Just Cruises Plus

Contest Photo 1/12/14

We had a record number of correct answers to last week’s photo contest (photo on right).  In fact, we had no incorrect guesses.  Of course, the correct answer was New Orleans.

The “Big Easy” was originally settled by the Spanish, taken over by the French and finally sold to the US in the Louisiana Purchase.  Africans, both free and slave, were in New Orleans from its earliest days as were Native Americans. With this rich and diverse history, it is no wonder that New Orleans is America’s most unique big city.

Music, food and the Mardi Gras are the life blood of New Orleans and this year’s Mardi Gras is rapidly approaching.  The big day, Fat Tuesday, is on March 4th but the party has already started with the parades beginning on February 15th.

Royal Caribbean, NCL and Carnival all have round-trip sailings from New Orleans at various times of the year.  Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas has a couple of last minute deals worth checking out.

Congratulations to Larry Pollock of Levittown, PA, the winner of our $25 gift card.  His name was randomly selected from the 67 who responded correctly.

More Scenes of New Orleans. . . . .

New Orleans Street Scene

French Market

Jazz-themed Metal Sculpture

New Orleans Street

Egret on Bank of the Mississippi

The Edge of Jackson Square

Recognize this Caryatid?

Caryatid which stands in the British Museum

For last week’s photo contest we asked in which European museum this caryatid is located and where did she originally stand?  Congratulations to Ann Marie Danvers, of Philadelphia, PA,  whose name was randomly selected from the 27 correct responses.

This Caryatid stands as part of the “Elgin Collection” in the British Museum in London.  It was taken from the site of the Acropolis in Athens.  Caryatids are female figures which serve as supports.  This is one of six that held up the roof of the Erectheion (the temple of the Acropolis).

Between 1800 and 1803, G.B. Lusieri, acting on behalf of Lord Elgin, removed this caryatid, which stood second from the left on the front of the south porch.  During the Greek War of Independence (1821-33) the Erectheion was reduced to ruins, although the caryatids survived.  It has since been reconstructed.  The BritishMuseum’s caryatid is better preserved than her sisters, which have now severely weathered.  They have recently been removed to the Acropolis Museum and replaced by casts.*

* Taken from an excerpt of The Elgin Marbles by B.F. Cook

Contest Photo 3/15/13 - Ortakoy Mosque

Last week, we asked you to name the domed structure shown in the contest photo (on right) and to tell us the city in which it is located.  Congratulations to Alan Heller of Baltimore, MD, whose name was randomly selected from those who answered correctly.

The name of the structure is the Ortakoy Mosque (officially, the “Buyuk Majidiye” Mosque).  And the city, of course, is Istanbul, a city with a “split personality” in more ways than one.  First, it is a city in which the modern and vibrant coexist with a history that goes back over 3000 years.  Second, the city resides in both Europe and Asia.  It is split  by the Bosphorus Straight which connects the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea.

Our visit to Istanbul was both adventurous and amazing.  The adventure included a public ferry ride, which zigzaged along the Bosphorus between European and Asian ferry stops.  Although we tried to blend in with the locals, our oohs and ahs must have given us away as tourists and a kind local took us under his wing  and gave a running commentary of the sites we saw along the river, albeit in Turkish.  However, we still appreciated the friendly hospitality and asked for repeat pronunciations of the sites he was naming.

Fishing from the Galata Bridge

Our adventure also included an unsuccessful pickpocket attempt on the Galata bridge  (unsuccessful due to Wayne’s quick reaction to the unfamiliar and unwelcome hand in his pocket) and a mild fender-bender that occurred when a Mercedes Benz cut in front of our Taxi.  Words between the drivers ensued and, because at that point we were a 5-minute walk from our destination, we quickly paid the driver and continued on our way.

While in Istanbul we also visited the amazing historical sites located in the Sultanahmet section of the city.  These included the Topkapi Palace (the sultan and his his harem lived here), the Hagia Sophia (at one time an Eastern Orthodox church, later a mosque and now a museum), the extraordinary and multi-minareted Sultan Ahmed Mosque, (commonly known as the “Blue” mosque due to the blue cast of the intricate tilework on the inside of the mosque).  Our nostrils were delightfully stimulated on our walk through the Egyptian Spice Market.  The Grand Bazaar is a sight to behold but is a bit on the touristy side (practice your negotiating skills).  We ended our stay in Istanbul with dinner and a local street fair in Ortakoy, a neighborhood located on the European bank of the Bosphorus.

