Day 2 - Sailing Finally

Our day, January 6, dawned pretty early considering our travel day, Wednesday, was about 22 hours long! Carol and I, who by the way have never before shared a cabin, fell into sync. We both slept restlessly, woke early, struggled to get enough saliva into the tube since you cannot drink water before the test or even brush your teeth! Once we were dressed and ready to begin our trip in earnest we made our way back to the World Cafe buffet for breakfast. At the entrance we scanned our keys, centered our faces in the circle of the welcoming screen, and had our temperatures recorded for the day. One of my favorite things on a cruise is all the fresh fruit and fruit salads at every meal. At home I am too lazy to do all the necessary prep. I take full advantage and you will probably see lots of pictures of mouth wateringly exceptional Viking cuisine in the following pages.

Each evening, with turn-down service, we receive a printed copy of the next Viking Daily. When we return to the cabin to tuck in for the night we browse the activities and make a note of where we don't want to miss. There are some 15 or so guest lecturers and class leaders on hoard. The Archeologist informs on the history of the South Pacific Islanders. An Astronomer talks about navigation by the stars and the role of planets in the history of the cosmos.  The Botonist/Geologist, ironically named Barry Rock, will help us explore the lay of the land, the creations of the islands and beauty of the flora.  We will have the opportunity to Return to Challenger Deep with Dr. Kelly Walsh. 

My favorite speaker is Russell Lee who on this first day gave an exccellent presentation on South Pacific - the History Behind the Musical.  It was so very great to know where the story comes from and how it was manipulated to tell of two love affairs with opposite takes on racisim and classism.  And yet we all can hum along and the words  leap from our brains to our lips! I look forward to taking a Creative Writing class with him.  His wife is teaching Felting but I think I will pass on that.  Don't need to learn bridge either!

Tonight the 'big show' was the introduction of the ship officers and the various speakers and teachers.  A few songs from the very talented entertainers.  On Viking the shows are not as flashy as say on Carnival or Royal.  There are four vocalist/dancers and four band members but the show they put on is first class.  There are also "resident musicians" and these include a classical guitaristy, a couple vioinists, a man and a lady singer, and two pianists.  They paly at thing like Munch Moments, High Tea, in the Atrium or the lounge calle Torshavn for late night entertainment and dancing.  Everything is low key.

Viking Cruise Line owner, Torstein Hagen, likes to say, "Viking is the thinking man's cruise."  In the vernacular on board that becomes we are thinkers not drinkers!

At Last Real Cruise day!

Seven AM on the 7th dawned as the sun emerged from the low cloud bank to the East.  Sunlight skipped across the waves to of all places our bathroom window!  How I wish my laptop was working so I could share the joy of peace and calm and hopefulness that gave me.  More that two years since I was last on a cruise ship and the feeling is overwhelmingly one of rightfulness.  The world is returning to the place it should be. (You may get a slew of photos all at one time which I will label for us to enjoy together!

Today our 'schedule' found us in the Living Roomat the bar for an early breakfast  (coffe, tea, sweet rolls) so we could get a good seat in the Star Theater for Mr. Lee's second talk, "Mutiny on the Bounty - The Story Behing the Story."  Did you know that the unbeloved Captain Bligh and his nemisis, Christian Fletcher, were best friends?  Fletcher was on the ship at Bligh's invitation.  He was promoted on board and made Master even though he was only 17 at the time!  The men who urged him to take control of the Bounty ended up being the ones who escaped the wrath of the British Naval Authorities.  I will have to rewatch the movie to see how much of my newly acquired insight is demonstrated on screen.  This talk, that except for the dynamism of the speaker I would have skipped, fascinated me!

We skipped Munch Moments to learn from Dr. Kenyon about "Corals, and Coral Reefs - Colorful Gardens of the Sea."  I guess I didn't pay good attention in high school because I never knew that the color of the coral comes from the kind of algae living in it's thousands of tubes on the surface of the skeletal form.  Mass bleaching is wiping out coral reefs around the globe.  Oh, and did you know, that Coral is mostly found on only the East coast of a continent?  That explains why the Caribbean Sea is the best, close by dive site.  Carol and I scheduled a snorkel day in the lagoon of Bora Bora.  Which I also didn't know isn't even an island but an atoll!

