World Cruise Day 105/152 - Sea Day - A well-deserved rest

Cruise day: 105/152

Ports days: 46
Sea days: 59
Countries: 18
Continents: 5
Ports: 34

It's a sea day - woo!  After yesterday's 13-hour, 109-degree marathon, a sea day is welcome.  We're cruising at about 10 knots heading north in the Gulf of Suez to our parking location for our entry into the Suez Canal.  As I discussed on our first transit, ships must arrive the evening before and anchor.  Then, at 3:30AM from the south and 4:00AM from the north, the caravan heads into the canal so that they meet where they can pass each other.  We should arrive around 10PM tonight and will very likely be leading or near the front of the caravan again.

It's a sea day, so we had another bridge lesson - today focusing on overcalling and cue bidding - a really goofy concept that many struggles to grasp.

We were right on track with trivia, one question out of the running as usual.  We only missed two questions but failed miserably in the tiebreaker.

• What element has the atomic number 92?
• We had uranium and then second-guessed ourselves into platinum - it was uranium
• Who did Orpheus rescue by traveling to Hades?
• Eurydice 
• The tiebreaker: How many movies (of any type) have featured Barbie (like the doll) as the leading character?
• The team leaned hard to 3 - I said it was probably ridiculously high like 47 - we went with 3, it was 43

Heads-up - internet rant coming...

You may have noticed that I have not mentioned the ship's internet access in a while.  Why?  Every single time that I started to write that it seemed to have improved, it got worse.  After a while, I thought that my thinking it was better was causing it to fail.  I was getting a complex.  So, I decided to just ignore it.  Want to know what happened?  Nothing, it still sucks.

Don't get me wrong, it is better than it was when we were in South America where it bordered on being completely unusable.  But still, there are times when it just stops working completely or works so slowly that it is useless.  The official line from Viking was that we, the passengers, were to blame.  With the advent of cloud backups, with 500 people on the ship, all having their daily phone photos automatically backing up to Google Photos, Amazon Photos, iCloud, or wherever, our smart devices were using up all the available bandwidth.  So it's not them, it's us.  Well...yesterday, 450 of the 500 passengers on the ship left.  10% of the passengers did not book an excursion.  With everyone gone and not using bandwidth, how was the internet.  Based on comments from our friends who were two of the 50 that remained on the ship...it still sucked.  In fact, it was so bad that they thought it was out completely for a while.  The bottom line is that Viking needs another vendor to provide internet service on the ship.  We have been on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity recently.  All three have figured out how to get reliable, high-speed internet at sea, and for a whole lot more than 500 people at a time.  Viking really needs to step this part of their act as it tarnishes the luster of all the other things that they do so well.

There - I feel better now that I got that off my chest

It was interesting looking outside today.  Since we're heading to the entry of the Suez Canal, it means we're smack dab in the middle of shipping lanes and that means traffic.  Plus, there are fishing and oil rigs here, so looking around is fun.  Even with the heavy haze in the air today, there was a lot to see at sea.

This yacht has been following us all day

Viking brought a new art instructor on and they started new classes.  Today, they were painting Arab Dhow fishing boats.

The inspiration

Arlona's excellent watercolor interpretation, complete with her trademark three gulls

A friend was celebrating her birthday today, a few days after the fact for scheduling reasons, and we celebrated with a group in Manfredi's private room.  

It was a terrific evening with terrific people.  As I've said before, these types of things are what make this cruise amazing. We didn't know any of these fine folks before this cruise.

Tonight, we anchor in Suez, Egypt.  Tomorrow, we transit the Suez Canal from the Gulf of Suez in the Red Sea on the south end to Port Said, Egypt in the Mediterranean Sea on the north end. We will be docking in Port Said tomorrow evening and then visiting Cairo, Giza, the great pyramids, and sphynx on Saturday.

World Cruise Day 100/152 - Sea Day - Triple digits - wow!

Cruise day: 100/152

Ports days: 42
Sea days: 58
Countries: 16
Continents: 5
Ports: 30

Day 100.  Wow.  We have been on this ship for 100 consecutive days. That means that for us, staying on for the Viking Homelands cruise, we have only 52 more days to go.  Partway through today, our cruise is officially 2/3 over.  Again, wow.  Even more amazingly, after spending 100 days together essentially 24-hours each day, we still like each other!  FIngers crossed for the next 52.

If you look at the stats above, we're still heavy on sea days at 58 compared to only 42 port days.  But, for the remaining 52 days, we will be at sea for only 13 days and be in port for 39. That will put us at 81 port days and 71 sea days when all is said and done.

It is amazing to me to reflect on what we've seen and where we've been so far.  Five of the seven continents, 16 different countries, and 30 different ports with a lot more packed into this last 1/3 of our trip.  We will be whipped and ready to head home with all that port-heavy travel.

