We’re currently going through the Suez Canal with Egypt on one side and the Sinai Peninsula on the other. We were lined up early early this morning and the entire transit takes about 10 hours. We’ve seen mostly sand banks on both sides with a scattering of small villages. We just passed a large monument commemorating the 6th Day War. We are scheduled to arrive in Port Said, Egypt around 6:00 this evening. The temperature has dropped at least 20 degrees! I imagine it will stay cooler throughout Europe.

Yesterday we returned from our fabulous Radisson complimentary trip to Luxor. We left Friday morning in a caravan consisting of 26 busses with police escorts. Apparently the police escort is necessary to prevent being held up in the desert by desert pirates. We did notice a heavy presence of police and military (all with guns). I know some were concerned about our safety in Egypt but during our 2 days we never had any feeling of being in harms way. Since there were so many of us on this excursion (only about 40 people opted to stay on the ship) the passengers stayed in 3 different hotels (Le Meridian, Sonesta and the Sheraton). As far as I know every passenger had a room with a frontal view of the Nile River. I believe we were the luckiest getting assigned to Le Meridian. This is rated a 5 star hotel by Egyptian standards (actually by American Standards it would have been more of a 4 star). Our room was spacious with a nice balcony facing the Nile. There was a nice atrium with nightly entertainment and lots of shops through out the hotel. From what I heard from those who stayed at the Sheraton, they were disappointed and would stay elsewhere if they return to Luxor. Quite a few of the staff came as well. There was also an option where the crew could go to Luxor and return the same day. Friday night the crew had a poolside party that lasted until 3:00am….I’m always happy when they get to have such good times!

We had a very full 2 days viewing the Valley of the Kings, the Colossi of Memnon, the Queen Hatshepsut Temple, the Luxor Temple, the Karnak Temple….and lots of donkeys and goats! Seeing all the ruins was magical considering they date back to approximately 1500BC and were completely buried under 100+ feet of sand for thousands of years. Roaming through all the ruins you realize that these really were buried ancient cities. There is still lots of excavation going on with new discoveries ongoing. It was hot, but certainly not unbearable….a very dry heat. There were flies as well, but not as bad as I was expecting.

Friday night was the special event for all World Cruisers…dinner at the Luxor Temple. We opted not to go and instead ate at a delicious Italian restaurant at the hotel. After dinner we sat in the open air atrium and listened to the local entertainment until around 11:00. Knowing how many would be attending the special event buffet dinner (and Tom hates buffets anyway) and knowing we would be at the Luxor Temple the following morning was why we decided to forgo the special WC event. From what everyone said, this event was absolutely wonderful!! There was an acclaimed Archeologist who spoke about the excavation and the Temple was all lit up. This was the last time to have a dinner there (not sure why?) It’s too bad we couldn’t have been 2 places at once!! We did have a great evening and I’m sure our dinner was better than what we would have had at the Temple dinner. Thank goodness we were able to spend so much time at the Luxor Temple the following morning.

The Valley of the Kings (located in the barren Theban Hills) was magnificent as well. We viewed 3 different tombs. It’s something everyone should see. The tombs are in excellent, preserved condition with all the hieroglyphics, and ritual paintings depicting the journey through the underworld to assist the Pharaohs in their afterlife just as they were thousands of years ago. The mummies (as far as I know) have since been removed (except King Tut was not stollen) and the priceless possessions buried with the Pharaohs are long gone due to tomb robbers. Unfortunately, no photos are allowed once inside the tombs so I can’t share any but it certainly is memorable and a must see.

The busses convoyed back to the Voyager (again with police escorts) returning about 4:00pm….exhausted but so glad we went on this great excursion. It was so unbelievable being able to see all the ruins. The Voyager Quintet, the room stewardesses were playing jazz and dancing at the gangway to welcome us all back home again. We were originally scheduled to go on to Abu Simbel and Cairo but cancelled this side trip. It was going to involve 2 flights and more “ambitious” than we were up for. Instead, we’re discussing visiting Cairo for a couple of nights next year before or after ROAR. What a fabulous trip! I can’t believe how much we crammed into just 2 days.

As we did in China, we’ve all been having fun wearing local clothes. The gowns that Radisson surprised us with in Dubai have all been put to good use. Tom even wore his around the ruins (with his beard he does fit the role….except for the Anaheim Angel baseball cap). I’ve worn my dress several times and bought another one in Luxor that I’ll wear tonight.

Like millions around the world, we are all saddened about Pope John Paul II’s death and there is a special mass onboard at 5:00 today. They made it early enough that it won’t interfere with the bizarre in Port Said we’re going to visit.

Tomorrow is a sea day, and then Tuesday we arrive in Kusadasi, Turkey.