Tonight we had dinner in Manfredi's, the Italian Restaurant.  On Viking the 'specialty restaurants' are included and I couldn't wait to dine here again.  Veal Scallopine Limone is a mouth watering delight that this time I paired with Pappardelle Limone and Pinot Grigio.  I chose a Zabaglione with fresh blackberries, strawberries, and raspeberries floating in the softly whipped custard.

After savoring the excellent, friendly service of our leisurely meal in the quietly elegant, softly lit, distinctive atmosphere of Manfredi's we moved to the opposite end of Deck 2 to complete our first day of real cruising in more than two years!  "The ABBA Songbook " was so well done by Dan and his team of entertainers.  They really took on the energy and personality of the originals.  The Star Theater is equipped with a full stage LED screen sytem that so beautifully integrates the performers with scenery.  It gives great depth perception to the stationary band and enhances the movement of the singers.  Of course, the audience sang and clapped along at all the right moments.  I think most of my fellow passengers have been on Viking Ocean before.  They know what to expect and and are never disappointed.  No one has made a four week journey to the South Pacific their first try at cruising and cruising in subdued style! 

We Did!

Wednesday morning, January 5, 2022 our sailing life returned to the New Near Normal! Carol in Orlando and I in Powder Springs rose in seeming unison to make our way to the airport.  My friend Angie happens to also do airport runs.  Angie arrived early but I had forgotten to turn off the overnight Do Not Disturb on my phone.  I didn't know she was in my driveway ten minutes ahead of my 5:30 AM scheduled time.  The drive was quick and easy since not many people are on the road at that time even out in the boondocks where I live. 

 Angie dropped me right at the TSA Pre-Check entrance to the Delta terminal.  I checked my bag at the street checkin and Wally fixed the issue with Delta not recognizing the credit card as one allowing for free service.  Bag checked for free - done!  Inside I asked the lady at the TSA line if I coud use it although it wasn't marked on my ticket.  Even though I had my Global Entry card with me she directed me to the Agent Assist line where, after a short wait, Gloria reissued my corrected boarding pass. The rest was easy and glitch-free. After arriving at the airport about 20 after 6 I was seated at the Gate A25 by 7:00 AM. 

 Nice people surrounded me, one lady gave me the book she had just finished after we chatted about what we liked to read. Another approached with a Cat-in-a-Bag and quickly moved to another bank of chairs when someone said they were allergic.  A couple from Hawaii were returning home from a holiday vacation in North Carolina where he put his carpentry skills to good use doing some repairs around his brother's home.  Why wouldn't a quick comraderie form? After all, we were all beginning a journey to somewhere we wanted to be - sunny California or even better Hawaii.

  The time passed quickly and boarding began just before 8. Taking my window seat in row 15, I quickly arranged my carry on for comfort and easy access.  The aisle seat was taken by a pleasant man who was ready to entertain himself on the nearly five hour flight with his video game controller linked to the back - of - the - seat monitor.  For the middle seat came a very nice young man of 19 who was a welder, like his Dad and Grandfather before him.  Since he was from Thomasville I asked it that was near Cairo and if he knew of the TV show about the Plath family.  Yes he did and was a friend of one of the sons.  This nice kid must have weighed at least 300 pounds!  Middle seat!  Domestic flight.  He never attempted the seat belt.  He quickly fell asleep and his giant girth spilled across me, pretty much pinning my left arm to the seat for the rest of the flight!  But a nice kid.  I wish him luck. 