If you are cruising to or from Istanbul, consider extending your stay for a few extra days to experince this wonderful city.  See below for a sampling of  photos taken on our trip!

View of the Old City from the Ferry Terminal

Coming Home from Work

Moving Day?

Waiting for the Ferry

Fishing Boats on the Bosphorus

The Egyptian Spice Market

Blue Mosque

Hagia Sophia

Ortakoy Street Fair

In response to the question we posed two weeks ago, the island that is known for its 365 beaches is Antigua.  Congratulations to Gina Nichols of Ambler, PA whose name was randomly selected from the 13 correct answers.

Antigua is located in the Southern Caribbean and is part of the Leeward chain of islands.  It is far more low key than the faster paced islands of St. Thomas and St. Martin.  It also has less rainfall than most of its neighbors.  The reason for the low rainfall is that its hills are not as high as those of its neighbors.

Long Bay - one of the many lovely beaches on Antigua

The effect is that it is a great place to enjoy days of sunshine on it’s many beautiful beaches.  Another effect is that, with less rainfall, they are not able to grow very much so much of their food comes form the nearby island of Dominica, where the mountains are higher and the rainfall greater.

Antigua is divided into 6 parishes – all named for saints. The largest is the colorful city of  St. John, which is literally steps from the cruise ship dock.

St. John, Antigua

While in Antigua on our cruise, we arranged for a private tour for four, independent of the cruise line, because it included more places and was less expensive.  During the tour, we passed through local villages on our way to Shirley Heights, where we got spectacular views of English Harbor and Nelson’s Dockyard.

View of English Harbor from Shirley Heights

We also drove through Indian Town to visit Devil’s Bridge, a natural bridge caused by hundreds of years of wave action.

Devil’s Bridge

Tourism is currently the largest contributor to Antigua’s economy.  The “high” season is November through April, when northerners are trying to escape the cold, but it is beautiful year-round.  There are some great resorts in Antigua, including Sandals.

If you visit Antigua, and you are looking for some quality local arts and crafts, you might spend some time in St. John, but the main attractions are the beaches and views from the country side.

New York is a great place to visit any time of year, but given the lovely fall weather we have been experiencing, now is a wonderful time to go.  Whether you are visiting for the day, or staying a few days pre or post cruise, here are some suggestions for things to do that are either free or low cost.

Places to Walk/Run

Walk, run, bike or just relax on the Esplanade

Along the Hudson River on the West Side — You can start as far south as Battery Park, near the Staten Island Ferry Terminal. In some parts it is referred to as the “Esplanade”.   Great for people and dog watching and scenery keeps changing — along the way, you may come across a playground, a park, or an outdoor concert.  We will sometimes take our bicycles onto the Staten Island Ferry (Staten Island Parking is just $7.00 for the day and the ferry to Manhattan is free) and then bike along the path that has been created on the West Side.

High Line  — this is a raised historic park built along an old retired freight line.  Some of the tracks were still left in tact.  Sculptures and other exhibits vary and typically are worked into the perennial gardens along the pathway.   Many events are held here, including an occasional movie under the stars.  Even without the sculptures or events, the architecture, street scenes, murals and billboards are sure to generate great topics of conversation.

Billboard, viewed from the High Line.

Flowers in the park.

Other Things to Do

South Street Seaport

South Street Seaport – Very cool tall ships and other vessels.

Times Square — Look up and see that you are surrounded by lights and glitter!

The Apple Store (near Central Park) —  fun to visit, even if you go just to look at the unique entrance.  There are other Apple Stores in Soho and Grand Central Station.

FAO Schwartz — A toy store, great for window shopping (around the corner from the Apple Store).

Top of the Rock and Tour of  NBC Studios — If you spend money on a tour, the tour of Rockefeller Center and NBC Studios is one worth considering and it is under $25 a person.

Contest Photo 9/7/12 - Independence Square in St. Kitts.

This week, there were very few attempts to guess the location of our contest photo (shown to the right). Congratulations to Ronald & Robyn Powers of Brooklyn, NY, who were randomly selected from those who responded correctly. 

 The photo  was taken on St. Kitts, a West Indian island which borders both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.  It is considered part of the Leeward Islands along with such islands as Saba, Sint Martin, the Virigin Islands and it’s sister island,  Nevis.  

