Each year we like to take a teen grandchild one-on-one (well, one-on-two technically) on a trip with us. We made two trips this year to catch up from the Covid travel disruptions.
Rubee joined us in Northern Spain (Ferrol, Gijon, Santander) then on to a few days in Paris.
And then Rhiley came for 10 days to Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Hamburg. Such a joy to spend time with kids we watched grow up into young adults!
(If you can’t see pictures, go to www.davendebra.com )
Seven years ago, when we first bought an apartment on the ship, we boarded in Tahiti. We hadn’t been back to the South Pacific since, so when the ship scheduled an expedition (run by a team of professional explorers) in French Polynesia, we decided to revisit this beautiful part of the world.
We took our dear friends Doug and Colleen, both world-class fly-fishing experts. Our first few stops were at gorgeous atolls – rings of coral surrounding shallow turquoise lagoons. There, Doug gave me an in-depth lesson in the art of catching bone fish, one of the most difficult game fish of the sea. I’ve always thought fishing to be boring, but Doug’s explanation of the technique made it fascinating. (Didn’t convert me though.)
I had expected the lovely atolls, but what I didn’t expect was the spectacular topography of the volcanic formations of the Marquesas Islands. I joined a very difficult hike to a noted waterfall and was amazed at the formations and ever-changing scenery. I’d put Nuku Hiva in my top five, not far behind the Grand Canyon and Petra, Jordan for amazing topography.
After over a year and a half of Covid, we finally were able to return to The World for a brief trip through the Caribbean, the Panama Canal, Costa Rica and the far south of Mexico. We limited our trips ashore to outdoor activities and dining to be safe but loved that the crew did all the work coordinating through the ever-changing entry rules around Covid. We loved the weather, the food, and Costa Rica and Mexico in particular.
It was mostly a test run for us to see if we’d be comfortable joining the French Polynesia expedition in January.
We wanted to start traveling again as soon as we were both vaccinated. In Europe, only Croatia, Albania, and Turkey would allow Americans in. Our Kiwi friends told us about their dream of chartering a traditional gulet ship to tour. We’d never heard of it, but found a beautiful one available and booked it for two weeks with two other couples. JUST before we went, Turkey went on a Covid lock-down and banned all alcohol sales! But we ordered what we needed before the ban and tourists were still allowed to travel in country, so we took the chance.
We spent a couple of days in Istanbul, which was a different experience it was so clean and quiet due to the lock-down. Then we flew to Bodrum on the southern coast for our charter. The crew, the chef, the boat were spectacular. We wandered along the deserted coast enjoying the crystal clear waters, beautiful scenery and shore excursions to historic sites.
We highly recommend this popular form of vacation frequented by Turks in the summer, though I doubt you’d have the quiet experience we had unless you go in the May and September shoulder period. Many of the boats are cleared to sail to the Greek Islands too, though we weren’t due to Covid rules.
And check out the short video one of the crew took from a drone!
After a year of Covid grounding, we decided to charter a boat and run to Bimini in the Bahamas. It’s just 50 miles east of Miami, and we wanted to pretend we could travel again. Some told us that it was a feeble little patch of islands, with nothing really worth seeing or doing. They were right. Maybe if you were into deep sea fishing, but we aren’t.
We did have a good couple of days of sun and we were able to book our favorite charter chef David Bhattacharya, so we enjoyed our “pretend” international trip. On the last day, we anchored at an area with lots of nurse sharks. I think that’s what they were. The crew told us they were harmless, so i swam with them and fed them. See the 1 minute video below.
Only now, when I Googled them did I read: “Although many divers see them as harmless, their mouth can produce a tremendous suction and could easily suck in fingers or a hand which they generally will not let go of. “
Yikes!
After leaving Raja Ampat, we stopped in West Papua waters to observe whale sharks. These are the world’s largest fish (whales are mammals) that can weigh 40,000 lbs. The average is 32′ long and weighs 20,000 lbs. Though they have small teeth, they don’t use them as they are filter feeders. Fishermen feed them a fish soup (chum) to keep them away from their nets, which allowed us to snorkel up close and personal. It’s hard to describe – take a look at the sort video below to get a sense of it.
Raja Ampat, a small area of islands in West Papua, Indonesia is considered the global center of marine bio-diversity. Over 500 species of hard coral and 1500 species of fish have survived centuries of global change in part because the islands open to oceans in every direction (as opposed to the Caribbean or Great Barrier reef that have large land masses partially blocking the natural flow of organisms that can replenish any damage). The little islands of limestone worn away at their edges and nestled in turquoise lagoons makes the area a sight to see on the surface. But beneath the surface, the coral is too spectacular to capture on “film.” If you’re into diving and marine biology, put it on your bucket list!
