost of living on an island where practically everything must be shipped at least 2500 miles keeps getting higher. He said that milk now costs nine dollars a gallon!
Tourism is now a mainstay of the economy. And here we are, slipping into a global recession, if not a depression. Will the tourists still be able to afford to fly away to the Islands for a week or two?
When we got to the North Coast, our guide thought we might see some of the famous huge waves, since the island had been raked by the same big rain storm that we encountered in Hilo. But no, the waves were quite calm, and the waters near the shoreline were a muddy red-brown rather than a beautiful blue. A few "Don't enter—Flooded" signs were still evident on side streets and big puddles were everywhere. Even Paradise gets a winter storm now and then!
Our guide reeled off the current million dollar-plus prices of some of the shoreline homes as we passed them. The value must be in their location, as the houses were rather unimpressive.
At 11:45 we pulled into the entrance of the " Polynesian Cultural Center" located in the town of Laie, on the northern side of Oahu. The sun began to peep out from the clouds, and our bus driver/guide made a quick change from his bus driver uniform into his Polynesian sarong and Hawaiian shirt. Then, he was ready to lead us to the large open-air dining room where we had a good buffet lunch featuring tropical foods (but NOT poi, for which we were grateful).
This Cultural Center is a major player in the tourism industry of Hawaii. After Waikiki Beach, it is the next site usually mentioned by people who have been to Oahu. Since none of us had seen it on previous visits to the Islands, today was our opportunity to find out what it is all about. This Center is the creation of the LDS Church and they have lavished lots of money and good design on it.
Some background on the long history of the Mormon Church in Hawaii: As early as 1844, missionaries from the Mormon Church were working among the Polynesians in Tahiti and surrounding islands. Mormon missionaries arrived in the Sandwich Islands ( Hawaii) in 1850. By 1865, the LDS Church had purchased the 6,000-acre plantation that encompasses all of Laie, the Hawaiian town where a Mormon Temple, a branch of Brigham Young University and the Polynesian Cultural Center are all located. The Center has an excellent website. Their website gives a good background on why the Cultural Center exists today. http://www.polynesia.com/early-history.html
Today, for a rather stiff admission price, you can tour the grounds, visit the seven Polynesian "villages" with their demonstrations, watch Polynesian dancing, attend a luau and evening extravaganza, or view the latest film in their IMAX theater. Whew! There is so much to do and see that the Center will now give you free admission to come back for one or two more days, if your feet gave out before you saw enough the first day.
The seven major Polynesian areas of the Pacific are represented at the Center: Hawaii, Samoa, Maori New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti, the Marquesas and Tonga. After lunch we set off with our guide, who led us from one Polynesian "village" to another. At each one, there was a live demonstration of some skill, dance, music, etc. Lots of audience participation so there was a comic element in most of the shows, thanks to the hapless tourists who usually displayed no talent for drum-beating or dancing while wearing a grass skirt!
We also picked up some tidbits of knowledge. For instance, the ukulele derives from an instrument brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Portuguese sailors. After the "village" visits, we were given some free time to investigate the many palm-thatched huts containing more displays from Polynesia. A chief's hut was especially impressive. The floor and walls were covered with gorgeous "tapa" cloth.
In mid-afternoon, a colorful parade of flat-topped canoes appeared on the canal which winds through the Center. Aboard each canoe was a dance troupe in the colorful costumes of one of the seven Polynesian areas. They were accompanied by a band across from our viewing area and it was a lively show. For the most part, the dancers were indeed Polynesian in appearance, but every so often, a blond, fair-skinned dancer could be seen, enthusiastically and expertly performing dances from a land far removed from his or her own ancestors' homeland—probably Scandinavia. Apparently the Center is mostly staffed with the students from the nearby BYU campus and both Polynesians and mainland Mormon youth are employed here.
OUR feet were about to give out when it was time to return to the bus for the ride back to Honolulu and our ship. The sun had disappeared again so the waters of Kaneohe Bay were not the azure blue we remembered from an earlier visit.
