Wednesday, October 14, 2015
At Sea
October 14
Woke up a little after 9 to get ready for trivia at ten. Tommy and I played but it was all trivia about the ship (What is the gross weight? Who is the Godmother? Who is the captain?). We had eight correct, the winner had nine.
I then went to deck four aft to work on yesterday's blog because once again I had no luck in my cabin last night. I was able to get most everything done before lunch. Went to the Windjammer and had some rice with a tomato/fresh mozzarella sandwich. Uploaded pictures while eating.
After lunch it was time to go find a seat for part 2 of the Name That Tune TV Theme edition. Maureen, John, Barbara, Tommy, and I played. Vickie and Matt joined us at the end. Again we had 18 out of 25.
Bought a Coke and took it back to my cabin as I got ready for the afternoon trivias and our second formal night. The 4:00 trivia was name the TV series. We had 26 correct out of 30 but the winners had 28. Maureen left early to save us seats for the next trivia which was in the Schooner Bar. We only had eight out of 15. The winners had 11.
Q1. What book did Forrest Gump have in his suitcase?
Q2. What did Cyndi Lauper do in bed in "Time After Time"?
Q3. In which city must a movie be shown to be eligible for an Academy Award?
Q4. How big is a golf hole?
After a quick trip downstairs we all met up to go the show "Saturday Night Fever" which was good. Time for a quick trip to the other end of the ship for dinner. Three of us had prime rib, Carolyn had pasta, and Tommy had lobster tail. We all chose the Baked Alaska which was melted and not very good. We also had 2 crime brulees which we shared.
After dinner the 70s Disco Inferno Party in the Promenade. Everyone else went to bed (very early tour tomorrow) but I went to Liar's Club. For those unfamiliar with this game, three people give definitions (and funny stories to go along with them) to very obscure words. The stories were hilarious and I can't give all of them so I will just give you a list of the words. Yes, you will have to look them up yourself!
Arachibutyrphobia, furfur, crapulence, numbles, gamp, oxpecker
Trivia Answers....
Q1. Curious George
Q2. Thinking of you
Q3. L.A.
Q4. 4 1/4"
No photos today.
Smooth sailing until next time!
Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
13 October
Due to the tides in the Bay of Fundy we could not arrive until around 11. Since we were going to meet for our 12:00 tour at 11:30 I set the alarm for 10:30 after staying up until 2 am trying to get my blog to load properly. I had spent over two hours yet could not get the pictures to upload and then I couldn't get the blog to save properly.
I awoke a little after 10, watched the morning show as we sailed into St. John and worked on getting the entry posted. Finally got all the pictures and everything loaded properly by 11:25 and left to join the others.
We had to wait in the terminal for about a half hour but we got seats and the terminal had free wi-fi so the others could check e-mail (I don't carry my phone if I can't use it and I didn't buy a special package for Canada).
Unfortunately this was our first day with clouds and rain - at least the temperature was comfortable in the 60s.
Our tour was the top ten of St. John and we left shortly after noon. On leaving the dock area we passed the Three Sisters Lamp. The lamp, which was originally gas operated, was used as a navigational aid. If all three lamps were visible the ship was in the correct channel.
Our first stop was at the Carleton Martello Tower which was built for defense during the War of 1812. Martello towers are small circular forts used for defense purposes.
We drove through Wolastoq Park (Wolastoq means "the beautiful river" in the language of the native people) where there is a collection of statues of historic Saint John figures.
The Bay of Fundy has the highest tides in the world. The power of the tides is shown at the "Reversing Rapids" where the Bay of Fundy and the St. John River merge. The force of the high tide in the bay makes the water in the river reverse course. At low tide the river empties forcefully into the bay. We visited shortly after high tide and then again right before low tide.
The City Market was our next stop. It was a traditonal market in that it had meat, seafood, fruits and vegetables but it also had some crafts. We urchased sandwiches and drinks because nobody had had lunch.
Next we visited O'Leary's Irish Pub for a sample of the local beer - Moosehead.