We took advantage of today's sea day with continuing bridge lessons.  We ventured into the territory of competitive bidding and that certainly changes the flavor of the game.  We played for an extra hour with our partners as well before once again, just missing out on the points in trivia.  Today was a Name That Tune trivia hosted by Cruise Consultant Hamed.  He was a stickler for details as we have to name the title and artist exactly for each song.  So, little things like Satisfaction by Rolling Stones cost us 1/2 point as it is The Rolling Stones.  The same was true for California Dreaming by The Mamas and Papas since it is The Mamas and The Papas.  And almost nobody in the room for Rasputin by Boney M.

We did more reading in the afternoon and Arlona went and walked on deck 2.  We went up early for dinner and enjoyed time out back on the Aquavit deck with my special martini, compliments of the beverage team that infused vanilla vodka for me. Arlona prefers it on the rocks and I prefer it straight up.

Arlona, staring off toward the back of the ship

We enjoyed dinner with friends and of course some dessert.

So this wraps up day #100 for us.  We are excited for the next 52 and a whole slew of amazing places coming. This includes Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Israel, more stops in Greece, Italy and Spain, Monaco, Portugal, England, and then on to the Viking Homelands.

Tomorrow, we will be in port in Aqaba, Jordan.  We will be traveling to Petra tomorrow and then touring Aqaba on Monday.  Tomorrow will be a long day, so this will be a short blog.  Expect a bunch of photos, and probably not much commentary in tomorrow's blog as we will be getting back to the ship late. 

World Cruise Day 95/152 - Sea Day - A farewell to Johann and Saudi preparations

Cruise day: 95/152

Ports days: 38
Sea days: 57
Countries: 15
Continents: 4
Ports: 28

It is a bit of a sad day here on the Viking Star.  We learned today that we are losing our illustrious General Manager, Johann, who will be heading home to South Africa for some well-deserved time off.  Johann has done an exceptional job managing this cruise through some very challenging situations, including ship maintenance issues, changing itineraries, and of course, COVID.  While we will miss his charm, leadership, good nature, and sense of humor, we wish him the best and thank him for all that he has done to make this cruise the best it can be.

Safe travels, our Viking friend!

Today is our last sea day before we arrive in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.  For those that follow the news, Yemen attacked Jeddah three days ago, on Friday with a rocket and drone attack.  One rocket hit an Aramco oil depot about 11 miles from the cruise port.  This was an attempt to disrupt Saudi Arabia's oil business as well as the Formula 1 race that took place yesterday (Sunday).  It didn't work and the race went off without a hitch.  We are still headed to Jeddah tomorrow and expect that it will remain calm during our visit.

At breakfast, we had a hitchhiker out on the railing - a mourning dove.  All I could get was a quick cell snap before it flew away.

Since this was a sea day, we had a bridge lesson and also played for an hour before finishing one correct answer out of the points once again in trivia.  The goofs:

• Black, Brown, Spiny, and Norway are types of what?
• Rats
• On the TV show, Thunderbirds (it was done with marionettes - 1964 - 1966), what was the name of Lady Penelope's chauffeur?
• Parker (nobody got this obscure one)
• Where was the sport of curling invented?
• Sure seemed like it would be Canada, but it was invented in Scotland

The Captain confirmed that we still only have one COVID case on the ship.  So far, none of the close contacts have tested positive, so that's good news.  The close contacts will be quarantined for five days and then released if they continue to be negative.  The one person with COVID will remain isolated for ten days and then be released.

For the next four days, we will be in Saudi Arabia.  Let's discuss what that means in terms of requirements.

First, Saudi Arabia bans alcohol in all forms.  Therefore, Viking will not be serving any alcohol for the next four days.  No wine with dinner, no cocktails, nothing.  They also cannot use alcohol in cooking, so that will impact the kitchen as well.

For passengers, we all had to download an app to our smartphones called Tawakkalna.  Viking is working out an alternative plan for the handful of folks that do not carry a smartphone.  Once docked, we will be required to create an account and register with the app and allow full access to our phone's location services. This will allow the Saudis to track our movements.  The app will link with our passport and Saudi e-visa as well as provide vaccination information.  We will still be required to carry our passports and vaccine cards as well as our e-visa printout, but the app will be used to give us access to stores, restaurants, museums, and so on.  We will be bused from the ship to a terminal where every passenger will have a 30-minute or so face-to-face immigration meeting with Saudi immigration officials.  We must receive an entry stamp in our passport to go anywhere and then an exit stamp to leave.

For excursions that visit sensitive religious sites, Viking will provide the required garb for women so they can cover themselves per Saudi requirements.  For regular visits, for men and women, shoulders and knees must be covered.  Head coverings for women are recommended but not required. That will be interesting, having to wear long pants, and not shorts in the 90+-degree weather. They also recommend long-sleeve shirts for men.  Basically, showing skin in any form except a man's face and a woman's eyes is considered immodest and discouraged.

Public displays of affection are also banned.  This includes holding hands.  It is a finable offense.  Seriously.  We've been doing that for over 38 years. It will be hard to not do it simply out of habit.