Back aboard our "home" it was time for a glass of wine on Mark and Karen's balcony. Even though cloudy, it was a very pleasant temperature and nice to enjoy the tropical air. The ship did not leave Honolulu at the usual sunset hour. Instead, it remained at the pier until 10:30 p.m. A local troupe of young hula dancers came aboard and they were the evening's entertainment. They did a great job, but of course, the usual coconut "bras" for the dancers were missing!
Another early breakfast in the buffet, so we would be ready for our Kauai excursion which departed at 8:30 a.m. This was a more modest excursion than yesterday's visit to the Polynesian Center. Today, we were bussed north from our pier at "Nawiliwili" to the bank of the Wailua River. Here, we boarded a river boat for a short put-put up the still (and very muddy) river. We encountered some kayakers but otherwise had the river to ourselves. It kept threatening to rain, but really didn't. As on the Big Island yesterday, the aftereffects of the big rainstorm was very evident at the boat landing near the grotto. Apparently the boat crews had been gathering up the flotsam and jetsam of jungle plant life that was washed into the river, and it was all piled up near the Grotto dock. I think the Islands had just experienced more than the "usual" tropical rains!
The short walk to the Grotto was through a lush Hawaiian landscape with some beautiful plants and flowers—probably planted, but there were many convenient "photo ops" for flower close-ups along the path.
The Grotto is basically a tall, horseshoe-shaped lava cliff, now draped in lovely ferns—with a little creek spilling over from the top of the cliff. Not unlike some of Oregon's Cascade waterfalls with their Maidenhair ferns. From a wooden deck, we had good views of the ferns and before we left, the group got to hear the "Hawaiian Wedding Song" sung. Before the concert, Karen and I ducked out to go back and have a little more time to explore the plants along the walk. Glenn later reported that he got "married" during the song, but unfortunately, he was missing the other necessary ingredient for a wedding!
We knew that Richard and Pat were married right here at the Grotto, so that added a personal touch to the tour.
Back on our boat, we got more music from the "wedding song" singer and some musicians as we put-putted back to the waiting bus. We drove back down to where the highway crossed the Wailua River, then followed it up a lush valley (once home to taro plantations, I believe). We stopped at an overlook where we had good views of a roaring waterfall, Opaekaa Falls, full of rain water run-off. The Kauai "state bird" was strutting around the parking area, looking hopeful of handouts, but none were forthcoming. Really handsome little roosters keeping a close eye on their harems. A few doves mingled with the chickens.
When the bus dropped us off at the ship's pier, what did we see but the Wal-Mart shuttle bus! We are still amazed to see the passengers so eager to head for that rare and exotic sight—another Wal-Mart. But, there was always a line, waiting to board the bus and head for the big bargains awaiting them a few miles away.
We lunched in the buffet, then returned to our cabin where we found a gorgeous tropical flower arrangement waiting. The card tucked in it read: "Happy Anniversary and Love from Mark and Karen." Karen explained that they had the flowers delivered today so that we would have time to enjoy them. Our actual anniversary was on Dec. 22 and we would be leaving the ship on Dec. 24—not much time to enjoy them if they arrived on our anniversary. What a nice anniversary present!
We had a little rest and then it was time to follow the usual custom—head for the hot tub. Before long the rain that had threatened all day finally appeared, just as we were pulling away from our berth at "Nawiliwili." There were dramatic views of the beautiful headlands of Kauai as we pulled out to sea. We even had glimpses of some whale spouts.
Following dinner we took in the show in theater. Tonight it was the singers and dancers doing a "Motown" revue. When we returned to the cabin, there was a lovely aroma of tropical flowers from our anniversary bouquet. Mmmm, nice!
Finally! On our last day in the Islands, we awoke to clear blue skies and the promise of a fine day to go whale-watching. We had booked the 12 noon to 2 p.m. whale-watching tour, and that gave us the morning to take a little walk around Lahaina.