Then we took about an hour to drive out to St. Martins. St. Martins was settled by Loyalists (many people who were loyal to England left the colonies after the Revolutionary War and moved to Canada) and for many years was noted for its shipbuilding. Today, people visit to see the covered bridges, the lighthouse, the caves and beach along the Bay of Fundy. We had time to take pictures then the bus went through one of the covered bridges to take us to the Caves Restaurant. We tasted their seafood chowder (it had scallops, lobster and haddock in it) along with a biscuit, soda, and cookies for desert. There was time to go to the beach and throw your kissing stone in the water (but the tide was so low you would have had to have a good pitching arm) before heading back to Saint John.
Unfortunately, the rain started to come down heavily as we were boarding the bus. It poured the entire 40 km back to Saint John. After a quick stop to see the rapids after they had reversed from this morning, we arrived back to the ship around 6:45.
We were planning to go to the 8:15 show so we decided to eat in the Windjammer buffet. Nobody was extremely hungry because of the chowder but we all munched on something. We got to the theatre about 8:00 and it was already full. We decided to meet up again at 9:30 for TV Theme Song Trivia.
Carolyn and Gary were turning in but Tommy, Barbara, and I joined John and Maureen on the trivia. We had 19 out of 25 but the winning team had 24. Tommy, Barbara, and I went to see the 10:15 show which was Greg Bonham who sang and played the trumpet. Not the best show we've seen. After the show Tommy and Barbara headed up to deck 5 to find a snack and I went back to my cabin to unsuccessfully work on the blog.
the Three Sisters Lamp
three ships in port today
Carleton Martello Tower
Wolastoq Park
Reversing Rapids after high tide
if you can enlarge this picture there is a flock of birds just to the right of the middle
entrance to the City Market
interior of the market
one of the moose heads in the market
O'Leary's Pub
Only Tommy and I sampled the Moosehead Beer
covered bridge in St. Martins
the other covered bridge
close-up of a lobster pot
the lighthouse
our snack
the beach and entrance to cave (left of center)
the rapids just before low tide
Some street scenes of Saint John
Smooth sailing until next time!
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Bar Harbor, Maine
12 October
Slept well again last night. Woke around 8:45 and met with the others at the entrance to the dining room on deck 5 where tender tickets were being distributed at 9:30. We were number 25 and had to wait for about a half hour before we were called.
Instead of using the ship's boats we used large boats that do whale watching tours during the summer season. The ride over was about 5 minutes but the whole loading/unloading process took about a half hour. We were in Bar Harbor by 10:30.
None of the ship's excursions really excited us so we decided to walk around, look at the downtown area, do some shopping, and have a good lunch.
In the nineteenth century Bar Harbor became the summer retreat for the mega-rich families like the Vanderbilts, Astors, and Rockefellers (Nelson Rockefeller was born here). It is located on Mount Desert Island. We were lucky as we had a beautiful day with temperatures in the mid-60s and a beautiful blue sky.
We shopped for about an hour and a half and then decided it was time for lunch. Barbara noticed a sign for a restaurant down the block from where we were, so we headed there. It was called "Route 66". Once again, we had found a really good restaurant.
Since I had vowed to try lobster in Maine (isn't it illegal to visit Maine and NOT eat lobster :)? ) I ordered the lobster wrap. It had bacon, tomato, lettuce and a very good lemon mayonnaise to complement the lobster. We started with onion rings and then four of us had the lobster wrap. Tommy had clam chowder, a lobster roll, and fries. The food was delicious and there were large chunks of lobster in our wraps.
We were really full but had to taste the fresh blueberry pie so we only ordered one piece and shared it. Barbara didn't think she liked blueberry pie but changed her mind after a couple of bites!
After lunch we resumed our shopping (after a quick stop at a Rite-Aid so I could get a shower cap). Our guide yesterday mentioned an ice cream store named Ben and Bills had lobster ice cream. Tommy and I tried it (they gave free samples) but were not impressed because the lobster bits in the ice cream were so frozen they were not really tasty. I had planned to get some blueberry ice cream but was too full to actually get any.
A little more shopping and then back to the tender. Took about a half hour to get back on the ship. I headed up to afternoon trivia. I played with the same couple as yesterday (Maureen and John) as well as a couple from Delaware and Tommy joined us.
