SINGAPORE

March 16, 2011
We arrived in Singapore this morning and went on the City Orientation at 9:30 AM. Our bus guide’s name is Kim and she is full blooded Chinese but she was born in Singapore as was her mother. Her father was born in China and moved to Singapore. Kim told us that Singapore became its own country in the 1960’s. It was started by a Chinese man that wanted to make the perfect city and to do that he said they needed to use their brain power as there is no natural resources here in Singapore. The official language is English and most of the people are bilingual - Kim speaks 4 languages. Singapore is a small island in Malaysia but is a separate country. There are a large number of banks located here as well as other business corporations. Some of the US companies mentioned were McDonalds, KFC, Subway, Wendy’s, Seagate and Medtronic. We were told that we are very safe in Singapore as they do not have much crime or petty theft as the consequences are pretty severe. You can be jailed for littering and if you have too much to drink and try to put your arm around a female you will also be jailed. That law is called something like Offending of Modesty law. If you are caught dealing or doing drugs you will be hanged and it does not matter what country you are from. The unemployment rate is only 2% and so they sometimes need to import workers. Our US dollar is $1.25 to their Singaporean $1.00 which surprises me as their economy is so much better than ours. A lady married to one of the professors here told us at breakfast this morning that she has a few friends that have given up their US citizenship and become Singaporean citizens because it is such a good place to live.

I don’t know if Kim thinks it is so great. She told us she lives in a pigeon coop - meaning a very small flat in a high rise apartment building. There are no slum areas in Singapore, but a lot of apartment buildings where the poorer people live. The people dry their clothes by attaching them to bamboo poles and hanging them outside their window to flap in the wind. Kim called them the Singaporean flags.

Our first stop was at the top of one of the two hills on the island, where we got a panoramic view of the whole city. There are a lot of high rises here and there are cable cars that go from one side to the other. In fact the cable cars were going right over the top of our ship and thru an opening in one of the skyscrapers. I think I heard that it costs $30 to go on that ride, which we will not have time to do as we are here for only one day. Kim told us that we will see a statue in this hill-top park of a Moulion. It has the head of a lion and the tail of a fish as there are no animals on this island, they made up their own.

Our next stop was at the botanical gardens, but the only area Kim wanted us to see was the Orchid garden and we were only allowed 15 minutes there. I think she had a schedule to follow and we were late departing on the bus. Anyway the garden was very lush and green. They had several statues that were completely covered with moss because of the humidity. I had purchased a neck cooler in the ship store, which is a scarf that you soak in water and it swells up and keeps your upper neck and head area cool. You know I do not like hot and humid and of course that is what it is near the equator.

The next place we stopped was a handicraft factory. The people working on the first floor were running machines that cut precious stones and there were artists making items with the stones. We went upstairs to the showroom where there were many pictures made with stones as well as carved figurines etc. There were a lot of pretty items but everything was very expensive and I did not buy anything. The second room was full of jewelry items.

Our 4th stop was at Chinatown where we were going to visit a Hindu Temple. At this point the majority of the people on the bus signed off with our representative from the ship and said they wanted to stay and explore the rest of the city on their own. I did not sign off as Phyllis was staying on the bus and I did not want her to be alone. I walked thru Chinatown and saw some shops I would have liked to browse in but Kim was hustling us along quickly. I did not go into the temple but took some pictures from the outside. Kim said that Hindu is Indian but the temple is in Chinatown and she said they all get along so there is not a problem.

Our last stop was in little India and I was able to make a purchase there before Kim hustled us back to the bus. At this point four more people signed off the bus. Now it was Kim, Steve (leader from the ship), Phyllis, me and one other lady going back to the ship.

We shopped in the mall that is attached to the pier and had lunch at McDonalds. We spent all of our Singaporean money before returning to the ship.

When we got back on the ship we had drinks in Fred and Pat’s room and they were disappointed in their visit in Singapore. The girls especially were disappointed that they did not get to do much shopping, as they were a group of 11 people and it is too hard to keep track of everybody. So I guess Phyllis and I lucked out by staying on the bus until the very end.