Apparently the ocean is very shallow around Lahaina (something that attracts the Humpback whales to this channel) and so the ship was well offshore when they stopped the engines and put down the anchor. We had no trouble getting on the tender and after an early lunch we headed for the Lahaina dock.
Things haven't changed much since the whaling ships were coming to Lahaina in the 1800's. The docks are still right in front of the town's important buildings—Pioneer Inn, the Old Lahaina Courthouse, now the Visitor Center and museum, and the multitude of new and old buildings housing everything a tourist could possibly want. We walked through the park that contains a HUGE Banyan tree—it occupies almost an entire block--checked a few shops for souvenirs, and finished up with a quick look at the Visitor Center museum.
We found the meeting spot for our excursion, also a low wall to sit on, and waited for our whale excursion boat to return from its morning run. Seemed like a LONG wait in the hot Maui sun, but it DID arrive, and we headed for the top deck once aboard. We had a small table for our foursome, and were near the bow of the ship, a prime location for whale-spotting. It turned out that whale-spotting was not the job of just the crew. We were all told what to look for (spout spray) and what to shout out if we spotted a whale (NOT "thar she blows").
We were not the only boat out whale-spotting; there was at least one other excursion boat and a few private boats. It was a bouncy ride which made whale-spotting a tad difficult. Hard to keep the binoculars up to your eyes! But, a few miles out into the channel we could see the island of Lanai quite clearly, and a few whale spouts were seen. There was a young woman providing natural history as we sailed. Among the nuggets I remember was that we were at Maui for the very beginning of the Humpback Whales' winter visit. In the past, the global humpback whale population size was about 750,000 to 2 million animals (!). The current global population is about 30 to 40 thousand. About two-thirds of the North Pacific population winters in Hawaii each year, so up to 10,000 humpback whales would soon be in Hawaii.
A few males had been spotted a week or so earlier, and that was probably what we saw today. The females and young will come a bit later. The Humpbacks spend the summer in Alaska, right along with the Pacific Coasts' Gray Whales, but unlike the Grays, who make a slow trip down the coast to their favorite lagoons in Baja California, the Humpbacks make a 2,000-mile beeline for the Hawaiian Islands. This is one of the longest migration distances of any animal species. During their stay in Hawaii, they do not feed, but rely upon stored energy. They devote most of their time to mating and giving birth to their calves.
We also learned that when the whales come up for air and then dive, they leave a "footprint" upon the ocean and indeed they did. There was a very "smooth" patch of water, the same length as the whale that had just occupied that space. The whales winter at various sites throughout the Islands, but apparently the shallow channel waters between Maui and Lanai are a comfy place for their newborns. It's a shorter trip to the surface for the babies!
We quickly learned the significance of the fact that adult humpback whales take a breath every ten to fifteen minutes, but can remain submerged for as long as forty-five minutes. A whale can cover a lot of distance between breaths, and it was a guessing game to discover just where the heck they would next surface.
We got to see a sufficient number of whales before it was time to turn around and return to port. Along the way, we had lovely vistas of Maui and its green, green hills rising up behind Lahaina. A tall smokestack rose above the town—a remnant of the sugar cane industry that used to be the economic engine of the island. Now, sugar production has gone off to Southeast Asia, and we tourists are the economic engine!
We passed the Golden Princess on the way back. It gleamed in the afternoon sunlight.
Once off the excursion boat, we walked over to the tender dock and were back on the ship in a short time. Around 6:30 p.m. the ship left Lahaina, sailed along the eastern coast of Maui, then set a course for Ensenada, 2,249 nautical miles away!
After dinner, we took in the "Roaring 20's show in the "Vista Lounge" which was o.k., if not great. Later, Glenn and Barbara had to check out the casino which re-opened at 9 p.m.
