We left for the Eastern Caribbean with an evening departure from Fort Lauderdale. We settled in our cabin in Holland America's Koningsdam and unpacked. It was her first voyage in the Carribean and had just made her first Atlantic crossing. Everyday on the ship the carpet in the elevator has the day of the week and every night they leave a different towel animal.
Thursday, October 19, 2017, At SeaOur first full day on the cruise we were at sea. Jen had a morning workout in the exercise room. We spent the afternoon relaxing on the balcony with wine. We also noticed that the ship had a music theme. The decor, atrium, and artwork throughout the ship gave a musical feel throughout the ship. We enjoyed spending time in the crow's Nest. It is on the top deck and offers a panoramic view of the ocean.
Friday, October 20, 2017, At SeaOn our second sea day we explored the ship and Jen photographed from stem to stern. We normally ate breakfast and lunch in the Lido Deck. The Lido is cafeteria style servings with a variety of cusines. In the evening, we ate in the main dining hall. Dinner was a sit down meal with appetizers, soup or salad, a main entree from a choice of five or six selections, followed by dessert. Sue usually feasted on Creme Brulee.
Saturday, October 21, 2017, St. Johns, Antigua and BarbudaOn day Four of our cruise we docked at St John's, Antigua. Bob and Jen kayaked and snorkeled. We used a two person kayak and paddled in a mangrove lagoon. We saw lots of starfish in the shallow lagoon. Later, we took a launch to an oceanside coastal area and snorkeled in a shallow area offshore. We hiked up a hill to a high point that overlooked the ocean and the surrounding land. While Bob and Jen were gone, Sue walked around the duty free port near the dock. We are always looking for trivits (wall tiles) to add to our collection. We mount them in our kitchen on a facia above the wall cabinets. We also collect lapel pins and attach them to a framed U. S. wall map in the kitchen dining nook.
Sunday, October 22, 2017, Point-a-Pitre, GuadeloupeToday we are visited Guadeloupe. We took an extended bus tour of the island that took us to Crayfish Waterfall, Morne-à-l'Eau cemetery and Pointe des Chateaux. The cemetary consisted of crypts above ground. They were made of black and white tiles in checkerboard designs. The cemetary was on a hill with steep steps and ramps to the top. We bought a trivit at one of the stops. After dinner we attended a show in the main auditorium. It was called "Frozen Planet". There were segments from the BBC TV documentary "Earth" with musicans accompaning the video with a live soundtrack. The video was projected on three screens behind the main stage.
Monday, October 23, 2017, Bridgetown, BarbadosMonday we visited Barbados. Jen took a photography tour with photographer Ronnie Carrington. They saw a plantation (no photos, it was raining), a Chattel house and the Scotland district, then visited a rum punch bar. Bob and Sue took another bus tour of the island and stopped at St. John's Church. The church was built in the 1600's but destroyed four times by harricanes and rebuilt each time. We walked through the cemetary behind the church and saw an ancient sun dial. It started to rain and we returned to the bus. At another stop we saw the Governor's and Prime Minister's house. At the end of the tour, visited a rum punch bar. Long live the rum punch traditions!
Tuesday, October 24, 2017, Fort-De-France, MartiniqueTuesday we visited Fort-de-France, Martinique. We walked around town, visited the St. Louis Cathedral, and visited Fort Saint Louis. Bob and Jen decided to tour the fort in the afternoon. The tour was to end just before we were scheduled to leave port. Anyone that misses the departure time will be left behind. That happened on our cruise to Alaska. We told the docent about the time situation, but he was late to start the tour. During the tour, he spoke so quickly that he was hard to hear. However, he did a great job and got us back so we were able to board the ship in time to depart. We enjoyed happy hour when we got back to the ship.
Wednesday, October 25, 2016, Castries Saint LuciaOn Wednesday we took a guided bus tour of St Lucia. We saw a banana farm, the Pitons, La Soufriere Drive-In Volcano and a cocoa bean plantation. Jen was finally able to photograph the sunset. During the tour, we stopped at the crater of the La Soufriere volcano. We walked to an area that was bubbling and emiting steam. The guide informed us of the history of the area and the threat of an eruption that may occur sometime in the future. We didn't stay long. At the cocoa bean plantation, we walked through the property with a local guide. She talked about plantation life and showed us the buildings used at that time and how the cocoa beans were processed. We tasted raw coconuts and cocoa beans.
Thursday, October 26, 2017, Basseterre St Kitts and NevisFriday, October 27, 2017, At sea
We spent a typical sea day on board. Relaxing, reading and enjoying the ocean views.
Saturday, October 28, 2017, Half Moon Cay, BahamasHalf Moon Cay (Key) is owned my Holland America Cruise lines and is a stop on most of their Caribbean cruises. We took a tender to the Cay and shopped in the many kiosks and stores in the port. She found a wood carving to add to her collection. The food crew from the ship came ashore and prepared lunch in an open area with pavilions for eating. There were several bars along the beach and many cabanas for rent. Bob and Sue rented a clam shell, a sun umbrella on the beach, for sun protection. While they were relaxing, Jen took a hodrseback ride on the beach. She was looking forward to riding on the beach, but her ride was cut short when someone fell off their horse into the water. Jen's horse followed the riderless horse back to the beach instead of continuing her ocean ride. Jen joined Bob and Sue on the beach after the horseride. Bob and Jen spent the afternoon swimming. Sue relaxed and walked in the warm surf. Jen had her underwater camera and took video of the fish around us. The fish were attracted to another swimmer that had some bread and was feeding the fish. We returned to the ship in the afternoon and got ready for our 7:00 arrival in Fort Lauderdale tomorrow morning.
Sunday, October 29, 2017, Ft. Lauderdale, FloridaWe arrived in Fort Lauderdaly, took a shuttle bus to the airport and flew home to Geodrgia. We had a great family trip together.