Chennai, India - first day

After our diplomatic briefing I tried to get to an ATM with John, Carol and Joe Bender. We had to show our passport to the Indian officials before we got off the ship and then we took the shuttle bus that takes us to the port entrance. When we got to the entrance there was a long line where they were checking passports again and they were also checking the other buses that were taking people on field trips. We decided that we better go back to the ship and wait for our field trip that was leaving at 12:45 rather than risk not being on time for it. They don’t wait for you - if you are not there within five minutes of departure time they give your ticket away. So we got back on the shuttle bus and the student that got left in the hospital in Mauritius and the doctor’s husband were just arriving to join up with the ship. So I now know who the kid is and that he is indeed back on the ship. The doctor’s husband said he enjoyed his week in Mauritius and got to see quite a bit of the island.
Someone asked a question about Diego Garcia at the diplomatic meeting and they were very surprised that we had stopped there. The people at the diplomatic meeting are US citizens that work at the Embassy in the country we are visiting. One of them from today was a former SAS student.

We went on the Chennai city orientation today and one of the things I learned is that this city used to be called Madras by the English, but since India is now an independent country they decided to call it Chennai as that is the Indian version of the name. Our first stop was at a former British headquarters. There was a catholic church there that they wanted us to see, which was not open so we could not go in. Then they took us to a museum, which was all British artifacts from when they were in charge, so there were statues of Cornwallis (who was sent to India after being defeated in the rebellious United States by George Washington) and pictures of the British royalty and a lot of canons and canon balls. Pictures of coins used in the real olden days and china left behind by the British. The traffic here in Chennai is crazy and probably will be worse tomorrow when everything opens up for business. Our guide walked us back to the bus and we had to cross one of those busy streets to get there. We crossed at a stop light, but not everyone stops just because the light is red and of course they drive on the wrong side of the road!

Our next stop was St Thomas Cathedral and the story is that Apostle Thomas is buried below the altar in this church. They say that Thomas came to India and preached after Jesus’ death. He was eventually killed because of his beliefs and supposedly the arrow that killed him is also in his tomb.

Our last stop was at a Hindu temple. First the guide had us walk around the neighborhood and showed us how the people lived. It looked pretty dirty and dilapidated. The temple is filled with statues of their gods and the streets were filled with shops selling everything from knick knacks to cow pies. Right next to the cow pies were spices of all varieties. Some of us girls found a shop that was open and was selling fabrics, scarves, shirts, skirts and pants. I ended up buying a scarf that I probably paid too much for and had to go across the street and down stairs to pay with my credit card. I have to go out again tomorrow and find an ATM machine as we are leaving in the late afternoon for the Taj Mahal and I don’t have any cash.

Aquila Safari Private Game Reserve

We had to get up early this morning and be outside at the pier by 6:15 AM to get on the bus and ride for two hours to Aquila Game Preserve. There were enough people signed up for this trip that we had two buses full. We started our journey and the guide received a phone call that we needed to stop at a gas station and wait for a taxi that was bringing a student that had overslept. They told us this would be our bathroom stop and we had only been traveling about fifteen minutes but everybody got off the bus and went in and used the facility and bought coffee etc. The ship dining room was open at 5:30 this morning so we ate there before we left.

We arrived at the game preserve and everyone had to sign an indemnity form which was kind of alarming. We then were taken into the restaurant and they had a breakfast buffet prepared for us, which was not expected and of course we sat right down and ate big time. At 10:00 we were loaded into 4 by 4 jeeps that seated about 20 people and our “safari” began. We saw several animals - elephants, giraffe, zebras, springbok, cape buffalo, antelope, rhinoceros, ostrich, wildebeest and hippopotamus. Then we stopped at an oasis in the field and they served us our choice of either sparkling wine or sparkling grape juice.

Then we went into another area where there are two male lions that are kept separate from the rest of the animals as they don’t want them to eat the show. They feed these two lions about three times a week - usually about three to five chickens and they split a donkey or beef and then they also catch rabbits etc on their own.

Then we went to a Animal Rescue Area where they have rescued animals that have been shot but not killed. The guide told us that you can go on the internet and sign up to shoot an animal from the comfort of your own home. The people who sign up to do this through the internet do not want the animal, they just want the thrill of shooting a big game animal. Big thrill I guess. These rescued animals are being rehabilitated and then they will be released into the rest of the game reserve to live out their lives in peace. Those animals there were a cheetah, lions, crocodiles and warthogs.

After our “safari” we went back into the restaurant and had a buffet lunch. I am afraid I have gained some weight! Did some shopping in the gift shop and then it was time for the two hour bus ride back to the ship.