Website for Lahaina: http://www.bestofmauiguide.com/Lahaina.html
The first day of the return “at sea” portion. The rocking and rolling that started as we left Maui last night continued all day. The ship's log described the wind as "Force 6" and the seas as " Moderate Seas with a moderate east/southeasterly swell." I think that meant that there was a strong wind, coming from the eastern Pacific and the ship was sailing smack into it. It finally got to Barb, who resorted to a couple Dramamine pills to quell the queasiness.
We breakfasted in the Donatello dining room, then after a brief visit to the casino, went to a lecture on the flora of Hawaii. Very meaningful to us, since Karen and Mark had a beautiful tropical flower anniversary arrangement delivered to our room a few days earlier.
We made a stop at the Internet Café and checked the e-mail. The Salemites were complaining about snow and cold. Not our problem here! The winds were strong, but warm. Barb read in the afternoon and tried to ignore the rocking and rolling of the ship. With the casino open once again, Karen decided to try the "Lowball" slot tournament this afternoon. Players tap the "Play" button 100 times and hope for the lowest score instead of the highest. Karen managed to score pretty low, but not low enough to win anything.
We all had a late afternoon soak in the aft hot tubs where we met a nice young couple from Montreal whose English is barely understandable. Like Mark, the husband has traveled a lot, and he was fun to chat with. The wife mostly smiled and looked very pretty in her bikini!
Barb and Glenn skipped the evening show, a musical review (but caught it the next night). Barbara's Dramamine left her very sleepy so she tucked in early. Not feeling sleepy, Glenn whiled away some time in the casino.
Day 11, December 20, 2008 Saturday--At Sea
The Pacific Ocean was a bit more "pacific" in morning, but then the winds picked up to Force 5 (a "fresh breeze" according to the ship's log) in the afternoon and the gentle rocking was back again. Only seems to bother Barbara.
Glenn and Barbara slept in, meeting Mark and Karen at 8:30 for breakfast in the buffet.
Barb and Karen used the Internet to set up a thank you gift for Sharman and Carl Graham who are chauffeuring us to and from PDX. We ordered a 6-month subscription to Netflix, knowing they are both movie buffs.
The ship is now offering some incentives to use the Internet Café. By using 20 minutes of time today, we should get a ten-minute bonus. At the price of Internet service (40 cents per minute), even 10 minutes is not insignificant. One of the benefits of being "frequent cruisers" with Princess is that we have now attained "Platinum" level status and that entitles us each to $100. of free Internet time. Still, we'll take any extra time they offer! The satellite Internet connection is often down, probably due to the fact that we are so far from land, and maybe even from the satellites. And many spendy minutes can tick by while waiting for e-mails to go through or be received.
Barbara and Karen went to the “Skywalkers” lounge and found a comfy nook with a great ocean view. We read our respective books: South Pacific for Karen, and the Clive Cussler page-turner about Genghis Khan for Barb. It was hard to concentrate as the Bible Study group loudly held forth nearby—my agnostic inclinations made it hard not to interrupt them and say “It’s a myth!”
Mark did a second wash with Barb sneaking in a few items as well. Later, we took in the "International” buffet by the Calypso pool. Just so-so. Then, up to the aft hot tubs but a COLD, strong wind was blowing. The hot tubs were not so hot, but still pleasant—until we had to get out! At the hot tub, we chatted with a man from Depoe Bay, Oregon—small world. He was worried about getting home over the Coast Range if it’s icy. He rolled his truck on an icy stretch near Otis last year, so he’s justified in his worries.
Tonight was our Captain’s party for the Captain’s Circle members. There are so many Captain's Circle members on this cruise, they had to hold four parties—ours was the fourth and appeared to be mostly those from our Caribe deck. Probably we all got upgraded from other cabin categories! The ship’s captain had a good sense of humor and made his speech lively. A nice variety of cocktails—thanks, Captain!
