Aloha!

It took us four days to cross from San Francisco to Hawaii and it was a stormy four days – rolling seas and cloudy/rainy weather. The roll did not bother us – we love a good “rock” when we’re on a ship – although I think many folks didn’t care too much for the motion of the ship.

Lots of interesting folks on board from many different nations. We’ve met New Zealanders, Canadiens, Australians, Germans, British, Swedes, and of course other Americans. About 500 of them are taking the ship all the way around the world. They are all very nice and all with different stories and backgrounds. Food is delicious and, as always, there is way too much of it!!

Our day in Honolulu was wonderful as we were able to spend it with Tim, Jacqueline, Madison and Charlotte.  We met them at the Hale Koa, a military hotel on the beach in Honolulu, and spent most of the day hanging out by the pool; followed by dinner together at The Yard House before saying goodbye to them as they headed home and we headed back to the ship. Of course, seeing Madison and Charlotte was wonderful. Charlotte has changed so much since Christmas – very active, much bigger, crawling, and in to everything if you don’t watch her closely. Madison is as loving as ever and so much fun to play with, especially in the kiddie pool as we “raced” each other from end to end – somehow Madison always won the race! We left Ed in charge of a sleeping Charlotte while the rest of us swam in the bigger pool; however, when we returned we weren’t sure who was watching who?? We look forward to our week with Tim and family in early March.

I have now joined the millions of folks who use “Uber”! It was so easy (who knew?) as I downloaded the app to my phone, requested a driver to take us from the ship to the Hale Koa and within five minutes we were on our way, driven by a nice girl whose husband is a submariner stationed on the island. She, too, can’t wait to get back to the states. I guess it happens to all who arrive to live in Hawaii. The first year or two is amazing and wonderful and you want to spend the rest of your life here; and then you realize that it’s very far away from family and your places to go are limited – as she put it, “You can only drive around the island so many times.”

Our visit to Maui had us whale watching on a catamaran and yes, we did see lots of whales. These amazing creatures like to visit this area of Maui (which is near Lanai and Molokai) as it’s a protected spot with shallow water making it perfect for finding a mate or giving birth to their young.

But we are now on our way to Apia and Tonga in Western Samoa. It will take us five days to get there. The sea has calmed down and the weather is very warm – 80 degrees – so we’re able to be on deck getting in some sunbathing.  There are also lots of interesting speakers on board and we have attended many of those presentations; most notably a British sports journalist by the name of Claire Balding; and earlier in the trip a retired NFL Referee by the name of Bob McElwee – listening to him offered us amazing insights into a side of NFL football we had not previously known about.

We are obviously getting more and more relaxed each day and are not missing the cold weather back east. Tonight (today is Sunday, February 12th) while we sleep, we will skip over Monday, February 13th and awake to Tuesday, February 14th as we cross the International Date Line. Then, on Tuesday, we will participate in a “ceremony” (since we’ve never crossed the dateline) as we go from being “Pollywogs” to “Shellbacs” – Ed is planning on doing the “full works” which includes being covered with food resembling the intestines of a fish or other marine animals (spaghetti and the like?). I have opted to just participate in a “parade” and perhaps will have to “kiss” a fish. I opted out of the “full works” as I didn’t bring any old clothes with me (who brings “old” clothes on a cruise?). Still not sure what Ed will wear – I’ll update you more on this event after it happens.