Saturday in Capetown

There were 14 of us this morning that planned on renting a van to take us around and show us the sights. The girl (Glenda) that works upstairs in the ship’s store told us that she knew someone who would be glad to take us in his van. We all met down at the gate at 9:00 AM and Glenda was not there, nor was there a van waiting for us. Once the taxi drivers find out what we are looking for they all scramble to convince us to use their services. After much chaos we were put into two vans with six people in each one and it was confusing as to what the actual price was going to be for each one of us. Our driver was named Lorenzo and he said we were going back to the garage to get a bigger van, but once he got us out of the city he said it was fine just to have the two taxi’s so we never did get a bigger van. Lorenzo speaks English and is originally from Durban, South Africa and seems to be quite knowledgeable about Capetown. Capetown is a very pretty clean city and very colorful. We headed along the coastal road by the Atlantic Ocean and our first stop was at a town called Simon Town where there were a lot of African crafts for sale. We shopped for about 15 minutes and then they hustled us back to the taxi’s and some of us were not happy as they wanted to shop some more. Our next stop was at a national park where there are penguins. We did not drive into the park but walked along a boardwalk and the driver said he would pick us up at the end of the boardwalk. We saw a lot of penguins right up on top of the hill next to the walkway. It surprised me as I always thought penguins are only in a cold climate and did not stray very far from water. Here they were up on top of a dry windy hot hill. I did see some that were down the hill by the beach and going into the water. There were also humans swimming at this beach with the penguins.

Then it was on to Cape of Good Hope Table Mountain National Park. We each had to pay R70 to get into this park. The first thing we did was go into the restaurant for lunch. Everyone except one of the 14 of us ordered a hamburger and French fries. I also ordered a margarita and that tasted pretty good. After lunch Joe Bender and I were the only ones who wanted to go up to the top of the mountain to view where the Atlantic Ocean meets with the Indian Ocean. It cost R45 to take the Vernicular up to the top of the hill and was worth it to not have to hike up there. The ride up was interesting as about half way up there the other car was coming down and we had to go around each other. There was no air conditioning in the car and because we were stopped for quite some time, the car heated up and the windows got all steamed up because of the heat. It actually felt like a sauna. There was a group of Japanese tourists and their guide was quite vocal about we were going to die because we could not breathe and there was a baby aboard so open the doors etc. They did not open the doors and we finally reached the top and it felt really good to get out of the car and look at the view. It was a spectacular view and very cool and windy up there.

Then it was back into the taxi’s and drive down the hill and around the other side for another spectacular ride of beautiful ocean views (and steep drop offs.) Lorenzo had several phone calls during this excursion and he was supposed to pick someone up at 3:00 PM. He also was conversing with someone that was being discharged from the hospital and we gathered he was supposed to pick up that person as well. It was after 4:00 PM by the time we got back into Capetown and we needed to stop at an ATM before we got back to the ship, so we could pay Lorenzo. So he was late picking up whomever was waiting for him, but he certainly showed us a good time.

Another fun day!

Valentine's Day dinner with Carol's extended family

This being valentines day I invited my extended family to dinner and ordered an ice cream cake for dessert. We met at 6:00 in the main dining room and I think everyone had a good time. Below is a picture of my family. Grace is first on left, then Ben and his date Patty, Tyler, Erin and Katie. The ice cream cake was a big hit! We will probably meet again soon for game night. I am also including a picture of me with my grandchildren, which would be my extended family kid's nephews!

Castles and Dungeons

I went with ten other people yesterday on an independent trip to see the castle and dungeons of Cape Coast. Ghana was at one time called the Gold Coast and became Ghana in 1961 when they declared independence from the British. The history of slave labor from this region goes back to the 1500’s. The first people to come were the Portuguese and then the Dutch took over and eventually the British were in control. The guide explained that the Portuguese traveled from Portugal to Ghana to pick up gold and slaves and transported them to Brazil, the Caribbean Islands and North America. Along the way they picked up items to deliver to Portugal and the European countries, and then they start all over again

The castle was originally built as a fort and then the dungeons were added when the slave trade became the major money maker for the white people. All of the black people that were captured were brought into a big room where prospective buyers would examine them for strength and stamina. Many of these people were captured far away and brought here to be sold. If they were not considered strong enough, then nobody would buy them and they would be freed, but not helped to return to their original homeland. Consequently many of them stayed in this area and made Ghana their home as they did not have a way or the knowledge how to get back home.

If he was purchased he was branded like they brand cattle. They were often times shackled at the ankle and the wrist and then they were put into the dungeon until a ship arrived in port to transport them. We went down into the dungeons and were told that sometimes there were as many as 1000 men in there. They had separate dungeons for the women. They were given meager food and water and many of them died. There was no electricity at this time and the only light was from an open space that could not be reached by climbing (which would be difficult to do when they were shackled). When a ship would arrive in port the ones that had survived the dungeons were loaded onto the ships where they were layered on bunks one on top of another. The most unlucky ones were loaded on the bottom and many of them died on the ocean. The ones that survived were forced to work as slaves the rest of their lives.