The first trivia was a visual one on singers. The pictures were very small and slightly distorted so it was hard to see from across the room. The couple from Delaware knew quite a few of them and we ended with 18 out of 21 but the winning team had 19.
The General Knowledge trivia was at 4:45 and was a really tough one. We had 9 out of 15 but two teams tied with 11. There was a "sudden death" tie-breaker which both the teams missed but finally there was a winner with the second question.
Q1. When a burning cigarette is inhaled, what is the temperature of the tip?
Q2. What did Henry VII sleep with?
Q3. What are indoor particles mostly made of?
Q4. What are the holes is Swiss cheese called?
I then came back to get ready for dinner and the show. We were only able to get reservations for 7:45 so we went to the show first. Tonight's show was called, "The Comedy and Impressions of Mike Wilson". We rated the show only so-so.
It was then time to walk the length of the ship to dinner. Three of us had roast beef, Carolyn had a hot chicken salad, and Gary had chicken. Dessert was not very good because almost everything had either coffee or nuts in it. Everyone but me ordered the pecan butterscotch pie (which was not wonderful) and I had the English trifle which was mostly fruit jello. We decided to stop by Cafe Promenade and get cookies.
Back to my cabin to work on my blog. We lose an hour sleep tonight but don't dock until 11 so I can sleep in some. (More about why we dock so late tomorrow.)
Trivia answers....
Q1. 700C
Q2. an axe
Q3. skin
Q4. eyes
Slept well again last night. Woke around 8:45 and met with the others at the entrance to the dining room on deck 5 where tender tickets were being distributed at 9:30. We were number 25 and had to wait for about a half hour before we were called.
Instead of using the ship's boats we used large boats that do whale watching tours during the summer season. The ride over was about 5 minutes but the whole loading/unloading process took about a half hour. We were in Bar Harbor by 10:30.
None of the ship's excursions really excited us so we decided to walk around, look at the downtown area, do some shopping, and have a good lunch.
In the nineteenth century Bar Harbor became the summer retreat for the mega-rich families like the Vanderbilts, Astors, and Rockefellers (Nelson Rockefeller was born here). It is located on Mount Desert Island. We were lucky as we had a beautiful day with temperatures in the mid-60s and a beautiful blue sky.
We shopped for about an hour and a half and then decided it was time for lunch. Barbara noticed a sign for a restaurant down the block from where we were, so we headed there. It was called "Route 66". Once again, we had found a really good restaurant.
Since I had vowed to try lobster in Maine (isn't it illegal to visit Maine and NOT eat lobster :)? ) I ordered the lobster wrap. It had bacon, tomato, lettuce and a very good lemon mayonnaise to complement the lobster. We started with onion rings and then four of us had the lobster wrap. Tommy had clam chowder, a lobster roll, and fries. The food was delicious and there were large chunks of lobster in our wraps.
We were really full but had to taste the fresh blueberry pie so we only ordered one piece and shared it. Barbara didn't think she liked blueberry pie but changed her mind after a couple of bites!
After lunch we resumed our shopping (after a quick stop at a Rite-Aid so I could get a shower cap). Our guide yesterday mentioned an ice cream store named Ben and Bills had lobster ice cream. Tommy and I tried it (they gave free samples) but were not impressed because the lobster bits in the ice cream were so frozen they were not really tasty. I had planned to get some blueberry ice cream but was too full to actually get any.
A little more shopping and then back to the tender. Took about a half hour to get back on the ship. I headed up to afternoon trivia. I played with the same couple as yesterday (Maureen and John) as well as a couple from Delaware and Tommy joined us.
The first trivia was a visual one on singers. The pictures were very small and slightly distorted so it was hard to see from across the room. The couple from Delaware knew quite a few of them and we ended with 18 out of 21 but the winning team had 19.
The General Knowledge trivia was at 4:45 and was a really tough one. We had 9 out of 15 but two teams tied with 11. There was a "sudden death" tie-breaker which both the teams missed but finally there was a winner with the second question.
Q1. When a burning cigarette is inhaled, what is the temperature of the tip?