(areal photo from web)
A few years ago, we stopped briefly in Palau (western Pacific Ocean) and experienced the best snorkeling of our lives. We stopped again on our way to Raja Ampat, and this time I wanted to make sure I tried scuba diving there. I’m glad I did. I also took the hike to swim in jellyfish lake with 6 million jellyfish that have no sting due to some evolutionary history I don’t really understand. After more than an hour of snorkeling with them, I still couldn’t get used to touching them – creepy! It did, however, allow me to get some National Geographic like video. Check out the 2 minute clip below.
Next stop for the ship was Hong Kong for New Year’s Eve fireworks. But they were cancelled – NOT because of Covid-19 – that was just reported to the WHO for the first time on December 31st. Independence demonstrations had been going on since June of 2019 and the government didn’t want to have any large crowds gather. But on New Year’s Day there was a march authorized. I wanted to get a feel for the movement so we went in to observe (and join) the march.
There were plenty of police and they were well equipped, but they kept their distance using binoculars and cameras to monitor it. The march was at least 100,000 strong and made up of people all ages. Many held up five fingers indicating they want all five of their demands met. The exception was when they saw police, then they held up one finger.
An older woman asked me where I was from and asked angrily, “do you even understand what’s going on here?” She was upset the U.S. hasn’t been supportive of their movement. I hadn’t really understood what/how/when this would all end, but came to realize that this is about 2047 when the “one country, two systems” agreement ends and China exerts full control. Not that long from now if you think about it.
We were particularly were looking forward to Vietnam. We love the cuisine, and as a college student in 1967-71, I was consumed with all things Vietnam. We toured Saigon (Ho Chi Minh city), Nha Trang, Da Nang and Hanoi. Not surprisingly, a couple of museums had a very different perspective on the war than what we were fed, especially the long history of birth defects from Agent Orange and horrors of Napalm – but there seemed to be no animosity towards Americans. Life goes on and the focus seems to be on the future, not the past.
There did seem to be a distinctly different view of the role of central government and socialism in the South vs. the North, but it’s also clear that since 1987 capitalism has become widely accepted and helped the economy become one of the fastest growing in the world.
All in all, it was a very interesting, enjoyable, and delicious couple of weeks. We’d go back for sure.
We’ve never been to the Philippines, so we ran from CT winter and joined the ship in November as it made the first of two trips through the area. People we talked to from there seemed all to have one common thing to say about Manila – “TRAFFIC.” An accurate description. It was so bad, we quit trying to tour and only went where we could walk. What I didn’t realize is how big the country is. Over 7600 islands (2000 inhabited). Many have glorious beaches, developed and otherwise.
I can’t say we gave the country a thorough or fair shot, but did like the food, the beaches, and found the people to be very friendly.
Each year we try to take one of the teen grand kids on a summer trip. This year it was Emberlee’s turn. We flew 
to Dublin and after “breakfast” in the town’s oldest pub (it was Sunday, and the booths looked like church), we drove to Belfast, Northern Ireland to catch up with the ship. Something seemed a little scary about boarding in Belfast right next to the shipyard that build the Titanic. We visited the new museum there (so-so) and toured the city. A lovely, lively town on the mend after 30 years of Catholic vs Protestant fighting called the “Troubles.” I sure hope whatever happens with Brexit doesn’t damage the peace or this thriving town.
North of Belfast is a unique geological formation called the Giant’s Causeway. I’d never heard of it until the (British) Open golf tournament was played nearby. It is the strangest thing – hexagonal rock formations that look like they’ve been artificially stacked like Lego blocks. Google it – it’s hard to believe! I was anxious to get pictures for the blog, but hadn’t thought of the tourists climbing everywhere. I did my best, but you really should Google it.
From Ireland we sailed to the Faroe Islands, midway en-route to Iceland. Unless you’re a salmon lover, you might not have heard of them. The weather is almost always windy, wet, cloudy and cold – but we got lucky and had a couple of rare, beautiful days.
Then on to Iceland for a brief visit and the flight home. Before Rejkiavick, we stopped at Heimaey and island just south of the “mainland.” In 1973 a volcano erupted burying houses with 12 feet of ash. Then the lava crept towards the port village for over five months. Miraculously, no one died, though 400 homes were ruined. They built a museum around one of the excavated houses – very well done.
(This was not the volcano of Eyjafjallajökull that disrupted European air travel in 2010 – though i know that’s the name you were thinking!)
Finally, we had a brief visit of Rejkiavick and went to the famous Blue Lagoon to make my skin like that of a teenager. Very touristy, but well run and worth a visit. Iceland had become become a booming tourist/party destination thanks to extremely low cost airfares by Wow airline, but since they went bankrupt, I think they’re struggling. A fun stop though.