There was a plaque on the wall stating that President and Mrs. Obamba visited here in July 2009. Machelle Obama’s ancestors were taken from this location as slaves. There is a big door that leads out to the ocean and above the door is the plaque “The point of no return“ and once the slaves walked through that door they were put onto a ship and never saw their homeland again.

The guide was a very pleasant well spoken man and he said that his people do not hold a grudge against the people that did this to his people as it is up to God to do the judging. It was a very sobering experience.

A water village

Today we went to visit Nzuelo a water village. We had another two hour bus ride to get to the area and then we all put on life jackets and walked to the river where there were several canoes. They loaded the canoes up with sometimes eight people and the water level was about one inch below the top of the canoe. The canoe operator pushed with a long stick through a man made canal that took us into the river and then he paddled to the village, which is built on stilts in the water. It took over an hour to get to the village and it was sunny, hot and humid. It was difficult to sit still for so long and all of us had sore butts. When we got to the village we climbed up a ladder to get out of the canoe. There were wood planks on the floor and some areas were round bamboo sticks to walk on which felt pretty unsteady. These people did not want us to take pictures of them unless we paid to do so. I did not pay so do not have any pictures, but others took lots of pictures. One thing I noticed about the little children was they do not smile. Even if someone took their picture and showed them on the camera they did not smile. When we got to the school room then those children would smile and were very animated. It is a fairly new thing for them to have white people visit and so they were very curious about us. Some of the students brought them pens and pencils and then they were very happy.

We met with the son of the chief and he told us about their history of living on the water. He said that they are not from Ghana but rather ran away from Mali because there were warriors there that wanted them to fight and they are a peaceful people.

After about 45 minutes of visiting we got back in the canoes for the trip back to our starting point. There was a student with us that had too much to drink last night and was feeling ill because of the heat and humidity. They put her in a special canoe and fast tracked back to the starting point so they could get some water into her. Consequently my canoe was the last one back and the lady sitting behind me stood up before it was her turn to get off and lost her balance and fell into the water. She got wet from head to foot. I had brought a hand towel from the ship, so I gave her that to dry off with.

We then walked across the street to a hotel for lunch. This hotel was situated right on the Atlantic Ocean and there was a nice breeze blowing, so it was nice to sit there under the thatched roofs and cool off while we ate. Some people walked along the beach to an old fort and the bus picked us up there.

My version of the Canopy Walk

We got on another bus this morning at 7:30 AM to go for a 90 minute ride to the Kakum National Park for a canopy walk. There was a lot of activity on the streets today as the people were on their way to work and the school children were on their way to school. The school children wear uniforms and they are very colorful and the kids look really cute and neat. The guide told us that all children are required to go to school from age 6 to ninth grade and then if they are good students they go on to high school or a technical school to learn a trade. It makes me wonder when the kids are working in the cocoa factories if they are required to go to school. We were told that the government pays for one uniform and one meal a day for the children, but it is political and some schools do not comply and then the parents have to pay for the uniforms and that is something they cannot afford.

While driving along we saw a lot of people setting up stands and selling stuff on the roadside. The shops do not have doors and they move their products right outside for all to see. It seemed odd to see sofas and chairs for sale out on the grass.

The gas stations have a big open area and when they are working on a car they do not put it up on a hoist like they do in the USA. I saw one taxi that they had turned on it’s side so they could work underneath it.

Our 90 minute ride to the Kakum National Park took more like 2 ½ hours. We pulled into the parking lot and the bus had to pull in and back up to get parked just so to satisfy the attendant. There was a sign in the parking lot that said “Do not urinate here. Use the restroom.” The path to the start of our hike up to the top of the hill was very uneven rocks and it was difficult to maneuver. We finally reached the end of the rocks and still had to be very careful where we stepped as there were a lot roots and steep banks to navigate. We got to the top and climbed some steps into a tree house type structure and that is where the swinging bridges started. We walked across seven swinging bridges with six platforms between them. It was pretty scary but I decided this was something that I was going to do and I succeeded, but don’t know if I care to do that again. There were many pictures taken to prove that I did this.

After coming down from the canopy walk we sat on the veranda and tried to cool off, which was not accomplished by me. My legs were pretty shaky when I got down to the sitting area.

We left the park and drove a few miles to a hotel where we stopped for lunch. It was buffet style and they served chicken, fish, beef and green beans, salad, rice, French fries, fried plantains and two different types of tomato sauce. One spicy and one not so spicy.

