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Where are Paul and Donna
Where are Paul and Donna
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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna
    Akhona Rushi, Andy
    Robben's IslandMike, Carol, Donna, & PaulA little stop befopre going back to the ship.

    Day 110: Cape Town, South Africa

    10. april 2024, Sør-Afrika ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F

    Please meet (L-R) Akhona, Rushi, and Andy who were running a booth at the port terminal. They were kind enough to exchange Rupee’ to USD for my on-going collection of currencies from different countries. Got to chat with them a bit before going on our excursion.

    We had planned to go to the top of Table Mountain - weather & winds caused that excursion to be cancelled. Instead, we went to the top of Signal Hill - AMAZING. The pictures I got of the clouds around Table Mountain made the trip.

    We sat in the back of the bus and asked around with Mike and Carol and were very happy to get to know them even better.

    It is still a wonder that as we walk around the ship there are still so many people we don’t know. There is no way that would be possible anyways.

    We also saw Robben Island from Signal Hill as well as Lion’s Head. It was excellent. It was windy, the views stunning, the bus driver has more guts than I do, the curves were tight and the mountain is steep.

    The Natural History Museum was very well done lots of great information and exhibits. They have a Fine Arts Museum next door but we did not have time to visit it.

    So, Day 110 I have pictures of Table Mountain hidden in the clouds - On my Day 111 post you can see why they call it Table Mountain. This is listed as one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.

    When we got back on board we were disappointed to find out that the weather caused us to stay in port another day. Overall, we have been very fortunate to have very few weather interruptions.

    Donna and I agree South Africa would be a place to visit again. I could see doing a one week real safari; with one week touring the city and other sites nearby.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 109: Indian Ocean to Atlantic

    9. april 2024, Sør-Afrika ⋅ ☁️ 66 °F

    So today, marks a “sad” day in our cruise. We only have 1 more month to go on our great adventure.

    The other day Donna made the comment “Now that I know that this lifestyle exists - I can’t un-know it.”

    It will be a big transition back to our previous lifestyle. Cooking our own meals, making our beds, washing dishes, not having our drinks made for us.

    We will be advertising for the following staff - Housekeeper, Chef, Bartender, entertainment staff, and Paul will need a Gentleman’s Gentleman and Donna will be looking for a suitable Ladies Maid. Please submit your resumes as soon as you can. Viking has spoiled us treating us like royalty.

    #myvikingstory

    It is a good Google search to make “Dealing with post-cruise depression”. There are tons of good ideas. One of the first one’s to do is to book another cruise. We are figuring out where to go next.

    Here are some photos of our Sea Day today. Lunch, craft class, napping, dinner, reading, blogging, and of course a new wine to try,

    Cruising is such hard work. We will be in Cape Town, South Africa tomorrow and will go to the top of Table Mountain.

    An interesting note - This evening around 6:00 to 7:00 pm we crossed out of the Indian Ocean into the Atlantic Ocean. I was trying to find the line in the sea to know which is which. You know like it is on the map?

    But being in the Atlantic Ocean, and only one month away from flying back to Hartford, CT is really bringing this venture to the final quarter.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 108: Addo Elephant Park (2:3)

    8. april 2024, Sør-Afrika ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    Here is set number 2 of 3 from Addo National Elephant Park. These were taken with the Sony RX10 IV.

    Like all of our excursions we always wish we had more time.

    This cruise is my first experience at a serious attempt to take wildlife photos. It is a lot harder than you would think. You need good glass, a long lens, a fast shutter speed, always check your ISO, and your Color Balance, and sometimes you want a shallow depth of field, and other times you need it deeper to get every animal in focus.

    To get a handful of keepers - you have to take a lot of images. I have said it many times. Babe Ruth led the league in Home Runs (714). However, be also had 1,330 strike outs in his career. Ansel Adam’s goal was to get one great photograph a month. I wouldn’t mind having some of his bad ones.

    What I lay like about the Sony RX10 is it has a fixed Carl Zeiss lens, 24mm to 600mm optical zoom. I do miss my Canon gear, but I wouldn’t want to be lugging it around.