We ordered room service for dinner: sandwich and chips for Glenn, chef’s salad for Barb with cookies and “flan” for dessert. Mark and Karen fended for themselves.
The casino caught us twice—in the morning and again after the evening shows. Not profitable for any of us.
The Princess Theater show tonight was a musical revue of movie tunes, followed by the magician and a comic. Barb liked the comic best.
There was a beautiful surprise card from Mark and Karen, waiting in our cabin, inviting us to dinner in the special “Desert Rose” dining room on our anniversary, two days away. A very appropriate card too--entitled "Wedding Feast" and featured a colorful painting of a Hispanic wedding celebration by John Swanson, a noted Los Angeles artist. More celebrating!
We got up too late for the dining room, so we all met about 9:15 in the buffet. Karen and Barb retreated to the Skywalkers Lounge to read, but had to concentrate hard to overlook the prayer meeting going on at the same place. Apparently they meet every "at sea" day. Supposedly it is a “Bible study” group but to us, it sounded like one long haranguing preaching session by one man.
After lunch (the fruit buffet by the Calypso pool) we decided to try the aft hot tubs in early afternoon. From the Skywalker windows it looked nice with people sunbathing nearby. But, by the time we got there the wind was really strong, all the sunbathers had disappeared, and only one other hardy soul (the Depoe Bay, OR gentleman) was in the tub. OK in the water, BRRR! when we got out. The ship's log shows the temperatures dropping daily from the high of 30.8 Centigrade in Maui. Today it was only 17.6 Centigrade.
Glenn, Barb and Karen stopped by the "Aces" game room for a quick game of Scrabble before meeting Mark for the lecture on “Life at Sea, What’s It Really Like?” with that Renaissance Man, Cruise Director, David Cole. Very interesting—we learned that Deck 4 has an aisle down the center, called the “M-1” for England’s main freeway. The ship's crew has their own bank, Internet café, etc on that level. Oh yes, and that’s where the magician’s Macaw has his own condo cage! The parrot is a favorite with the crew, and he can’t leave with the magician because of animal quarantine laws. The magician has been on the ship for 8 years, coming and going, but “Bolero” stays put. Funny.
Tonight we had a wine and cheese party in our cabin. Mark’s gift of boxed wine is about gone, but still good. Dinner at 7, with our dinner partners, an English couple from Reading, where Mark stayed a night last year. Glenn and Barb went to the main show, which consisted of a quick dance by the dancers and then some amazing music from a harmonica virtuoso named Bernie Fields. Mr. Fields regularly performs with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra which tells you that he's no slouch. As he said, “And to think this came out of a Cracker Jack box.”
Bernie Fields was the 8:45 p.m. show. Bernie was immediately followed (at 10:15 p.m.) by the International Crew Show. We had enjoyed the crew shows on other cruises, but this was much more polished than on other ships. An Argentinean and Mexican did a great tango, while two dancers did fancy ballet moves (and they are engaged to marry next year). More casino time and Barb actually gained 3 bucks—if only temporarily.
Calmer seas during the night, thank heavens.
Happy 58th Anniversary, Glenn and Barbara! As if to make it “our” day, the seas were calm when we woke up. It was still breezy on the balcony, but no longer in the “gale” category. We found three “Happy Anniversary” balloons taped above our cabin door. They remembered!
Breakfast in the Donatello dining room—all of us ordering the Eggs Benedict breakfast special. It was a busy day for lectures. First, Mark and Barb opted to attend the “Culinary Demonstration by the head chef in the theater, then some two hundred of us left the Theater and trooped down two decks to the back of the Bernini Dining Room on Deck 5. Here we entered the gleaming stainless steel kitchens (known as "galleys" when at sea) and had a quick tour. The kitchen staff had set up displays at several points, showing off their baking skills, the teas and coffees we are drinking, and the biggest gingerbread house ever! Also a pasta rendering of the Mayan pyramid of Chichen Itza. Go figure! The head chef was busy signing copies of his cookbook. His cooking demonstration had been items from his book: pasta, gnocchi with mushroom sauce and tiramisu dessert. The next lecture, back in the Princess Theater, was another by the Hawaiian naturalist, Carole Berk. This time, it was on the birds of Hawaii, but Karen found Carole’s depth of knowledge on birds rather shallow.
