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Viking World Cruise

December 2017 – May 2018
  • Chuck Cook
  • Glenda Cook
We had the privilege of participating in the innaugural round-the-world cruise for Viking Ocean Cruises onboard the Viking Sun. Read more
  • Chuck Cook
  • Glenda Cook
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  • 58.4kmiles traveled
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  • 104footprints
  • 142days
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Newest first
  • Viking World Cruise
    Gil and Chuck

    The First Step of the Journey

    December 15, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    The journey of a thousand miles, or of twenty-five thousand, begins with one step. As Sam Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings said, “ If I take one more step, I will be farther from home than I have ever been.” We flew from Charlotte to Miami and then took a bus to board the ship. Once on board we started trying to get our stateroom squared away. There was a welcoming celebration led by Captain Atle Knutson and Heather Clancy, our cruise director, around the swimming pool. At 5 PM Glenda and I went to Explorer’s Lounge to meet all the other people that we had come to know on Cruise Critic. After dinner at the restaurant, we headed back to our state room to finish putting things away. Tonight we set sail for Cuba. We don’t know what to expect, but we know that adventure is out there.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise
    Cruise Director Heather Clancy's Port Talk on Cuba
    Atrium of the Viking Sun Decorated for ChristmasGil and Chef PiaSelecting the Wine

    Sailing to Cuba

    December 16, 2017, North Atlantic Ocean ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

    Today is a day at sea. I woke about 5:30 this morning then went down to the gym for exercise. I came back to the stateroom and had coffee on the veranda while Glenda dressed. We went to the World Café for coffee. At the port talk about Havana, Cuba. For dinner we went to the Chef’s Table and enjoyed a Mexican meal prepared by a visiting chef, Chef Pia from Mexico.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise

    Cienfuegos and Trinidad de Cuba

    December 17, 2017 in Cuba

    We just arrived in Cienfuegos, Cuba. The ship is in the bay and we will take a tender into town. This morning we heard two very good lectures, one on Cuban music and dancing, and another on the revolution of Fidel Castro. After catching the tender, we passed through a health and passport scan before taking a bus to Trinidad. Our first stop in Trinidad was called Sugar Valley. We went into the landowner’s house, which has been converted into a museum. In the yard was an old sugar press. We saw a museum made from an old palace that belonged to the Cantore family before we had a rather compulsory visit to a lady’s house that doubled as an art museum. There infrastructure of Cuba is crumbling. In the town there is only water for an hour each day so while we were at the artist’s house no one could use the restroom. Finally we walked around the streets of Trinidad and had about 45 minutes free time. The plaza by the cathedral had a salsa band that was playing beautiful music. The whole town gathered and just sat around the plaza. Just before we went to the restaurant, a man came up to me, offered me a cigar and told me that he was a former Canadian who had moved to Santiago de Cuba. I was a little suspicious of him but very soon Glenda rescued me and told me that we had to meet with the group. A restaurant Los Conspiradores, or the conspirators, served us broiled snapper, vegetable soup, bruschetta and rice pudding. The restaurant was named for a series of meetings that were held there during the revolution of 1846. Finally we rode the bus back to Cienfuegos, got on the ship, cleaned up, and went to bed. Tomorrow we have an overnight trip to Havana.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise
    On the Way to the Tropicana
    El Morro FortressGallery/home of Lorenzo Lopez

    La Habana

    December 18, 2017 in Cuba ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    We spent the day touring Havana, including the old Spanish fortress, El Morro. Most of the buildings were once lovely neoclassical structures, but now have fallen into decay. Lunch was at El Rancho in an upscale neighborhood where many foreign ambassadors to Cuba live. Lorenzo Lopez presented his art photography at his home/studio. He gave an inspirational talk on the beauty and positive power of smiling. El Rancho, near the homes of the many ambassadors to Cuba, is a very exclusive neighborhood. That night classic cars lined up in front of the hotel to take us to dinner. I became a teen-ager again as we were driven to dinner in a 1951 Chevrolet, the model in which I learned to drive. The show at the Tropicana was beautiful, sensual and expertly performed. The music and dance were no less wonderful than that in the city of Trinidad. All of the musicians and dancers were classically trained at conservatories in Havana or Santi Spiritu before branching out into native Cuban versions of their art. Costumes for both women and men dancers were dazzling. We spent overnight at the opulent, modern, clean, shiny Melia Habana Hotel. We are told that this extravant place may be used only by foreign tourists.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise
    The Tropicana