After we finished eating we walked out into the courtyard where they had set up rows of folding chairs under a long canopy so we could watch a Bamboo Orchestra and dancers. They were very colorful and very energetic for such a hot and humid day. At the end of their performance they wanted all of us to dance with them and many people did, but it was really uncomfortably hot and it was a relief when they told us it was time to go back to the bus. Unfortunately the air conditioning on the bus could not cool it down when all of us hot bodies got on there, so we were glad to get back on the ship and take showers.

GHANA - first day

We arrived in Ghana at 8:00 AM this morning. There were some drummers meeting the ship and it was fun to watch them. They announced last night that no drums would be allowed onto the ship and the students were all disappointed. The reason is that they are concerned about the animal hides used to make the drums and told the students they could ship them home, but they are still grumbling about that. We are warned the night before arrival in a port of all the do’s and don’ts. We are advised about mosquitoes, water, food and bacteria that our bodies are unfamiliar with. One thing they stress is to wear closed toe shoes, and most of the students disregard that and wear flip flops.

We were supposed to go to a chocolate factory but they were not open on Sunday so they took us to a fishing village and that was a lot of fun and interesting. There were several children there and they live right on the beach. The kids all wanted us to take their pictures and of course we obliged. The people living there build their own boats and they had several in progress. It takes them about two months to make a good sized boat and less time if it is not real big. They use nets to catch the fish and they put on a demonstration for us on how they do that. Then we followed the women and watched them clean the fish, put them out to dry and then smoke them. They say they are one big family and everybody knows everybody else. Their homes are quite small and open to all of the elements. The goats and chickens live on site and walk around and into the homes. Most of the children were dressed, but there were some with just underwear and some completely naked.

While riding on the bus we saw a lot of people walking along the street carrying larges bowls on their heads filled with fish, bananas, ice and other items. Not a lot of people have cars and transport many things on their heads and backs. The women in the fishing village had babies sleeping on their backs while they cleaned the fish. Most of their houses are just one story and to get good television reception they use a long bamboo pole with an antenna on top.

Our guide told us that the Ghanaians are a religious people and most of them are Christian, but they also have some Muslims and Hindu. They all go to church on Sunday and they get quite dressed up for it. After church some of the shops opened up and the bus drove us through the market. There were a lot of used shoes for sale and the guide said that they were supposed to be donated shoes from the USA but they are trying to sell them. Some of the students got off of the bus near the market as they saw an ATM machine and then they would have to walk back to the ship, which is at least a mile. There is a duty free shop directly across from the ship’s exit and we will probably shop in there before we depart on Thursday.

OLYMPICS - The agony of defeat

The competition started at 1:00 PM this afternoon. First up was the synchronized swimming. Our team consisted of five men (including brother Dick and Dave Bender.) Inasmuch as our banner reads “SEA SALTS a comedic relief team” you can understand why we picked them to represent us in swimming. They wore life jackets and decorated shower caps along with a towel cape with the letter S on them. Prior to getting into the water they removed their shorts and their swim suits were underneath with the exception of 86 year old Boyd who went with the tidy whitey look. Unfortunately this great team was disqualified as they went over their allotted four minute performance time, otherwise they would have been a shoo in for the gold!

Then it was on to the tug of war with another five old ladies carrying their canes as our representatives. We were sure they would intimidate the opposition but we were faced with the Lunacy Team comprised of staff and their families (some with young children) and they pulled our girls right over!

Some other categories were wheel barrel racing, three legged race, crab soccer, dodge ball, basketball and volleyball.

I participated in the build a structure of cards competition and failed miserably. My next endeavor was the spoon and ping pong ball relay. There was a team of six of us and we were eliminated in the first round!

There was a trivia competition and finally our team was in the lead with 29,000 points and it was down to the last question, when they throw in the option of betting on this last question. So with much confidence we bet it all!! The question was what TV show had a family living on a certain street in Brooklyn? Our answer the Bunkers! Wrong - we were the only ones betting and the others did not know the correct answer either so they won because they did not bet! And the answer was the Huxtables.

The last competition was dressing our leader in a costume from a slip of paper pulled from a hat. Our paper was 80’s theme. We chose to dress our leader Barbara as an 80 year old women from the 80’s. The other teams had a clown, an American tourist, a superhero, a cowboy, a pirate, Lady GaGa and a few other that I could not figure out what they were. They all came up with some clever costumes and the winner was the pirate.

The closing ceremonies were rather anti-climatic after the opening spectacle. They announced the winners and it was over. The Red Sea had the most points and took first place, which means they will be the first group to leave the ship when we dock in San Diego on April 24th.