    As for my images - Right now I think I go by the mantra - “Even blind squirrels find nuts.”    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 108: Addo Elephant Park (1:3)

    8. april 2024, Sør-Afrika ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    Here are some assorted pictures taken with my iPhone as we ventured through the Addo National Elephant Park.

    The two half day safari’s we have done have given Donna and I a taste to want to do a longer multi-day overnight safari. It would be great to wake up with the sun, have a personal 4x4 and guide, and see the nocturnal animal s as they come out at night.Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 108: Port Elizabeth, South Africa

    8. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    Today we landed in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. In the morning things did not go as planned for the Viking Neptune staff. First, I heard the pilot was 1 ½ hours late to get on board to guide us to the dock. Then it took a while for immigration to get on board and settled in. So, we waited in a VERY long line until they decided to have us sit in the Star Theater. We had to all pass through a face-to-face immigration check then get to our buses for the day’s excursions.

    Some how - not sure why - the excursion gods were on our side today. The night before we watched the port talk and saw that our excursion was a bus ride through the Addo National Park, and we should have signed up for the 4x4 Safari. Too late to change it the night before.

    Donna was on FB and noticed that Mike & Carol were choosing to stay onboard and offered their 4x4 tickets to the first people who wanted them. We jumped on it. Thank you Mike and Carol we had a great time on the 4x4 excursion.

    It was a mad house at the pier. Everything was running late. I think a bus or two got changed. I felt badly from the Excursion staff. You will see a picture from the bus window of the Excursion staff once everyone was on their buses and on their way. I saw excursion staff all give a huge sigh of relief that they did it! Everyone was off to their various excursions.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 107: A Rainy Sea Day

    7. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌬 70 °F

    Today was a planned sea day as we headed towards Port Elizabeth.

    The ship was tossing and turning due to strong winds and seas.

    Not much to report - pretty low key.

    We did a felting and paper folding projects. I am almost finished reading “The War of Art.”

    Watched Port Talks on the TV. Went to bed early.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 106: Richard’s Bay Cancelled

    6. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

    8:10 am Captain Richard just announced due to unsafe weather conditions we will not be docking at Richard’s Bay.

    One picture shows the current route and position of the Neptune. You can see we headed in then turned out.

    At noontime we got an announcement that we will be docking in Durban, South Africa at 4:00pm

    Opps. Bad weather in Durban. Not docking here today either.

    The Neptune staff has done a great job calling an audible.

    I feel for the responsibility Captain Richard has. Clearly safety of passengers, crew, and the ship have to take priority.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 105: Sea Day Sailing Indian Ocean

    5. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

    Up at 8:30 - Breakfast at 9:00 - Felting at 10:00 - Lunch at 12:15 - American Wine Tasting at 1:00 - Craft project at 2:00 - Going through my photos at 3:30 - Russel Lee lecture at 6:30 - Special Family Style Italian Dinner at The Restaurant at 7:15 put on by the Staff - Back to the room at 9:00 to watch the Port Talk and go to bed.

    I thought when I retired I wouldn’t need to use Microsoft Outlook anymore.

    Meet Tom the Penguin. Tom is named after one of my past managers at Yale and is an avid follower of my Find Penguins post. Tom also loves to make his own wine every year. His wife is from Italy and he gets the best Italian food for dinner.

    We are doing a day Safari in South Africa tomorrow.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 104: Sea Day, Indian Ocean

    4. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌬 77 °F

    After Mixology class and closing down Torshavn last night we were a bit slow in getting up.

    10:00 Breakfast at Mamsen’s, then some time at the Glass Table of Deck 8 to get some posting done. 1:00 Lunch at the World Cafe, 2:00 finished my jewelry project - Maybe I can get them displayed at the “Juveler” on Deck 2?

    Over our bed in our stateroom Donna has been collecting magnets on a world map of all of the stops we have made so far. We still pinch ourselves everyday not believing we are doing this and have been to places around the world we never even knew existed.

    It’s about 4:00pm Donna and I are relaxing at the Glass Table in the Explorer’s Lounge on Deck 8. We listen to peaceful background music, we lookup to a panoramic view of the Indian Ocean. Karmila brings me a hot chocolate. Life is good.

    Dinner with Josh and Robin.