Q2. What did Henry VII sleep with?
Q3. What are indoor particles mostly made of?
Q4. What are the holes is Swiss cheese called?
I then came back to get ready for dinner and the show. We were only able to get reservations for 7:45 so we went to the show first. Tonight's show was called, "The Comedy and Impressions of Mike Wilson". We rated the show only so-so.
It was then time to walk the length of the ship to dinner. Three of us had roast beef, Carolyn had a hot chicken salad, and Gary had chicken. Dessert was not very good because almost everything had either coffee or nuts in it. Everyone but me ordered the pecan butterscotch pie (which was not wonderful) and I had the English trifle which was mostly fruit jello. We decided to stop by Cafe Promenade and get cookies.
Back to my cabin to work on my blog. We lose an hour sleep tonight but don't dock until 11 so I can sleep in some. (More about why we dock so late tomorrow.)
Trivia answers....
Q1. 700C
Q2. an axe
Q3. skin
Q4. eyes
some views of Bar Harbor
Route 66 Restaurant
Gary and Tommy and our onion rings - note the salt and pepper shakers
lobster wrap and fries
lobster roll, clam chowder, and fries
schooner Margaret Todd
Smooth sailing until next time!
Sunday, October 11, 2015
Portland, Maine
October 11
Slept much better than yesterday and awoke about 8:15. Watched the morning show (actually called The Liberty Daily Show with Dru and Gio) and got ready for our excursion. We had made plans to meet at 9:15 but we finally read our tickets and found we were supposed to meet on the pier at 9:15. A couple of frantic phone calls and we agreed to meet at 9:00.
A long walk off the ship to land but we were on the bus quickly. Our driver was Dave and the guide, Linda, was a retired middle school teacher. Our tour was called the "Best of Portland and Kennebunkport" so we started with a tour around Portland. Portland is the largest city in Maine with a population of about 65,000. There are some absolutely beautiful old houses in town.
We then headed to Fort Williams and the Portland Head Lighthouse. After 45 minutes to wander around, it was back on the bus for the ride to Kennebunk and Kennebunkport. Along the way we saw some beautiful fall foliage.
In Kennebunkport we had almost 2 hours for the
lunch and to wander around town. We decided to go to the Pilot House, which was close to the bus. We beat most of the other buses and were able to get a seat right away. We all had either lobster rolls or shrimp rolls and Tommy and Gary had clam chowder as well. Very tasty!
After waiting 15 minutes for a late couple (they thought we were meeting at 2:45 not 1:45 - luckily relatives were on the bus and called them), we rode by the Bush family compound as well as many summer "cottages" along the coast.
We were back to the terminal shortly after 3pm. Some of the Visitor's Bureau were offering golf cart rides down the pier so I took advantage.
Back onboard I changed for dinner and went to 4 pm trivia which was "Movies and Actors". A couple from New Jersey invited me to join them. We were able to get 20 out of 30. At 4:45 there was general trivia. We had 9 right but the winners had all 15.
Q1. What is a group of rhinos called?
Q2. What was the name of the sheriff on "Dukes of Hazzard"?
Q3. Captain Haddock was the companion of which cartoon adventurer?
Q4. Name all the letters used as Roman Numerals.
After trivia, my partners and I talked until it was time to go to 5:30 dinner. Pork, chicken, and shrimp were our choices. For dessert the ladies had bread and butter pudding and the gentlemen had the sampler (three desserts).
We checked out the Cafe Promenade (which has 24 hour a day snacks) in case we will need a bite to eat since the earliest reservation we could make for tomorrow night is 7:45.
Tommy, Barbara, and I then went to 80s musical trivia. We were awful - we only got 6 out of 15 points! Tommy and Barbara then went to hear the pianist. I came back to work on my blog but found I had lost the little piece of paper that had my log-in info.
I decided to go to "Dancing With the Stripes" (Take-off on Dancing with the Stars). On the way I stopped to get a new copy of my internet log-in. The dancing show was hilarious as the partners had no practice and had to dance to 12 different dances (Including break-dancing, Riverdance, and ballet). The winner was Godfrey (who ran the music trivia we did) and his passenger partner, Summer.