SAS Olympics

We have been busy preparing for our opening ceremonies tonight. Our color for the Sea Salts is white, so we are all wearing white shirts, white head bands and arm bands. One of the ladies has written the following song which we will sing to the tune of My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean.

“My bonnie new friends on the ocean
Are traveling to many new lands
Of classes and food there is plenty.
The students and teachers are grand

Bring on! Bring on!
Sights and adventures on land and sea!
Sing on! Sing on!
Life long learner “Sea Salts” are we!”

After singing the song we will chant

“Are we winners?
Well I guess!
Sea Salts! Sea Salts!
Yes! Yes! Yes!”

After that they will start playing Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and we have an old geezer with one silver glove and a hat dancing to the beat.

It is now 11:00 PM and we just returned from the opening ceremonies and we Sea Salts tied for first place with our songs and cheers. We had taken used plastic laundry bags and cut them up into strips to make pom poms. We old folks cannot yell as loud as the students, but our pom poms were a good visual.

"LUXURY HOTEL" DAY TWO

We awoke early this morning and went for breakfast at 7:00 AM. At 8:30 AM boarded another river boat and went across the Amazon to a rubber museum. The Portuguese had control of Brazil in the 1800’s and they tricked the natives into becoming slaves as rubber collectors. They would tell them to come and work for them and they would become rich. The young men (some as young at 12 - 13 years old) would be given a lantern to wear on their head and the tools to cut the tree and collect the “milk” in a cup. They had to go out into the jungle at 2:00 AM to start collecting the milk from 150 trees. After they collected the milk they had to cook it over the fire to make it into rubber balls. If they did not collect enough weight they would not be fed. Some of them tried to run away and the Portuguese would recapture them and not let them go. Sometimes they would give them liquor and they would get into fights with other slaves. If they ended up killing one of the others, they thought they would be sent to prison, so to avoid being forced to continue as slaves they willingly killed one another. Then they would go to the Portuguese and tell them they had killed someone, and the Portuguese would give them a shovel and tell them to go bury that person. Then they would tell the slave that the person he killed owed them $3000 and so now the slave that committed murder owes the $3000 plus what he already owes for being fed etc. We toured a house that one of the Portuguese families lived in. It was decorated with all European style furniture. This family had children with at least one daughter. They built a separate shower for her and it was guarded while she was bathing so that no one could watch her. They sent their clothing to Portugal to be washed as they thought the Amazon water would discolor her clothes and she wore mostly white. Just 50 years ago this slave rubber labor was going on. The head Portuguese man that lived in this house was not liked at all by the slaves and while his family was away visiting in Portugal the slaves captured him and burned him to death. This pretty much put an end to slave rubber labor in this country.

It was interesting that the village that we visited yesterday was not under the slave rubber labor and the one we visited today was.

We returned to the resort for lunch. There is a macaw living there that lost it’s mate to a boa constrictor last year and because they normally mate for life, he is one angry bird. He hangs out in the reception and eating area which is an open air pavilion and intimidates the customers. After lunch there was a jungle walk that we also skipped as it involved a strenuous hike and it was very hot and humid as usual.

Our guide was named Washington and his story was interesting. He is on his fifth marriage and never said what happened to the first four wives. He is the oldest of 7 children and he had one year of school and then he had to stay home and take care of the younger children, while his mother was out selling her homemade items and produce. He was born in British Guyana and speaks English. At age 15 his parents told him it was time for him to get married and move out of their house. They arranged for him to marry a 14 year old girl. He has some marks on his chin and forehead, which indicates what tribe he is from and they can tell from the marks if they are related or not. They do not want to marry someone with the same marks as that would be too much inbreeding and the cause of birth defects. I asked him how many children he has and he said he has two that he knows about. He will be 53 years old next month and said he had malaria 22 times but now he is cured. (I did not know that was possible.) He seems to be a very resourceful and knowledgeable guy. He knows what roots to boil up and drink when he gets sick. He said he could retire but does not want to as he likes to keep on moving. I wonder how many wives he will have had by the end of his life.

We returned to the ship for dinner and it was good to get “home.”

JOURNEY TO "LUXURY" HOTEL

Today we departed on a river boat for an overnight stay at a Luxury Eco-resort. We motored down the river about two hours to a point that the Solomon River coming from Peru joins up with the Rio Negra River coming from Colombia. The Solomon River is called the white river and is full of sediment that gives it the color of coffee with lots of cream. The Rio Negra is called the black river and has more acid in it, which gives it it‘s black color. The water stays separate for quite a few miles before it all becomes black. The Amazon means warrior woman and a lot of women cut off their breasts back in the day that they were hunting with bow and arrow as it was easier to aim without the breast in the way. Us women are tough!