    Then attended a magic show at 9:00

    A low key relaxing day.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna
    1

    Day 103: “Steve Steals the Show”

    3. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌬 77 °F

    While Lois Brooks is giving her premier performance on the Viking Neptune - she loving invites the crowd to “join in” this next number. This may have been a mistake on her part.

    Steve saw this opportunity ,to show Viking just what he has - in hopes of securing his first dream contract on the Neptune as an entertainer. There is the saying - “What happens on Viking Neptune, stays on Viking Neptune” — Well, not is this case. I think this one might go viral.

    It was great watching the interplay with Steve and Lois. It is these spontaneous moments which we will aways remember. We are a big family and this is our home. This one might haunt Steve in his dreams for a long time. Hahahahaha.

    Steve you are a great sport … we love you.

    Question, will you be signing 8x10’s for us to take home?    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 103: Sea Day, Indian Ocean

    3. april 2024, Bay of Bengal ⋅ 🌙 84 °F

    What started out to be a sleep-in, slow, Sea Day - turned into a full day.

    Breakfast - Morning nap - 12:30 Lunch - 2:00 Necklace Craft class - Worked on Find Penguins posts catching up - 6:15 Dinner - 7:30 Academy of Mixology (Today was Brandy: Side Car, Brandy Sour, Black Desire) - Lois Brooks Debut performance in the Star Theater - Then Torshavn to listen to Jinky, Ralph, and the Viking Band. It was fun listening to the music and watching people dance and have a good time.

    Donna enjoyed a new drink - “Black Desire” - She might have enjoyed them a bit much. That is why we are - here to have a fun time.

    As time passed, everyone left the Torshavn with only Donna and I left to enjoy the last four numbers of their set. We haven’t done the late night “wild” scene at Torshavn up until last night - last night we had a private performance as we closed the place down.

    Thank you to Jinky, Ralph, and the band for making the day special.

    #myvikingstory    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 103: Lois Brooks Debut, #1:2

    3. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ 🌙 70 °F

    This evening was Lois Brook’s turn to take the stage. She took it, she owned it, it was hers.

    We have all fallen in love with our Neptune Entertainers (Emily, Lois, Luis, Joe, and the band). Show after show they provide excellent performances. We especially enjoy the times they get to put together their own personal show.

    Lois was “born and raised in the beautiful countryside of Yorkshire.” She has been on the stage since age 8 and is professionally trained. At age 22, this is her first contact with Viking and her first professional job upon graduating Musical Theatre at Leeds Conservatoire.

    Last night Donna, and I along with my Sony got a front row seat to her debut solo performance. Here is a small handful (in two posts) of some of the over 400 pictures my Sony captured. If this is the start of her future, we are all excited to watch this young woman grow.

    Please enjoy this photos. Also, if you were there please add a supporting kudos for Lois.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna
    1

    Day 102: Port Louis, Mauritius #4

    2. april 2024, Mauritius ⋅ 🌬 79 °F

    Mauritius, an island, a country we never even heard about is now a place we have travelled to and visited. The scenery is lovely even though the day was overcast. The mountains are majestic.

    You can clearly see the disparity in the economic classes. The ocean waves were so powerful. Our guide has been doing the guide thing for 26 years, and was spot on one of the best guides we have had on this cruise.

    It was a long day - fulfilling - but long.

    We were happy to get back to the Neptune, our home. People who were on the multi-day overnight in India have returned to the ship. So, the World Cafe is busy as usual.

    Watch the two videos as Captain Richard basically does a donut with the Neptune to head us on our way. Three sea days and then we are in South Africa.

    The adventure continues.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 102: Port Louis, Mauritius #2

    2. april 2024, Mauritius ⋅ 🌬 73 °F

    10:00 to 11:30 We visited Hindu statues and temples. The two tall statues were built in 2014 & 2016.

    The river which the temple is built around is called the Little Ganga [sic] which is believed to have healing powers. I walked into to the river for a bit.

    What was really funny the guide tossed some bread into the water, and a bunch of tiny fish came. Than a cat jumped in and grabbed a fish to run away with it in its mouth.

    11:30 lunch at a hotel golf resort. The provided lunch was at a luxury golf resort the meal was excellent.