We all met up for lunch by the Calypso Pool for another “specialty” buffet—this time it was “pastry” and for the most part they weren’t all that good. Karen and Barb signed up for the slot tournament before lunch using a “2-fer” with two entries for $30. Barb had to play both tickets and she flunked! Didn’t make the board, and later, she didn’t make the wild card drawing either. Bah humbug! On to Lecture No. 3—on how they navigate on the Golden Princess. Lots of good info from a handsome Italian officer who barely speaks English. Luckily, most of his Power Point slides repeated what he had said.
There was a short break in the ship's activities, but at 4:45 p.m. it was time for the “Golden Hour,” a reception for us and all the other couples on board who have been married at least 50 years. And they held this on our anniversary! Gee! How thoughtful.
We invited Mark and Karen to join us at the “Golden” party, and they were the youngest there—we may have been the second-youngest there! Any aspirations for being the longest-married couple quickly dissipated, as more and more 60+ anniversaries couples kept pouring in! Big turnout, and mostly it was one small glass of champagne, a quick comparison of longest-married (62 years won) and some dancing, but Barb declined Glenn’s invitation to dance, as she was wearing her joggers!
Dinner tonight was in the “Desert Rose” specialty dining room, as guests of Mark and Karen. We arrived at 7 p.m., just missing the Captain’s last cocktail party, but having had a toast in our cabin, we didn’t miss one more drink—and there was the second free bottle of wine coupon to cash in with tonight’s dinner. Well, “almost” free, as we were allowed twenty dollars and the cheapest wine on the list was more expensive than that. Glenn and Barbara also let the ship photographer have another chance to take their picture, in their “formal” attire. Later, we cashed in our free 8 x 10 photo coupons for one taken this night, plus the group portrait done on the first formal night.
The ship was now doing less rocking and rolling, so everyone enjoyed an excellent dinner. This was the ship's steakhouse, so juicy red steaks were displayed for our selection. Mark tried the filet mignon, and described it as excellent and SO tender. Glenn, Barb and Karen went for the rib eye steak, very tasty, but more than Barb or Glenn could finish, maybe because of the super appetizers (HUGE shrimp) and Caesar salad and clam chowder in big bread “bowl” that preceded the red meat. Followed, of course, by a nice dessert and our own anniversary cake, delivered by the waiters, and included was the traditional serenade, with a heavily Italian accent.
A lovely meal, definitely the best of the cruise, or most any other time. Glenn and Barb took in a dance and song revue, "Motor City," in the Vista Lounge—very loud, very colorful, but even so, we kept falling asleep after all that food and wine! Certainly, we well and truly celebrated this 58th anniversary, with the help of Mark and Karen.
The final event of this eventful day was the "Champagne Waterfall" which kicked off about midnight. Between the champagne, the music and the general festive feeling of the last "formal" evening, the Atrium was really rocking.
The last full day of the cruise and we had reminders of that in the baggage tags that arrived, so we could get those suitcases packed up and handed over to the crew this evening.
The skies were overcast in the morning, but as we got closer to Ensenada they broke up a bit and we had nice bright sun breaks. We got the packing chore pretty much out of the way so we could relax and enjoy this last day. We had debated doing an excursion here, but it wasn't that long ago (Dec. 2005) that we had been in Ensenada on another cruise. We had covered the local wineries and "La Bufadora," the spouting horn at the sea coast south of Ensenada. None of the other excursions seemed worth the money so we stayed aboard for the seven hours the Golden Princess was in Mexico.