We stopped at a village and had to walk through a wet area before we got to where the people live. It is the rainy season from December to June and the river will rise several feet depending how much rain falls. The guide pointed out high up on the trees the water line from last year. They had so much rain that they were evacuated by the government. After the water receded they were allowed to return. The people in this village have a shop set up to sell the goods that they make. A lot of the stuff was made from natural resources found in their environment. I was looking for a little doll that a co-worker asked me to get for her. I found a really nice one, but did not buy it as it had very colorful feathers on it and they said that is came from native birds. Semester at Sea is encouraging us to not buy anything that is made from using animal parts and I don’t know if I could get it into the USA through customs. Therefore, I purchased a doll made from gourd looking things that come off of the Calabash Tree.

The people of this village also put on a demonstration of how they gather rubber from the rubber trees. They make a cut low down on the tree and a milky white substance starts to flow out from the cut. They catch this milky stuff in a cup and pour it all into a pot over a fire. They keep turning it and turning it to shape it into a ball. They had some finished balls there and they were kind of like basket balls. Anyway up until 1910 they would sell their rubber and were quite successful although the buyers of rubber would require a certain weight for the ball and tell them it was not heavy enough to cheat them out of being paid the correct amount. Sounds like a typical white man scam. In 1910 the British came into the rain forest and harvested 900 plus seeds from the rubber trees and planted them in Asia and that is where most of the rubber is produced in the world today.

Our guide told us we had about a 15 minute walk to another village where we were going to have lunch. We followed a muddy footpath for at least another 30 - 35 minutes and it was very hot and humid, before we came to the restaurant. We even had to walk through a cow pasture and skirt around the cow pies.

The restaurant was on stilts and the food was delicious. They depend solely on their produce and animals for food. The only things they buy in Manaus is clothing, shoes and tools. They take their produce usually on Thursday to the market to sell. They are able to harvest a crop every three months and there is one three month period where they are unable to do anything because of the high water level. The guide said that is why there are so many children in the village! All of their homes, shops, churches and restaurants are on stilts.

After our lunch we had to get back on the river boat and travel about 2 ½ hours to the Luxury Eco-resort. We got there about 3:30 PM and they planned to take us piranha fishing and alligator hunting at 4:30 PM. Phyllis and I declined to go on this expedition, but the people that did participate said it was fun. It was dark by the time they returned and then it was time for dinner. We have been eating A LOT on this trip and it has all been really good food.

Our room at this resort is also on stilts and seemed to tilt towards the lake in the middle. It was very hot and humid and I could hardly wait to take a shower and get ready for bed. It was hard to figure out the remote for the air conditioning and so it was pretty cold sleeping. There was only a sheet on the bed - no blanket and I had charley horses during the night.

MANAUS, BRAZIL

Finally we are here in Manaus. The Samba dancers were at the pier to meet us and dressed in their costumes, which are very colorful and lots of feathers. I did not get a picture, as my camera was in my back pack and we have to walk down about 30 steps to get off the ship and hang on tight. My nephew John has been taking pictures like crazy so hopefully I can get some from him. Yesterday he spent a lot of time outside on the deck with his camera and got a picture of a boat where the people were holding up the head of a cow and the blood was dripping out of it. I did not see any of this but everyone said that the guy in the boat was very excited and probably very proud of his catch. I think John will be posting some more pictures on the blog.

Phyllis and I went on a field trip today called Getting to know Manaus. 70 of us started out walking from the ship to the fish market. We had two guides - one in the front and one in the rear. It was very hot and humid. The fish market was very busy and crowded. The guide walked very quickly and it was hard to maneuver thru all of the people. We were following the Bender sisters who were behind one of our shipmates who is quite large. He stopped and turned around and said he did not know where the guide was, so now we were lost in the fish market. The fish smell was pretty strong with the heat and humidity. We got ourselves back outside and were standing in a group talking about what we were going to do next. A man from the Tour Guide company stopped and asked if we were lost and then escorted to where the buses were. Walking along the sidewalk we passed a man laying down sound asleep on the ground and that we had to step around. We also passed a man getting a haircut on a low stool and a group of people waiting for the next haircut. There are a lot of dogs running lose.