    1:00pm back on the bus    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna
    1

    Day 102: Port Louis, Mauritius #1

    2. april 2024, Mauritius ⋅ 🌬 77 °F

    6:00am Wake up call
    6:30am Got out of bed
    7:00am At Mamsen’s for breakfast
    8:00am At Star Theatre for our excursion

    Looks like rain all day. We have an 8 hour South Side Excursion. Turned out to be mainly overcast very little rain.

    Our first stop was a long precarious drive up a mountain to view a dormant volcano. We
    Couldn’t see much, plus it being a rainy day we didn’t stay too long at the site. It’s 9:20 am this will be a long day.

    9:30 to 10:00 Visited a model ship building facility. The work is amazing and very detailed. I am sure if we bought one it would end up as a kit to rebuild when we got home.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 101: April Fools Day Indian Ocean

    1. april 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    I did it! I am so happy to report, I have updated ALL my Find Penguins posts for the entire World Cruise Since December. 23, 2023. Here are some metrics:

    - 101 Days, 23-Dec-2023 to 01-APR-2024
    - 16 Countries
    - 228 Foot Prints (Blog posts)
    - 2,600+ Photos
    - 84 Followers

    First thank you (the 84 - and others) for supporting me along the this adventure. I am pretty much a what you see is what you get kinda of person. I’ll will always have your back if you need me. I hope you have enjoyed the ride. We have 39 more days to go.

    Today’s agenda:

    - Got caught up on all my blog posts
    - Craft class - Made a bracelet
    - Laid out on the pool deck for a bit - we normally don’t do that.
    - Laundry
    - Oh, yes, we did eat at least once or twice.

    I still have countless number of photos to go through. I know I missed a bunch, and there are all the Sony pics (at least 3K worth to purge and edit)

    But the goal of 1 post for every day - I am happy to cross that finish line. Just need to keep it up.

    Enjoy the day tomorrow we are import Louis, Mauritius.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 100: Still Sailing the Indian Ocean

    31. mars 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 86 °F

    Hard to believe it’s been 100 days at sea. We have 39 days left in our adventure. This morning we set our clock back 30 minutes. I was up before 9:00 headed to the World Cafe for breakfast. Donna still in bed.

    10:00 haircut: Enjoy the before, during , and after head shots. It always grows back.

    Watch the video to see how much the ship rocks. This was taken has I walked on deck 7 towards the Explorer’s Lounge.

    Noontime: Head to the World Cafe for some lunch to go with our wine.

     2:00 the craft for the session today we learned how to make those little cute boxes out of paper. Just folding and a couple of cuts.

    Not much else going on today/tonight. Not sure if we will go to the show at 9:00 pm. We have one more sea day than on April 2nd, we land at Port Louis, Mauritius. I was told by my hairdresser who is from South Africa that this is where people from Africa go for their holidays.

    So, I am going to call this post for today done. Will update it if anything exciting happens.

    Happy Easter to everyone.

    To my Lutheran family (and Others). “He has Risen. He has Risen Indeed!”    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 99: Sailing the Indian Ocean

    30. mars 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 84 °F

    We continue our trek towards Port Louis, Mauritius. Honestly, the sea days are going by very quickly.

    I am still working on back blog posts, did an arts/craft Tote bag project (See photo). It was a pretty cool project. They provided a fabric tote bag, fabric colored pens, and stencils. You made your own design. I finished it today.

    Last night Donna and I hit the Spa - steam, snow room, and I did 15 minutes in the cold plunge Brrrrrrrr - it really helps my back pain.

    About noontime it was time to eat again. Donna and I headed to the World Cafe and sat with Bob & Patty from Oregon. I think I have finally remembered their names.

    Wine Tasting at 1:00 at Manfredi’s we sat with Bob & Patty - Cabernet Sauvignon from California was today’s topic.

    - Rombauer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

    - Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County

    - Black Stallion Limited Release Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

    Were the three wines featured at today’s tasting. Donna and I don’t drink a lot of red wine - heck Donna still claims she doesn’t drink! - We both like the smooth velvet texture and taste of the Black Stallion.

    We were invited to Captain’s Table at 6:00 this evening. A good group of people was there - some we knew others we met for the first time. As always the meal was excellent.