St. Kitts is located about 1,300 southeast of Miami.  It is one of the lesser known cruise ports, so it is a special treat when it is on ship’s itinerary.  It’s cruise port is located in it’s capital city, Basseterre.  While many original buildings have been destroyed by hurricanes, fires and earthquakes, the surviving colonial and Georgian architecture gives bustling Basseterre a unique look. The town’s hub is the Circus, a square styled afterLondon’sPiccadilly Circus, with a clock tower in the center. Art galleries, music and bookstores, Internet cafes, boutiques and craft shops make it a fun place to explore.  Independence Square, encircled by stately Georgian manors was where Basseterre’s slave market was held.

The island’s lush geography lends itself to eco-tourism, starting with the dense tropical rainforests that surround dormant volcano, Mount Liamuiga.  Colorful birds, butterflies and mokeys reside here.

Scenic Railway offers unique views of the island.

While in St. Kitts, we took a ride on the St. Kitts Scenic Railway, which enabled us to get to know the island quickly and experience some unique views.  The double-decker railcars follow the old sugar cane train tracks, offering views of the Caribbean Sea, mountains and neighboring island.  And if you’re lucky, you will be serenaded by some of the local children.  The remaining photos are a sampling of what we saw while on this train.

View of the volcanic peaks.

View of the Caribbean Sea.

View of Saba Island.

View of two friends relaxing in the grass.

We suspected last week’s photo contest might be a tough one, so we were not too surprised that there were fewer than 10 responses. Of those responses, just one was correct.

Historic Historic village of Leland, Michigan. Contest Photo 8/17/12.

Congratulations to Rocky Cestroni of Huntingdon Valley who correctly guessed that the photo was taken in historic Leland, Michigan.

The construction of a dam and sawmill on the river ramped up the influx of settlers in the mid 1800s. The settlers built wooden docks, which allowed steamers and schooners to transport new settlers and supplies.  Fisherman built wooden shacks where they processed their catch and serviced their fleet.

Up to eight powered tugs once sailed out of “Fishtown,” as the buildings came to be known. Fishtown is now home to a working fishery and a thriving charter fishing business. The riverfront is lined by a boardwalk and quaint shacks that have been converted into tourist shops.

Sidewalk flowers.

Taste-ful shops and art galleries.

Vist Cuba Legally in 2012

We are pleased that Tauck Tours has selected Just Cruises Plus to be one of their preferred agencies to begin offering trips to Cuba.  These trips will begin in mid-September and go through the end of the year.  There are none scheduled for 2013 and beyond. 

There will be three departures per week from Miami.  Each group will be small.  The goal will be to foster meaningful cultural connections with Cuban artists, musicians, educators, farmers and community leaders.

Tauck Tours is arguably the best tour operator in the world.  The Cuba trip that they are offering is all inclusive with one night in Miami and 6 nights in Havana.   Rates start at $4990 per person.

FYI:  The U.S. treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has granted Tauck a license to provide People-to-People educational exchange travel to Cuba through 2012.

The Breakers - Newport, Rhode Island

Last week’s photo contest must have been a hard one, since we had only 9 responses.  But all were correct!

Congratulations to Ed & Nancy O’Hara of Warminster, PA who were randomly selected to receive a $25 gift card.

Our contest photo was of the Breakers, a magnificent Newport, Rhode Island summer home built by Cornelius Vanderbilt.  We took the photo while cruising on the Enchantment of the Seas.

Our Experience on the Enchantment

We (Rachelle and Wayne) boarded the Enchantment of the Seas in Baltimore on May 31^st.  Since the Enchantment is due for a refurbishment in December, we were afraid that she would be in less than pristine condition.  If you are a “glass is half empty” person, you could find things that were less than perfect, such as dings in doors and rails that needs refinishing.  However, we were pleased with the overall appearance and condition of the ship.

Enchantment’s Centrum, looking up

The crew was magnificent.  They were both efficient and friendly.  We were especially impressed when a waiter from another table (not getting tipped by us) came over to our table to show us some tricks.  In our view, the crew makes or breaks a cruise so we rate this cruise as a rousing success even though as we will see, there were some shortcomings.