Saudi Arabia is trying to open itself to tourism.  So far, it seems that they have a very long way to go before it feels welcoming and accepting versus an interrogation and forced compliance.  We shall see how things go tomorrow. Perhaps I'll revise my opinion. I'm trying to keep as open a mind as possible. We have nothing planned for the second day in Jeddah and will decide whether to get off the ship on Wednesday depending on our experience tomorrow.

World Cruise Day 94/152 - Sea Day - The Red Sea, COVID is back, and your wish is my command

Cruise day: 94/152

Ports days: 38
Sea days: 56
Countries: 15
Continents: 4
Ports: 28

We're on our third of four sea days between Crete and Saudi Arabia.  The Red Sea is moving today and therefore, so are we, but it isn't too bad.  It's pretty breezy with 20MPH winds, but it is sunny and the temps are hitting 70 for the first time in a long time, so we're happy.

Speaking of the Red Sea, I never understood why they called it that.  Then I took a photo.  Now, I get it.

I never noticed that before.  Weird.

I want to point out one interesting tidbit about the Suez Canal.  Did you know that the Statue of Liberty that sits proudly in New York Harbor, a gift from France, was originally intended to grace the northern entrance of the Suez Canal at Port Said.  It was initially designed to depict a fellaha or female field worker or farmer often clad in a robe of cotton called galabeya and was to be titled, Egypt Bringing Light to Asia.

Because Egypt was struggling financially at the time in part due to expenses related to opening the canal, they rejected the idea.  It was then reworked into the Statue of Liberty that we know today.  Wow.

We had another bridge lesson and played some social bridge before flaming out in trivia today. It was another Are you smarter than a fifth-grader round hosted by Cruise Consultant, Hamed.  While we didn't completely fail at 12/15 correct, it wasn't enough for points today.  Our miserable failures:

• What is the hottest planet?
• We thought we had been burned by this before and answered the obvious - Mercury and we were burned again as it is Venus
• What is the first date (mm/dd/yyyy) of the 20th century?
• I knew this but bowed to team pressure and we answered 1/1/1900 - of course, it is 1/1/1901 - think about it - when they were writing checks in year #1, they wrote the date as 1/1/0001 - not 0000, so the last day of the first century was 12/31/0100 and the first day of century #2 was 1/1/0101
• A pound of what four ingredients goes into a pound cake?
• Butter, eggs, flour, sugar
• They needed a tiebreaker - how many countries are in Africa?
• 54

The Captain's sea day noon report has some bad news - COVID is back.  One passenger tested positive and is in isolation.  Four additional passengers were recorded as close contacts through our contact tracing devices and have been placed in protective quarantine until they either test positive and isolate or the quarantine period expires. I think it is four days, but don't quote me on that.  Bad news as we've been COVID-free for so long, but it was bound to happen and Viking is handling it to minimize the impact on everyone, including those directly impacted.

They had a special Tex-Mex brunch in The Restaurant today.  We opted to hit the World Cafe where they also featured Tex-Mex specialties.  We both enjoyed a beef fajita with peppers, salsa, sour cream, cheese, beans & rice.

Before we headed to lunch, we snuck a load of laundry in so we wrapped up that after lunch.

Arlona made an art project this afternoon.  They painted keepsake boxes. The design was on the box.  She painted the details to personalize it as well as staining the box itself.

After my spa photos the other day, a reader asked for photos of the exercise facility.  Of course, that meant actually going to the exercise facility, but as the title says, your wish...

The exercise facility is located on deck 1 forward starboard adjacent to the spa.  There are a variety of machines available.  I didn't photograph all the machines as some were in use and I wanted to respect privacy.  Therefore, I got creative with angles and cut out a couple treadmills and stationary bikes.

Weight machines

Treadmills

Stationary bikes, ellipticals

Hand weights

Balance balls, weights, benches, rower

Open space for yoga, pilates, stretching, etcetera

One interesting thing on sea days when you're in a shipping channel is the variety of ships you get to see.  I could get three in one frame, with a total of four visible off the port side this morning.

I use an app called Vessel Finder that lets me see the ship's name, where they departed, and where they are heading. It really gives you an appreciation of why the Evergreen ship that got stuck in the Suez Canal caused such an interruption in the supply chain.  The amount of goods that are always on the move globally is staggering.

Speaking of staggering, Arlona and some friends are having a girls' night out tonight at Manfredi's steakhouse.  That leaves the guys to start out in the Explorers' Bar - we'll see where that winds up.  

Did you know that it always takes a lot longer to walk home from the bar than it takes to walk to the bar?  The difference is staggering.  😉

Arlona's ladies' night turned out to be a very nice evening.

I wound up swilling some drinks in the Explorer's Bar with the guys and watching the sunset through the grating by the lounge area.

The guys went and had dinner in the World Cafe before rejoining our lovely wives.

Tomorrow is our last sea day before arriving in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for two, two-day port stops in Jeddah and Yanbu al-Bahr.