A beautiful sunset on the Red Sea:
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A beautiful sunset over the Nile River:
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This was our Nile view from our hotel balcony:
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Valley of the Kings and other ruin sites:
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This is the type of home the farmers live in along the banks of the Nile:
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Marcie

Another great day, this time in Kusadasi, Turkey! Yesterday 6 of us (including Paul) got up early and went on a private tour I had arranged back in October with an excellent guide named Levent Solmaz. We visited the Virgin Mary’s home where Mary lived up until her death….what a beautiful, tranquil mountain top setting! We then went to Ephesus for several hours. In case you’re not familiar with Ephesus, this is an ancient walled-in, buried city which was a major trading port thousands of years ago. During its existence, Ephesus was a port city but now due to river silt deposits, wind and earthquakes it is now 5-10 miles inland. Most of the city was constructed around 3,000 to 5,000 BC but the oldest structures actually go back as far as 10,000BC. It was abandoned 2,000 years ago and to this day only about 20-30% of the once thriving city has been meticulously unearthed. As is the case of so many of the ancient sites, the excavation is on going but such a slow process of finding, labeling and reconstructing and will certainly never be completed in our lifetimes. Ephesus has marble structures everywhere including the town hall, the huge amphitheater that holds 25,000 people (this is where St. Paul spoke), numerous shops, homes, Turkish baths, public bathrooms with 62 toilets all right next to each other (they certainly didn’t need privacy), theaters and even an ancient brothel! This is the most amazing site imaginable and one of the 7 ancient wonders of the world. When you’re there you can just imagine what day to day life must have been like thousands of years ago. I could have spent days there exploring! We had a great time and I’d sure recommend our guide for anyone visiting. He was extremely knowledgeable and spoke perfect English. (www.leventsolmaz.com or email Levent at primy@turk.net .

Yesterday afternoon we walked around the downtown area of Kusadasi where there is AMAZING shopping! There are bargains galore with lots of the top knock off purses, watches, even replica gowns of the famous designers such as Oscar de la Renta, Giorgio Armani, Valentino, Dior etc. that start at $6,000 can be purchased for about $100-
$200. They even hem and alter them on the spot for you! Of course there are gorgeous rugs (I bought two….an 11 ft. runner and a 4x6, both made of silk/cotton for $60). Yes, an amazing city for shopping! Those who have visited Kusadasi before were amazed at how much it has grown in the past few years with so much new construction. It is a very clean, pretty resort city,

Last night we had a table for 8 at Latitudes where the current theme is “1001 Arabian Nights”. What a VERY FUN night! The majority dressed up in Egyptian/Arabian clothing which is always fun. There is a beautiful, professional belly dancer with a body that won’t stop onboard (she actually performs at Epcot). Off and on during dinner there is singing and belly dancing going on. She came and grabbed Tom’s hand and led him up to the front to dance with her! (any one else notice a pattern here!) We had lots of laughs and he gave it his best shot….he thought he had died and gone to heaven! The dinner and entertainment was just great!

Tonight we’re having dinner with a very special “mystery guest” who I’ll tell you about tomorrow! (Keeping you in suspense!!)

Tomorrow night is formal night and we’ve been invited to dine with Mark Conroy (President and CEO of Radisson) who is boarding the ship today for just a few days. We feel quite honored to be invited!

We’re here in Athens today….we’ll go exploring and see what mischief we can get into here! Tomorrow is a sea day then Friday we’re in Sorrento.

Here are some photos taken yesterday:

Beautiful Virgin Mary home:
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Ephesus:
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The main street entering Ephesus:
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The gigantic Ephesus amphitheater:
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The Public Toilets (silly Paul):
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Beautiful Kusadasi:

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(Voyager if far background)
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Fun Photos with friends and Belly Dancer at Latitudes Dinner “1001 Arabian Nights”:

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Good Morning! We’ve arrived here in beautiful Sorrento! Today Tom and I are going to take the hydrofoil to Capri for the day on our own since this is one spot we haven’t visited yet.

Our dinner last night with Mark Conroy was very nice. He’s friendly, very approachable and truly interested in how the passengers feel. We really didn’t know any of the other guests at our table (except slightly knowing the Colonel) so most of our conversation was directly with Mark. Yesterday morning Mark held a “Town Hall Meeting” in the Constellation Theater. It was excellent with lots of Q & A. Jamie made the ground rules where the discussion could not be of a personal nature. (In those cases, passengers were to leave their cabin # and Mark would contact them individually). It seems “almost positive” that Radisson will soon be renamed “Regent” …which we all knew already. The 2007 WC itinerary was discussed and it's appearing that Africa and South America will be included. In order to do this, New Zealand and Australia will likely be eliminated. NOTHING IS DEFINITE for sure but it's apparent that this is what most all of us want. Shanghi will likely be included as well (it's not in the 2006 itinerary). Mark explained all the challenges faced in choosing ports and making it doable in approximately 109 days. It was very very interesting!

After dinner, Tom and I hooked up with some of the “regulars” in the Voyager Lounge for Sambucca and dancing. Later I wandered over to the casino for some 3 card poker making a slight profit. Not sure how this came about but after dinner Tom and Marc (Mr. Bling) exchanged tuxedo jackets so Tom was all a-glitter for the evening! Unfortunately, Doug and Lynn Burns will be leaving us in Rome. We have a farewell dinner planned with them tonight.