We got on the buses and the tour guide said we were going to two different parts of the city. One part where the wealthy people live and the other part where the poor people live. This field trip was a requirement for some of the students and the teacher wanted them to see those two areas. It appeared to me that the wealthy live mostly in high rise condominiums and they said that one apartment takes up the whole floor. Someone asked who are the wealthy and his response was that it is politicians, military and business people.

The bus stopped in what I assumed was a poorer section marketplace. People got off the bus and looked at some of the houses and shops. The streets are very narrow and there is lots of foot traffic. The people living there were looking at us as much as we were looking at them.

We made our way back into downtown and stopped at the Manaus Opera House. This Opera House was built starting in the late 1800’s and opened December 31, 1896. It is very ornate and a lot of the building materials were shipped in from Europe like marble and wood. In the main auditorium we were told how the ladies preferred to sit in the box seats, not to see the performance better, but to be seen. We were not allowed to use flash inside so most of my pictures are outside. One of the rooms upstairs had slippers for us all to wear as the floor in that room is all inlaid wood with no nails and no glue. He said they danced in that room so maybe it is called the ballroom. In 1896 they did not start performances until late evening as it was too hot and humid earlier in the day and they would open the doors and windows for a breeze. Our guide said that there is not much mosquitoes in Manaus because of the acidity of the water so they were able to open it up and not have to worry about getting bit. So far I have not seen any mosquitoes but there are big flies that like to bite our ankles.

We returned to the ship around 2:00 PM and the people that did not go on a tour with us said they were disappointed with the marketplace as it closed up so early they did not get to shop. So consequently I have not been able to shop either. I have Brazilian money so I definitely need to spend it.

Carib Indians

Today we went on our first field trip in Roseau, Dominica. There were enough people to fill up three buses of students and life long learners. The bus took us up the mountain several miles for at least an hour. Our first stop was at Emerald Pool. This is a clear pool of water at the bottom of a waterfall. We had to walk a short distance through the rainforest to get to this pool and most of the students jumped right in and enjoyed themselves. It was quite a hike to get back up the hill but I made it.

We then got back on the bus and rode to an area where the “Carib Indians” live. According to a book that I purchased from these people, they moved into the Windward Islands from the Orinoco region of South America. According to their book the men called themselves “Karifuna” and the women “Karina”. It was the Europeans who called them Caribs.

Through the centuries, the Caribs have had to adjust to a European way of life, losing in the process most of their traditional ways of life, their religions and languages.

These people invited us into their homes and showed us the way they live. The first house that we visited was a father, mother and five sons. The boys were afraid of us and four of them ran and hid under the bed. The fifth son was on a laptop computer in the corner of a very sparsely furnished room. There was also a small television set in the “living room”. There were two bedrooms and the five boys all sleep in the same bed.

They have a separate building for cooking and a shower is outside, as well as a grass covered hut used for basket weaving. The father is very resourceful and told us he is a jack of all trades, master of none. He showed us his yard that is full of plants and trees from where they get the majority of their food.

At the second home we visited there was a young girl who showed us how they prepare dinner over an open fire. She had grated a taro plant into a fine powder and poured it dry into a pan over the fire. She flipped it one time and when it was done cooking, she cut it up and served it to us with mango jelly. It was delicious.

At the third home, the father showed us how they squeeze the sugar cane to get a sweet drink. Actually I think they said they start water to boil in the morning for breakfast and add some of the cocoa plant and then the juice from the sugar cane to make it sweet.

When we returned to the area where the buses were, the whole community had prepared a meal for us. There were two kinds of taro (one that was boiled and one that was fried), a mixture of fish and some grains, some small bread rolls with maybe a cheese spread and coconut candy. We saw a mother cow that had a baby feeding from her, so we assume that they got milk from the cow and made the cheese themselves.

It was fun to watch the little kids who were watching us wide-eyed and afraid of us. But then we heard the ice cream truck and they all ran for that. It seems like they live so primitively, yet they have current technology like cell phones, computers and televisions.

It was a wonderful excursion.

LIFE BOAT DRILL

We had our first life boat drill yesterday. It was mandatory for everyone to attend. We were instructed to return to our rooms and put on long pants, long sleeved shirts, jacket, hat and closed toe shoes. Then we had to put on our life vests. There is a poster on the back of the door instructing us where to go when the alarm sounds. At the alarm we all walked upstairs and out onto the deck and to our assigned life boat. (Women and children in the front, men in the rear.) After we all were assembled the staff called out our room numbers and we had to respond that we were present. They went through the list of room numbers twice. After the captain was satisfied with our compliance we were allowed to return to our rooms. We will being doing this periodically throughout our voyage.