A major issue was the lido buffet area for breakfast and lunch.  It is way too small for the number of passengers.  Every day, we found ourselves wandering through the room looking for an empty table.  We think that when Royal Caribbean stretched the ship and added rooms for an additional 300 passengers, they forgot to enlarge the lido area.  Our advice:  Go very early or late to the buffet.  One positive in the buffet was the Asian station which frequently had Indian food.

Overall, the food was good but not great.  Except for the extra cost “Chops”, the beef was fairly tasteless.  Chops, on the other hand offered a very good and well-prepared piece of beef.  We found that the soups and appetizers were very tasty.

Entertainment was typical “cruise ship” with competent dancers and singers.  We had two comedians who had some hilarious moments.  There was also a comic-juggler who we had seen an a prior Celebrity cruise so we assume that a major part of his career is aboard ships.

Approaching our dock in Bermuda, located across from the clocktowers.

The ports included Bermuda, Boston and Newport, Rhode Island.  Bermuda is one of our favorite islands.  However, we were there on a weekend.  With Queen Elizabeth’s diamond Jubilee being celebrated, there was lots happening on Saturday.  However, they take their Sabbath seriously, so most businesses in the main towns were closed on Sunday (although many in the Dockyard were open).  If you are there on a weekend, make Sunday your beach day and Saturday your sightseeing/shopping day.

The Enchantment spent most of a day in Boston.  She docks at a commercial dock about two miles for the main historic area so you will likely take a cab or shuttle from the ship.  The ship offer excursions to Boston’s most famous sites including a terrific trip to Fenway Park.  Our friends went to the “No-Name restaurant at the Boston waterfront and enjoyed Scrod for lunch.  Because we had been to Boston before, we took a walk in South Boston which is becoming regentrified.

We had never been to our final port so we called it Newport.  Alas, we discovered that it is quite old, in fact, it was settled only 20 years after the Pilgrims arrived on the Mayflower.  Newport was the summer home to the rich and famous in the “gilded age”. Their magnificent mansions still exist and some can be visited (for a fee).  If you want a “cheap” tour of the mansions, take the local #67 city bus.  You can get on an off as much as you want for 6 bucks (need exact change).  If you have a nice, clear day take the “Cliff Walk”.  The scenery is breathtaking..  Don’t worry, you won’t be in danger of falling off the cliff.

Approaching Newport Harbor

The Enchantment sails from Baltimore on 6 night cruises to Bermuda (until October 26th) and 8 night cruises like the one described until August 23^rd.   She will then have some fall cruises to New England.

Next year, the Grandeur of the Seas will replace the Enchantment in Baltimore.   She is just completing a major makeover which includes new restaurants, an outdoor movie screen, aerial entertainment in the Centrum, flat screen TVs and an ipad in every stateroom.

During the early part of 2013, the Grandeur will be doing a Bahamas-Florida itinerary.  She will be doing 6 and 7 night cruises to Bermuda from May to November 1^st.  She will have some more interesting sailings in November and December with 10 night sailings to the Eastern Caribbean.

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Nassau Horse & Carriage Ride - 5/4/12 Photo Contest

We had 54 responses to our May 4th photo contest but very few correct answers!  This was a tricky one.  We asked you to guess the name of the city in which the horse and carriage photo (shown here) was taken.  We hinted that the city is located on the Atlantic Ocean and is a popular cruise port.  “Nassau” was the correct answer.  The other responses we received were understandable given the hints we provided.  These responses included:  Hamilton, Bermuda; Charleston, SC; Key West, FL and Saint Jean de Luz, France.  

Congratulations to Norm Remer of Southampton, PA whose name was name was randomly drawn from the correct respondents. 

Bay Street

Nassau, a usual stop on a Bahamas cruise itinerary (especially on shorter cruises), is both the largest city and the capital of the Bahamas.  Bay Street,  the main street that runs parallel to the waters edge through Nassau, is filled with a mixture of high end jewelry shops and souvenir shops. 

The entrance to the colorful Straw Market is also located along Bay street.  Stop here if you don’t mind crowds and you like to haggle for island nick nacks.  Our appreciation of the brightly painted shops and government buildings and the view of the looming cruiseships docked along the waterfont is unfortunately trumped by our first-hand experience with occaissional rudeness and, on one trip, a “crooked” taxi driver.

Entrance to Straw Market

Cockeyed stop sign with ship in the background

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Local craftsman at work