It seems cute little creatures in the elephant family inhabit this mountain top. They look nothing like elephants - no trunk, no tusks, no big floppy ears, not even grey, but we were assured they were the smallest creature in that family...

Thankfully we had another beautiful sea day after that most fantastic day in Durban. I needed it to rest, as my excursion of choice for Port Elizabeth was scheduled to be five and a half hours in duration - most of which was spent bouncing along deeply rutted dirt roads in a 4X4. The Addo Elephant Park is located an hour and a half's drive from the port on a well-maintained highway through rural countryside. Addo Elephant Park is another of South Africa's National wild anim

Though we are now far removed from the abject poverty and desperation of The French Nation Islands, their plight remains in my heart and mind. Surely there is something that someone, somewhere can do for these people to improve their situation and restore the islands to the wonder God created... Not saying that everyone should live as you and I do, but surely, drinkable water and sanitary living conditions would certainly make life a little better for them. Our next port

Back to Hell-Ville. This community/town/village was founded in 1840 by a French Admiral named Hell. How unfortunate. Pity he wasn't named Pleasant or Prosperous or perhaps even Not So Bad. Not to be....

God does have a wonderful sense of humor!!! If you recall, after my 2023 experience in India, I vowed that even though I had long wanted to see The Taj Mahal, I would not be doing so until such time as I learned it was no longer in India. God heard my vow. Then, along came this voyage which allowed an inland excursion to The Taj Mahal. I waffled... Signed on for a shorter version of the "Around the World" including The Taj Mahal, along with other favorite ports from prev

When we first arrived, I noticed that both ladies were wearing head-cloths. I assumed for protection from the sun... Nope!

Still on the original itinerary, after leaving Indonesia, we made our way through more of the huge Indian Ocean to Singapore...

After our delightful dinner ended, some seventy of my shipmates and I were instructed to stroll over to the amphitheater for a performance of a ceremonial, tribal dance entitled "Kecak" - otherwise known as "The Monkey Dance." The name is derived from the sound monkeys make while at play in the forest. To begin the performance at least one hundred men dressed in their native attire of decades ago came onto the grass below and took a seat. They came in chanting "KEH - CHAK"

The independent nation of Indonesia is made up of over 17,500 separate islands. Our route from Darwin to Singapore took us to four of those islands each different from the last. Our first stop was Kupang West Timor, known for its colonial buildings and craft markets. I, however, was not fast enough to sign up for any of the ship's excursions and - keeping with my pledge to NOT wander off alone abroad - I was only able to capture this one little piece of the port of Tenau. S

Storm Clouds Hovering on the Horizon Since we have just docked in the beautiful (and quite busy) harbor of Bali, Indonesia, I realized as far as you knew, I was still Down Under! It was with a very heavy heart that I left Darwin Harbor, our last Australian port. But first there was Cairns, something of a washout, literally. Much of the trip north from Sydney has been "wetter than usual" with talk of typhoons. Cairn's weather was relatively calm with only scattered show

On this bright and beautiful Day 38 of our journey, my excursion of choice was "Townsville & Billabong Sanctuary" which necessitated a short bus ride up the main highway to Brisbane, Queensland. I have felt so at home with all these names as I travel along the Gold Coast of Australia. It's like a stroll through the shop, where all these names are on the labels of Queensland Yarns. Three residents of Brisbane, whom I met in Craft Class one sea day awhile back, scoffed at th

There is so very much to see in this part of the World; a week or two here and there is simply not enough. When we leave tomorrow, I will most certainly leave a little piece of my heart in Australia. As beautiful as Seychelles, but different. Due to weather, we did not see the wonders of Mooloolaba, but instead moved on up the coast to Whitsunday Island. (According to Sam, our female pilot, Whitsunday was so named before the International Dateline was created thus should

Sunrise over Sydney The Vista arrived in beautiful Sydney Harbor just before sunrise on April 9th, Day 33 of our journey. Two piers are available in Sydney: one for ships that can pass under their iconic bridge and another supposedly newer and better for those ships too tall to pass under the bridge. Another reason I like the smaller ships. Pity those poor blokes who paid all that money to come to Sydney but didn't get to sail under perhaps the most famous bridge in the

As Dottie, a now retired cruise director, loved to say, "You learn something new every day." This day, I learned that Charles Cook who discovered these islands decided it looked very much like his homeland - so he named it "New Caledonia." Though I have a dear friend named Caledonia, I had absolutely NO clue that it meant Scotland . Be honest, how many of you reading this knew that? Not been to Scotland yet, but this is nowhere similar to what I have envisioned Scotland to

All the necessary ingredients for a very Happy Easter surrounded us on board including dyed eggs and Easter displays, a HUGE bowl of jellybeans at the breakfast buffet, an Easter Egg Hunt complete with prizes (Big-O points), God threw in a rainbow and a wonderful Easter Service. In between all these activities under BEAUTIFUL sunny skies, those who so chose boarded tenders to unravel the "mystery" of Mystery Island. Somewhere between Fiji and New Caledonia lies the isla

Yesterday, April 3rd was spent in Suva, Fiji, the largest city in this part of the Pacific. Our excursion departed at 7:50 am - necessitating an early wakeup call if one was to eat before setting out to see all the sights of Suva. No worries, I made it to The Terrace in plenty of time to enjoy my coffee, fresh-squeezed orange juice, bacon, and heaping plate of delicious fresh fruit, berries and nuts. Aboard our air-conditioned bus, our guide shared many interesting facts

Beautiful Mother and Son in Tonga Today, April 2nd, Day 26 of our voyage will be spent in the extremely VAST Pacific Ocean somewhere between Vava'u, Tonga and Suva, Fiji. Now, Fiji I've heard of, Tonga, not so much. For our day (yesterday) in Tonga I chose an excursion "to acquaint one with the local culture. . . and Craft Market..." according to our Destinations Department. "Craft Market" was the key for me. Welcoming Committee in Tonga Typical Home Sixteen of us boarded

Today, March 27 is the 21st day of this 120 day "Around The World" cruise aboard The Vista, one of the newer ships in Oceania's fleet. The Vista is larger than The Insignia on which we made the 2023 journey, and therefore can accommodate 1,200 passengers with a crew of 800. It is, therefore, larger overall than The Insignia, providing: more restaurants from which to choose, a larger lounge for entertainment, an actual person acting as concierge, a larger stateroom on the c

Before arriving in our first French Polynesian port, we were told that each island would be prettier than the previous. I, being a skeptic, thought they were just doing some salesman's puffing. Actually - they truly are, and in different ways. The first, Nuku Hiva, was formed by volcanic eruptions as are most of these islands. Gorgeous, mountainous, covered with dense, really green vegetation, turquoise seas and equally beautiful blue skies dotted with puffy white cumulus

Land Ho! Many, many years ago - when I was probably in grade school, I learned that the Pacific Ocean is the largest body of water on Earth. Okay, so that means it's big. I have had the good fortune to fly over, cruise around the outer edges, cross the equator from both the North and South, cross the International Date Line therein twice, catch multiple eye-popping sunsets thereon, pictures of tranquil seas and skies and some not so tranquil seas/skies. I thought I pretty