 LAX was busy as the hour was now 10:30 AM.  The crowd swept me along to baggage claim.  I was surprised my suitcase was one of the first off despite being perhaps one of the first loaded in Atlanta.  While at the carrousel I met two fellow Viking cruisers.  We had all dutifully attached our bright red circle stickers to identify ourselves to the Meet and Greet folks.  It was a strange thing to walk through a tunnel area from our plane to our luggage and then go outside and walk back to the original terminal to meet the bus.  Janice, the greeter, called the driver when we were in place and the bus quickly arrived.  It stopped at two more areas for more passengers and off we went to The Port of Los Angeles.  Sunny skies made for a promising start ot our trip.  Light traffic soon had us at Pier 92 after driving past the Battleship Iowa permanently resting in the warm California sun.

I turned my suitcase and roll - aboard over to the porter and completed another health questionaire, fourth one for this trip.  My temperature was taken, another health questionaire had to be completed and then check-in was easy. Along with my key-card I was given a red lanyard with a white tracker to wear.  It must be popullar jewelry because evryone on board is wearing one!  I actually keep mine in my pocket.  It is part of the Health and Safety protocol, together with a daily morning spit test!  My first test was waiting as soon as I got to our Stateroom 6098.  Carol and the test tube were both waiting for me! We figured out how to do yet another health questionaire on the TV and spit in the tube.  Sebastian, our steward, took the sealed tube to the onboard lab.  All passengers were confined to their cabins for up to five or six hours until negative results were reported.  We unpacked, caught up on our lives, and scheduled our shore excursions using the interactive living room television. Our first stop upon being sprung was World Cafe! Our evening was an uneventfully slow conversation of catching up - and planning -while we reacquainted ourseoves with one of our favorite places - a cruuise ship, and one of our favorites of those, Viking, this time the Orion! (Currently I am unable to attach photos but will do so when I have resolved the issue. In the meantime hear is a video link you may enjoy.)

+ or - ?

 

 Yea! Carol COVID tested negative after a day long wait in line and I got my negative results about an hour after my 15 minute wait in my car at Walgreens!  I was lucky (or smart) enough to choose a time right at the end of their lunch break and then went a little early.  Carol didn't have the option to get an appointment where she lives.

Our vacation of a lifetime is full steam ahead...at least until the next test before boarding the luxurious Viking ORION!  Then they will be stuck with us for at least 9 days as we won't reach our first port which is in the Marquesas until then!

And so to quote Sweeney Todd, "Hello old friend!" 

I took a leap of faith and packed over the weekend so I am ready to roll (aboard)!  Carol and I will meet, probably at LAX as our arrival times are pretty close together. So barring flight cancellations due to short staffing (tired of hearing that excuse everywhere I go) or icy runways we will be on our way in less than 48 hours!

Will We or Won't We??

 COVID 19 is again trying desperately to keep me from enjoying a "trip of a lifetime!"  Today, 6 days before we are set to sail, the CDC declared most cruise ships to be "yellow."  This is just one step away from being told to cease and desist from sailing.  This means cases are above acceptable numbers on specific ships and the Viking Orion is one of them.  I am not sure what the acceptable number is.  I did read that in the case of the Orion, carrying a fully vaccinated group of passengers and crew, had asymptomatic cases despite one of the stiffest protocols afloat!  To me the idea that the omicron variant is mostly asymptomatic. or mild cold-like symptoms in others of the vaccinated, is significant evidence that "herd immunity" is being very effective.

I do know that the health safety standards at Viking and high tech full onboard lab the daily testing state of the art.  I have confidence for my personal safety and that of my roommate, Carol, I hope if we do have a brief episode of illness it won't be on one of our port days - there are so few for such a long trip!

Sailing Again Soon

 

 I should have posted this months ago!...But life intervened. (Actually, perhaps I did post this recently but wasn't logged in properly because of my long absence! Please bear with me!)

It is official! Our Viking cruise that was first booked for February of 2020 was the one where we gave up our cabin in exchange for a fabulous upgrade to an Explorer Suite with an aft wrap-around balcony. That was rescheduled at the time for a sailing in July of last year to enjoy the upgrade, no issue there.