    When we got back to the room a little Easter treat was there for us. Overall a nice mellow day at sea. It is hard to believe we have been on this adventure for 99 days,    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 98: Sailing the Arabian Sea

    29. mars 2024, Indian Ocean ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    The Neptune sailing the Indian Ocean is about 250 miles away from any land, the ocean is 11,800 feet deep, we are traveling 20 mph. At 1:40pm we will be crossing the equator. You can always find our exact location on CruiseMapper.com just pull up the Cruise Ship “Viking Neptune”. What is really cool is you can see the entire route we have travelled since Florida on December 23, 2023

    Okay I have found a positive outcome with all of the people being off the ship. The internet is WAAAAY faster. Downloading stuff is much better. You are still missed.

    There isn’t much to tell about today. We got an extra hour of sleep. Had breakfast at the World Cafe, got set up on Deck 8 at the glass table with the hope of seeing how many days I can catch up on with my Find Penguin’s posting. Wish me luck, I have a checklist and I am going to go backwards - and see where we have been.

    Since I am on Deck 8 of the Explorer Lounge right now I will be able to hear the Trivia contest going on. It is pretty brutal - these folks are serious.

    If anything else happens today - I will add it to this post.

    Lunch with a view.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 97: Academy of Mixology: Whiskey

    28. mars 2024, Jamaica ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    Today is a Sea Day - We are Sailing the Arabian Sea. The sky is blue, the seas are calm. The ship is quieter with so many folks on the India overnight or have left the cruise entirely. The World Cafe isn’t the rush hour traffic that we are used to.

    Today was a catch up on sleep and no noise day for me. Donna attended a workshop and made a tote bag that came out very nice. I spent time organizing photos, emails, and other stuff you do to just get organized. Pretty sure a nap was in there as well. For me it was nice to not attend a lecture or workshop and get organized and centered again.

    We were very happy to continuing our life-long learning in the area of Mixology. This evening’s chapter was “Whiskey” - Rust Nail, Whiskey Sour, and Old Fashion were the assignments for the night.

    Many of our Mixology friends are on over-land adventures or have headed home. We missed you tons, it wasn’t the same. We had to drink your drinks in your honor. As always a fun time was had by all. There are three more sessions before we graduate.

    As always the display they create for the class is beautiful- please watch the short video.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 96: Cochin, India (Part 4) Birds

    27. mars 2024, India ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    My main camera back home is a Canon 90D with a full array of “L” Red line professional glass. Prior to going on this cruise I asked previous cruisers/photographers what camera are they using? Several mentioned the Sony RX10 IV - It’s about $1,600 and has an attached 24 - 600mm Carl Zeiss optical zoom lens.

    I am very happy I am not lugging the Canon equipment. If I smashed or lost a lense It would make me sick. Between my IPhone 14 Pro Max and the Sony I have been able to take just about any picture I want or need. And my Canon equipment is safe at home. My back thanks me for the choice.

    One person asked, “How do people take good bird photos?”

    The key is Shutter Speed priority (The faster your shutter speed the better - 600 or faster) and make sure the bird’s eye is in focus.

    Here are some more bird and river pictures of our time in Cochin, India.    Les mer

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  • World Cruise: Paul and Donna

    Day 96: Cochin, India (Part 3)

    27. mars 2024, India ⋅ ☀️ 88 °F

    Lunch, Tuk Tuk, Fabric store, Spice & Perfumes, The fishing nets.

    So at the fishing nets the invited us on to their dock and went through a whole routine and show which was fun and interesting, They never told us there was a cost. At the end of their bit. They asked for money - “To help my family etc”. So, I knew it was coming - but, I was a bit taken back.When I gave the $10 they wanted more. He wanted $20 —- I gave them $12.

    One of the things I have noticed throughout this cruise is all the people swarming in on us to sell us something, a cab ride, magnets, shirts, dresses - at time it gets over-whelming. I reflect on my life and know I am very fortunate to not have to depend on this type of lifestyle to make a living.

    At one end of the spectrum I feel empathy for them and when they are swarming me I get just plain mad. - and try to keep my cool.

    Our lunch was very nice traditional Indian food - Donna got a couple of cashmere scarfs - I was very happy with the photos I took with both the iPhone and the Sony.    Les mer

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