We were warmly greeted at the port of Corinto by shy, pretty girls in native dress and a marimba band with guitar, güiro, a Latin merengue rasp-like percussion instrument, and guitarilla, a small guitar like a mandolin, playing for our pleasure and their hope of monetary offerings. With a population of about 16,000, the small…
Continue reading →Like it’s national bird and symbol of freedom, the dramatic and sacred Resplendent Quetzal, the mystical bird of the Mayans with its iridescent plumage, Guatemala has its own splendor. It has a wide diversity of landscape from humid highlands, tropical jungles, rainforests, volcano-guarded mountains and spectacular ancient ruins, all in a country about the size…
Continue reading →Huatulco is a tourist development in my favorite Mexican state of Oaxaca, where I spent several extended visits much earlier in my life. We docked at Santa Cruz Port, a favorite with the crew for it’s easy access to the beach of the same name, located right next to the pier with cafes and souvenir…
Continue reading →The sun was shining on “America’s Finest City”, as San Diego is fondly referred to, when we approached its port, as if the city was flaunting it’s own reputation for its glorious and mild year-round climate. San Diego is also ranked as the fifth best place to live in the United States, the fifth wealthiest…
Continue reading →With just 17 days until the end of our voyage, we are now on the last leg. So, it is with a lot of excitement, and a bit of melancholy, that I had been anticipating our dear friends (Tom, Charmaine, Jack, and Linda) joining the ship to cruise with us from L.A. to Miami, a…
Continue reading →Three captains will have commanded our ship as, in the Latin terminology of old Rome, “Magister Navis” or Master of the Sea, before our voyage ends. And we have had the privilege to dine at least once with each, and establish a casual acquaintance. With Oceania, their work contracts are a rotation of about two…
Continue reading →I love sea days. I love the (mostly) gentle sway of the ship, the melting of blue from sky to sea, the feeling of being at home on the ocean, the mystery of its depth, the water slapping against the hull, the misting spray, birds roosting on the jackstaff, dolphins arching in the ship’s wake….
Continue reading →When we visited Kauai many years ago, the “Garden Island”, I learned, was rich in the natural beauty of velvet chartreuse cliffs, jagged emerald green mountains, cascading waterfalls, deep, narrow valleys, and sheltered beaches, with much of it inaccessible by land. The few towns are situated on the coasts, separated by long, winding roads. We…
Continue reading →I remembered Lahaina fondly from years ago when Dean and I rented a condo on the beach in Maui for a week or so, and Lahaina then was a loose, carefree, hippie town with beer and seafood restaurants, galleries with local art, a quaint main street, and lots of t-shirt shops. It hasn’t changed too…
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