As for the “mystery guest” we had dinner with in Athens….It’s Betty Gray (graywolf)!!! 
Betty and her husband Al rejoined the Voyager in Athens. Betty looks great and you would never guess she had a heart attack. She takes it easy but really looks terrific. We had dinner with Betty and Al and their good friends (who we are now friends of ours as well) Joanne and Marvin. Joanne had put in a special order for lamb chops and Grand Marnier Souffl EXACTLY what Betty was eating the night of her heart attack and the Code Blue. The 6 of us had a really nice time. Unfortunately, I went off and forgot my camera so I don’t have any photos.

Since you like to see photos and are probably a bit “ruined out”, I’m including some “people photos” from last night.

Our table with Mark Conroy:
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Doug and Lynn Burns:
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Tom and Lynn:
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Tom was all a-glitter:
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L to R Paul, Me, Tom, Lynn, Doug:
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Friends we often eat & party with:
Heather and Peter:
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Joan:
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Lynn and Frank:
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Marcie

We had a wonderful day in Capri! It started off cool (high 60’s) but warmed up nicely. We hooked up with Betty, Al, and another couple….Joanne and Marvin and took the hydrofoil over to Capri and then the funicular up to the top of the mountain. Due to the Pope’s funeral today, most shops were closed during the funeral. We enjoyed walking and looking at the beautiful view and ate lunch at a nice outdoor restaurant.
I finally got a photo of Betty and Al (see below).

Speaking of lunch, I forgot to mention the Country Fair atrium luncheon we had yesterday. The entire 4th floor was set up as a food court with International foods and decorated accordingly. Even the staff all wore the local clothes of the respective countries. There was a French, Indian, Italian, Seafood, and German…maybe more! It was decorated so cute and the food was out of this world. It never ceases to amaze me how well Radisson can put these things together!

Beth, the Pope’s Death has been on the news nonstop for days….as I’m sure it has been in the USA as well. The tours to Rome tomorrow were modified not to include the Sistine Chapel and St. Peters may or may not be open for tours. As far as I know, the other tours in Rome will remain the same, congestion and all. Luckily we’ve visited Rome quite a few times so instead I think we’re going to visit the actual town of Civitavecchia for the first time and avoid the crowds. There are 200 people getting off tomorrow (and another 200 getting on). I feel badly for those trying to fly out of Rome tomorrow and I can only imagine what those flying into Rome the past couple of days have experienced. I hear that there was something like 250,000 people at St. Peters Square today.
Maurice (med4bike) gets on tomorrow in Rome.

I spoke a bit more about the 2007 WC itinerary and Mark Conroy is indicating that South Africa will be included. He is very aware that South Africa is the “hottest” and #1 destination today. This was the most requested destination by those of us who completed the survey. Again, nothing is definite ! Capt. Dag will be getting off April 23rd (with all the rest of us) and plans to spend 2 weeks in Ft. Lauderdale with Mark Conroy to begin making plans for the 2007 itinerary. It helps that one of Mark Conroy’s favorite destination (by his own admission) is South Africa! We’re all keeping our fingers crossed.

Denise, I asked Elba if she would be back on the Voyager for your Baltics Cruise but she doesn’t know her schedule yet.

Kathy and Andi, Betty and Al will be on until til the end when we reach Ft. Lauderdale April 23rd.

A couple of photos:

Yesterday’s Country Fair Atrium Luncheon
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Day in Capri (L to R) Al, Betty, Me, Tom
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Great lunch in Capri:
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Marcie
 

Hi Everyone,

YES, we did make it back after all! I didn't want to say anything before we were actually here Just In Case ...

Sorry I haven't posted anything sooner since we've been here, but we don't have a computer setup in our new cabin and the general room has been quite busy.

Even though we've missed all the ports we really wanted, it's nice to be here and see everyone and just be a bum.

We boarded in Athens with the original intention of being able to see Ngaire. But of course she didn't get on the segment. As it turns out, boarding in Athens rather than Rome was a very fortunate choice since Rome is such a madhouse right now.

All the crew has been so very nice to me since we've been back. They've all made a point of welcoming us back. And here I was hoping we could just quietly sneak back on ..... Brigitte, the nurse, just happened to be at the top of the gangway when we boarded. Of course she was one of the people I most wanted to greet and thank!! Petra, our cabin stewardess at the start, even came up to our new cabin to visit. When we got to our new cabin there were flowers, Godiva chocolates (is that really what a heart patient needs???), and most of the segment gifts that have been g???), and most of the segment gifts that have been given to the world cruisers.

My only health problem at the moment is lingering jet lag. It's ironic that one of the things we originally liked about the world cr the things we originally liked about the world cruise was that we would embark in our 'home' time zone and disembark in our 'second home' time zone! I'll adjust eventually, but I never seem to do it easily.

Thanks for all your good wishes! We plan to enjoy every minute of the rest of the cruise, despite having missed what has apparently been WORLD CLASS SHOPPING.

Betty