We knew we must be approaching land when, after four days of nothing but "dead" ocean, we started to see birds. Not just SEE them, but about 9:30 in the morning, one of them, a Storm Petrel, took shelter on Karen and Mark's balcony! Birds seem to seek us out on cruise ships! The Petrel looked either very tired, or sick. It made no attempt to fly away when we curiously gathered around it. Karen devised a little "nest" for it from bath towels and she asked the cabin steward to please leave it alone when he was in the room. Everyone had no problem getting a picture of the Petrel.
After lunch, we donned swimsuits for the last time on this cruise, and from the comfort of the hot tub, we enjoyed watching the ship's approach to Ensenada, with its "guardian" islands at the entrance to the beautiful Todos Santos Bay. Close to the pier, we passed by a trio of rusting, half-sunk ships which are now the property of a group of very vocal sea lions.
For our last "attitude adjustment" hour, we gathered on Glenn and Barbara's deck, sharing the last squeezings from the wine boxes, supplemented by the last of the beer, crackers and cheeses. Word got out to the sea gulls that we were having a party, and a couple of them joined us on the balcony railing, looking hopeful. Our parting gift from Mother Nature was a fiery, spectacular sunset. How did She know we needed a good sunset photo as the finale to the photo album?
After dinner, we made it an early night, knowing that tomorrow would be a tough day. Going home, especially by air, always is! (Besides, the casino was now closed.) We set our suitcases outside the cabin around dinner time and they were quickly whisked away.
The Golden Princess must have zipped right up the coast from Ensenada. By 6 a.m. she was gliding up the harbor channel and was all tied up at Berth 93 by 7 a.m. The ship's log showed we had traveled 4,995 nautical miles, equivalent to 5,744 miles on its round-trip, two-week cruise to Hawaii. I wonder how many miles the four of us walked—between our cabins positioned forward and aft, plus the trips to the dining rooms, and to the shows, and to the casino…..
At 7 a.m., as the ship was docking, we were required to be out of our cabins and therefore we headed to the Donatello dining room and a leisurely breakfast. The dining room is a much better choice than the overcrowded buffet on disembarkation days. Shed of our big suitcases, we had only our carry-on luggage to handle. After breakfast, we took advantage of our Platinum status to wait for departure in the Bernini dining room which was reserved for such as us. There were beverages and pastries to help us while away the time. Our numbers were called about 9:30 a.m. and by 10 a.m. we had collected our luggage and boarded the bus for a ride along L.A.'s freeways back to LAX.
Glenn, Barbara and Karen headed for the Southwest Air terminal to wait for their 2:30 flight to San Jose and final flight to PDX. We said bye-bye to Mark, who had wisely booked himself out of Los Angeles on Christmas Day which was bound to be more peaceful. He caught the shuttle to the Hilton Airport hotel for his overnight stay.
The SWA lounge was a zoo—delayed flights were constantly being announced, or worse yet, canceled. We had some doubts about our own flight, but to our surprise and relief it was almost on time. All was cloudy on the flights north and we were beginning to pay serious attention to the weather reports from the Northwest. They were NOT good. An hour's wait in San Jose for our next flight and by 7 p.m. we were approaching the Portland airport—in a snowstorm! Looking down at the ground, all was a blanket of white. It took the pilot the full length of the runway to get the plane down to taxi speed, but he did a good job.
When we got to the Baggage Area we found this huge room crammed with unclaimed luggage! The suitcases were stacked four-high and they were everywhere. Yes, this long storm had obviously wreaked havoc with many travelers' plans. Luckily, our bags had dutifully followed us from Los Angeles and we wouldn't have to come back for them another day.
The original plan was to call Karen's friends, who would come out to the airport, pick us up in their four-wheel drive Suburu Forester, and drop us off at Karen's home. Then, on Christmas Day we would drive back to Avamere in the Buick.