Don't have to get up too early tomorrow which is good since it is already midnight and my pictures are still uploading.
Trivia answers....
Q1. crash
Q2. Roscoe Coltrane
Q3. Tin-tin
Q4. I, V, X, C, M, D, L
Smooth sailing until next time!
Slept much better than yesterday and awoke about 8:15. Watched the morning show (actually called The Liberty Daily Show with Dru and Gio) and got ready for our excursion. We had made plans to meet at 9:15 but we finally read our tickets and found we were supposed to meet on the pier at 9:15. A couple of frantic phone calls and we agreed to meet at 9:00.
A long walk off the ship to land but we were on the bus quickly. Our driver was Dave and the guide, Linda, was a retired middle school teacher. Our tour was called the "Best of Portland and Kennebunkport" so we started with a tour around Portland. Portland is the largest city in Maine with a population of about 65,000. There are some absolutely beautiful old houses in town.
We then headed to Fort Williams and the Portland Head Lighthouse. After 45 minutes to wander around, it was back on the bus for the ride to Kennebunk and Kennebunkport. Along the way we saw some beautiful fall foliage.
In Kennebunkport we had almost 2 hours for the
lunch and to wander around town. We decided to go to the Pilot House, which was close to the bus. We beat most of the other buses and were able to get a seat right away. We all had either lobster rolls or shrimp rolls and Tommy and Gary had clam chowder as well. Very tasty!
After waiting 15 minutes for a late couple (they thought we were meeting at 2:45 not 1:45 - luckily relatives were on the bus and called them), we rode by the Bush family compound as well as many summer "cottages" along the coast.
We were back to the terminal shortly after 3pm. Some of the Visitor's Bureau were offering golf cart rides down the pier so I took advantage.
Back onboard I changed for dinner and went to 4 pm trivia which was "Movies and Actors". A couple from New Jersey invited me to join them. We were able to get 20 out of 30. At 4:45 there was general trivia. We had 9 right but the winners had all 15.
Q1. What is a group of rhinos called?
Q2. What was the name of the sheriff on "Dukes of Hazzard"?
Q3. Captain Haddock was the companion of which cartoon adventurer?
Q4. Name all the letters used as Roman Numerals.
After trivia, my partners and I talked until it was time to go to 5:30 dinner. Pork, chicken, and shrimp were our choices. For dessert the ladies had bread and butter pudding and the gentlemen had the sampler (three desserts).
We checked out the Cafe Promenade (which has 24 hour a day snacks) in case we will need a bite to eat since the earliest reservation we could make for tomorrow night is 7:45.
Tommy, Barbara, and I then went to 80s musical trivia. We were awful - we only got 6 out of 15 points! Tommy and Barbara then went to hear the pianist. I came back to work on my blog but found I had lost the little piece of paper that had my log-in info.
I decided to go to "Dancing With the Stripes" (Take-off on Dancing with the Stars). On the way I stopped to get a new copy of my internet log-in. The dancing show was hilarious as the partners had no practice and had to dance to 12 different dances (Including break-dancing, Riverdance, and ballet). The winner was Godfrey (who ran the music trivia we did) and his passenger partner, Summer.
Don't have to get up too early tomorrow which is good since it is already midnight and my pictures are still uploading.
Trivia answers....
Q1. crash
Q2. Roscoe Coltrane
Q3. Tin-tin
Q4. I, V, X, C, M, D, L
Three of the beautiful houses in Portland
the Portland Observatory
More of the houses
the Portland Head Lighthouse
the five of us
along the coast looking back towards Portland from the Lighthouse (if you can enlarge the picture you should be able to see part of the ship)
an interesting message on the rocks by the lighthouse
a beautifully landscaped and decorated house
the "wedding cake" house
the beach at Kennebunkport
some of the cottages along the coast
where we had lunch
Halloween decorated area in Kennebunkport
a barn with a clock in the tower (used in a Tetley Tea commercial)
the metal lobster pots used today (with some pretty foliage in front)
one of the homes in the Bush compound
Bush 41's home
Smooth sailing until next time!
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