I don't need to tell you what happened to that voyage to the Land of the Midnight Sun! We again rescheduled, after much discussion with Viking to maintain our upgrade, for July of this year. The Viking Star was totally refitted with a complete lab to meet daily testing requirements. The UV robots were onboard and the temperature cameras were in place. My flights were confirmed and then ---the next day---all June and July cruises were cancelled by Viking if they included multiple countries! Bye bye long awaited and greatly anticipated return to the high seas.

We have confirmation today that we will sail in July of 2023 on the brand new Viking Venus and the Midnight Sun will be shining! Why not in 2022 you ask? All the suites, at any level, are sold out! And that even before this year's cancellations!

My conclusion is that my friends and I are not the only ones anxious to get back to travel and meeting new friends and being pampered on a luxury cruise ship by the finest crew possible. All while enjoying the new experiences of exploring our world: it's history, it's cuisine, and, most importantly meeting its people!

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Next up is the cruise my friend Carol and I booked for January of '22.  It also involved lots of booking and cancelling, but this time from another cruise line.  Just confirmed - as much as anything can be in this 'current climate', that will be sailing as expected on January 5.  Round trip from Los Angeles to the long desired South Pacific!  We had been waiting for an itinerary confirmation of changes.  Hawaii is out - extra days in Tahiti, Bora Bora, and Rarotonga are replacing those stops.  Long week of sailing at the beginning and end to cover the distance but bonus of the South Pacific feeling.  And sea days on the new Viking Orion should be excellent.  No complaints with the shipboard experience I am sure.  Our suite accommodations should be as fantastic as the much anticipated ones that Ruth and I have awaited.

It will be a little challenging packing, getting ready, meeting the testing obligations during the already busy Christmas holidays.  Add in that I will be ushering many, many Atlanta Ballet Nutcracker performances and hosting an on-again off-again family Christmas Party.  Fingers crossed you will be hearing from me often in the next few weeks!

 

Please choose to follow me so when everything is working right you don't miss a moment of the experience!

Norway Awaits!

Tomorrow we were all set to fly into the Norway of endless night and bright Northern Lights.  But, less than a week ago we gave up our basic cabin on the Viking Star and are now anticipating enjoying the Land of the Midnight Sun instead!

Viking sent us an invitation to cancel this year's trip in favor of going on a similar itinerary next March, not quite so much darkness. A nice cabin upgrade to a Junior Penthouse Suite was offered.  The story was that this year's trip was overbooked.  Yes, so many dream of the "rosy - fingered - tipped Aurora" than Viking was willing to offered incentives to make those spaces available.

Ruth and I chose rather to not wait until next year.  We booked this trip more than a year ago and what was to say that next March the story would be the same.  Also, the complementary upgrade offered is stunning.  A full suite on the newer Viking Jupiter plus cash-back.  Only the owner's suite features more amenities than our aft Explorer Suite! Almost 1,000 square feet if you include the wrap around balcony, the suite is approximately the size of my home in Chicago in which I raised 5 children. Having this suite includes so many extras.  Seems simple but I can't wait to soak in my bathtub, sipping champagne, while watching the mountains of Norway float by.  Hope I can keep my eyes open on the luxurious deck lounges!

The itinerary itself is enhanced by extra days and as a reverse of the original ends in London.  Also, because we will be sailing at the end of June, we can go much further North.  I think the weather will be better as well.  It will be nice to actually SEE Norway instead of knowing that it is there under both the snow and the darkness that blankets it in February.

Another nice bonus is that my friend, Carol, whom Elva and I met on the Amazon and now sometimes travels with us, will be coming along on this Norwegian adventure.  She declined the mid - winter version but is up for trying June - July.

And so my friends, I will return as we make our plans for a cruise which will be amazing in every aspect and truly one of a kind for me.

The quote is from John Druton's play I Remember Mama a favorite from my youth.

Our cabin - I think I can really call it a stateroom!
This image is from a site called Cruise Mapper which is an excellent resource.  Ruth used these drawings, I believe, to compare the Deluxe Veranda we purchased with our Explorer Suite.  Let's get the party started!

If you are looking for me this is where you can find me!