    Leaving Cuba

    December 19, 2017, Caribbean Sea ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    Cuba is confusing. The many failures of socialism were screaming around us—poor roads, decaying mansions, intermittent water. Nevertheless, the Cuban people seem genuinely happy, though they freely admit that the economy of the Castro regime has failed. It may be that this apparent happiness is simply due to their resignation to a difficult situation that has not changed significantly during the lifetime of the current generation. Of course the government under Fidel’s brother Raoul cannot simply admit that their socialist experiment was unsuccessful. They still stress that Cuba has an astronomically high literacy rate of 99 percent (true), as well as free, fast and very effective government medical treatment for all (also true). Still, changes are taking place at an incredible pace. Free enterprise is permitted for individuals, though not yet for industries. The Cuban people are wonderful. Their love and respect for us Americans reminds one that people do not war against one another. Governments do. Our experience was amazing. Cuban culture is a very thick soup with Caribbean, African, Spanish, French, English, and Chinese ingredients. In Trinidad de Cuba we found the music to be a solid object as firm as a monument. As a percussionist I was dazzled by several pieces of music (one in 13/8 time) with as many as three different syncopated rhythms occurring simultaneously. Cuba is all of this, and I have not even touched upon its history. This island is amazing. And it is changing with breathtaking speed. Come soon if you can.

    Glenda Cook: We just left Cuba and my thoughts are mixed. Cuba proves socialism does not work. They do have great arts, education, medical and dental care but the infrastructure is crumbing. The grand houses of the 1800s and 1900s before the revolution are crumbling and 1950’s cars are the norm. The people are resourceful and gracious and music and dance are everywhere. They live in extreme poverty and there more carts pulled by horses than there are cars. I am reminded of the hymn " This is my Song.” Google it for the words. It is a poetic reminder of a truth that spans all nations and people.    Read more

  • Viking World Cruise

    Jamaican Paradise

    December 20, 2017 in Jamaica ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    If the word for Cuba was paradox, the word for Jamaica is paradise. Everything is green and waterfalls abound. The glorious waterfalls around Ocho Rios amazed us no less than the tropical gardens that followed. The excursion ended with a visit to a small museum in memory of both Marcus Garvey and Bob Marley, two Jamaicans who have influenced our world.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise

    Limon, Costa Rica

    December 22, 2017 in Costa Rica ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    Costa Rica in Spanish mean “rich coast.” Rather than expressing the reality, it may express a hope that has been alive since the Conquistadors, and is still alive today. This nation has more than its share of poverty, but recognizes possibilities for the future. It’s rural areas possess a wondrous, primitive beauty. We saw a sloth on our canal ride and then walked around the little town of Limon. Besides being a tropical paradise, Costa Rica produces much of the world’s sugar, coffee, and chocolate. It has a growing economy and a very large expatriate American community. With ports on both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Costa Rica is positioned to have a growing economy for the foreseeable future.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise
    Dancers in Native Garb Welcome Us to Colon, Panama
    Ship Transiting the Panama CanalBlack Howler Monkey

    Colón, Panama

    December 23, 2017 in Panama ⋅ 🌙 77 °F

    Today we docked at Colon, then were bussed to the visitors’ center for the Panama Canal at Miraflores Lock. We saw ships pass through the canal and enjoyed the museum explaining the construction of this massive project that saves about 8000 miles on a ship’s passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans. Originally attempted by the French in the 1870’s, the canal was finally constructed by an American company in 1904. Workers were largely from Barbados and other Caribbean Islands. In both French and American attempts to build the canal, over 30,000 workers died from malaria, yellow fever and accidents. Roughly one-third of the revenue generated in Panama is created by this canal. The fare for a small sailboat is about $800, while that for a large container ship can be $900,000. After Miraflores we went to the Clara Agua lock to see the larger locks built from 2007 to 2015 to allow the largest container ships and petroleum tankers to pass through the canal. On the way back to our ship the driver spotted a howler monkey high in a tree over the road. We were able to photograph this young male howling to attract a mate.Read more

  • Viking World Cruise
    Engines called "mules" keep ships centered in the canal.

    Transiting the Panama Canal

    December 24, 2017 in Panama ⋅ 🌙 72 °F

    We spent today transiting the Panama Canal. This marvel of engineering is not only functional, it is beautiful. We could only imagine the backbreaking labor of the people from Barbados and the other Caribbean islands who gave their lives so that we could cruise through this waterway on a floating palace. We saw frigate birds, two crocodiles, and a host of other tropical animals. We inched our way up 29 meters in three sets of locks, crossed the continental divide in Gatun Lake, then came down again to sail on flat water into the Pacific Ocean. The Culebra Cut through the mountains alone contains enough concrete to build 63 Egyptian pyramids. With the expansion including sets of wider locks, the Panama Canal will continue to meet the increasing demands of the world for years to come. So on a hot and humid December 24 (the high temperature here today was 89 degrees) we wish you a merry and blessed Christmas.Read more

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