We had a wonderful time with Emberlee and hope we helped extend her love of travel.
We’ve been a bit ashamed to admit we never visited Israel in all our travels, so we finally committed the time and energy to do it well. I guess we’ve avoided it because we’re not at all religious, but we did want to better understand the ancient history AND the current politics to better grasp the nuances of the region when reading the news. It’s amazing how much easier it is to relate to the various sides when you’ve been there and met the people living it.
We engaged a guide and travel planner Amy Ben-Dov who made all the difference in the world. She was as comfortable talking with authority about each of the monotheistic religions and offered a balanced perspective on the feuding factions and political parties.
On our first day in Jerusalem, Amy wasn’t available, so she lined us up with another guide, Assaf, who was also outstanding. He took us to the West Bank, Dead Sea, and Masada. It was cool and windy – we didn’t really feel the need to take the touristy Dead Sea plunge, but Assaf convinced us. I’m glad he did. The sensation of extreme buoyancy was much different than I’d imagined. The photo here looks fake, like we’re resting on the sand, but it was 3 feet deep! 
He even made us do the mud, though the “black face” yearbook scandal was hot in the U.S. at the time.
Assaf had lived in a traditional Kibbutz next to Gaza when he was a young man. 3,000 missiles were fired in his time there, but after having children he moved to a safer part of the country. It was very interesting to hear his views on the socialist model of his first Kibbutz and his “life goes on” sense of survival.
We had 3 days with Amy in Jerusalem. She started with a rapid-fire primer (with charts) on the 3,000 year history of the area. It made everything we saw easier to understand and much more interesting. She also appreciated our interests in food exploration and booked tables at unique and fascinating venues. If you go, Machneyuda in Jerusalem was especially interesting, though she could only book us for 3pm it is so popular.
And as a special treat, she arranged for us to meet with Dr. Johnathan Speyer, a noted journalist and adviser to governments to learn about the conflicts in the region. Having been in-bedded with Iranians, Kurds, and rebel groups made his knowledge of the wars and factions in Syria, Iraq, and Israel is amazing. Our one-hour appointment with him ran almost 2 1/2 hours! Fascinating.
We spent a couple of fun nights in Tel Aviv and participated in Purim night, the Jewish equivalent of Halloween. And finally we golfed in Haifa. There are only two courses in Israel – not a golf destination for sure!
People rave about Israel. We enjoyed it, learned a lot, and are glad we went, but it doesn’t make our top 5.
Temple of Hercules
We decided to do a serious tour of Israel before rejoining the ship there. But we also wanted to make a stop in Jordan to see Petra, one of the 7 Wonders of the World (along with well more than 6 other sites claiming same). We flew into Amman and toured the city before heading on the 3 hour drive to Petra. Aside from the architectural sites like the Temple of Hercules (161 AD), we didn’t find anything of particular interest in the city, though the spectacular hummus shouldn’t be missed!
Petra was another matter. I’d seen photos of the rock formations and the Treasury carved into the stone, but assumed there was not much more to it. In fact, the ancient city (some parts thought to be from 9,000 BC) covered a large area worth exploring as the population once reached 20,000 around 300 BC. Petra’s prominence came from both it’s unique geology and the clever management of the sparse rainwater. A 3/4 mile long narrow gorge to the area made it easy to defend and a system of damns, troughs, and cisterns made the city an oasis in the desert.
But history aside, the gorge, rock formations and massive hand-sculpted buildings and tombs carved into the stone are hard to describe. I was anxious to photograph it all, so we arrived at 6 AM when it opened. While it was great to be there when there were almost no other tourists, I was disappointed to review my photos – capturing its magnificence requires skills beyond mine.
Treasury – 500 BC
From Petra we headed south to enter Israel. Though Jordan and Israel have settled boundary disputes and have been at peace since 1994, there are only 3 border crossings along their 200+ mile common border. On the way we stopped for a visit to Wadi Rum, an expansive desert with a moonscape of granite and sandstone mountains. Much of the 1917 Arab revolt lead by T.E. Lawrence (aka Lawrence of Arabia) was fought here. It also was the set for the 1962 movie and others such as Valley of the Moon, Transformers, and The Red Planet. It was easy to see why.
I can’t leave this topic without recommending my all-time favorite biography – Lawrence in Arabia by Scott Anderson (note it’s “IN,” not “of”). A fascinating story that provides context for the troubles we see in the Middle East to this day.
And yes, Virginia, there really still are Bedouin who travel by camel and live in the desert!
D & D Adventures 