This was not to be! We quickly found out that Karl and Sharman were pretty much stuck at their condo in Oregon City—even their Forester couldn't get down their driveway, let alone drive to the Portland Airport. We hurriedly told them that no way should they try this hazardous trip tonight. We called the nearby Comfort Suites and yes, they had a nice room for us and it was dirt cheap too. Merry Christmas! Their van soon arrived, and deposited us at the motel entrance which had a big sign in the door window: "Danger! Falling ice! Please stay off the sidewalks!" We gingerly walked inside, and gratefully dropped the suitcases in our comfy room.
After getting off the plane, we had made a stop at Wendy's, where we picked up some "to go" items since it was now well past our usual dinner time—[Yeah! Where was the "anytime dining" room?] Now ensconced in our motel room, we had our Christmas Eve dinner, courtesy of Wendy's and reheated in the room's microwave.
After a good night's sleep, we got in touch with Sharon and Karl who said that the plows were now working on the roads and Karl thought he could get in to the motel. He showed up about 10:45 and we headed for Oregon City on the reasonably-clear I-205. One look at the un-plowed side streets as we drove through Oregon City told us that our Buick was NOT going to be driving us back to Keizer today. So, thinking ahead, Karen asked Karl to stop at a nearby grocery store for such items as milk, eggs and bread. The grocery was locked up tight—it WAS Christmas Day, after all. But, a nearby "mini-market" was open and Karen managed to get the last 6 unbroken eggs and some milk—but no bread was to be had.
All the roads to Karen's house were totally unplowed, just a few ruts where brave folks had driven through, but Carl's Suburu Forester got through--a bit bumpy driving over the other frozen ruts, but he got us there. The Buick had stayed inside Karen's garage, all snow-free, but Karen's poor Suburu had a foot-high "crown" of layered snow and ice on its roof. Yessir! They had the winter storm to end all winter storms while we were enjoying tropical temperatures. When we checked in with Betty later that day she said that there had been 2 weeks of unbroken cold and snow--ever since we left. Obviously, we came back too soon!
Karen now had two unplanned house guests. Luckily, her area had not lost power (many, including Betty did) so the house was comfy, and her cat-sitter either stayed at Karen's or had managed to struggle over to her home to make sure the kitties were fed. Karen quickly set about plucking things out of her refrigerator and freezer and got a batch of bread dough ready to bake. By evening, she put a beautiful Christmas dinner on the table. No, no turkey or ham, but good homemade soup accompanied by FRESH-BAKED bread, followed by Apple Crisp. Mmmm, food for the Gods!
And, how about Mark? Well, he said he had a pleasant flight home, on Christmas Day. In fact, he got an earlier flight and was back at his condo about 4:30 p.m. Austin was enjoying 70-degree weather...why, almost like Hawaii!
Western Oregon stayed in the deep freeze for one more day. We whiled away the "snowbound" days with TV, the computer, jigsaw puzzles and cat-petting. Very cozy. Finally on Friday night a warm rain started. Oregonians may gripe about the rain, but everyone was delighted to see warm rain drops instead of snow and sleet!
Saturday morning we could see the snow had melted way down in the cul de sac and Glenn declared that the low-clearance Buick should be able to navigate the roads. We thanked Karen for her "emergency" hospitality and drove away. The city had been busy scraping away what remained of the snow, and as soon as we got to the main streets it was clear.
As we drove south toward Keizer we could see that the snow at the side of the freeway was diminishing. It turned out that the storm had been much nastier to the north; south of Salem they had almost no snow during the whole two weeks. Closer to Hawaii, I guess!
Our apartment had weathered the storm just fine, but the geraniums on the deck were definitely frozen. We were welcomed back by our friends and neighbors at dinner, and slipped smoothly back into our usual routine.
It was a relaxing and enjoyable cruise, and fun to share it with Mark and Karen. However, the snowbound homecoming was certainly different from any other past trip!
Barbara Halliday,
December 30, 2008
Keizer Oregon
Hopeful Seagull at our cabin deck party. Sunset at Ensenada, Dec. 23, 2008
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