A dream vacation, ballroom dancing , sometimes rock-and-rolling, my way across the Pacific Ocean with my favorite group of dancers and dance hosts on the Pacific Princess.
Our South Pacific Cruise is rapidly coming to an end and this is the part that most of us had been waiting for; visiting the beautiful islands of French Polynesia that sit like exquisite jewels in the warm blue and green waters of the Pacific Ocean.
The islands we will visit on this cruise are Bora Bora and Moorea, and then the Pacific Princess will dock at Papeete in Tahiti. With a 7:30 am flight next morning I won't see Tahiti so I really wanted to get a flavour of the other two islands.
Bora Bora and Moorea are part of the Society Islands , an archipelago originally named for the British Royal Society by Captain Cook. There are two groups, the Windward Islands, in which Tahiti and Moorea are included, and the Leeward Islands in which Bora Bora lies. They have been a French colony since 1880.
Because of the time constraints, what these cruise visits do is just give you enough of a taste of each destination so that you can decide to where you would like to return for further experiences. Having grown up in Cape Town where I used to love to swim in the warm waters of the southern Indian Ocean, I was eager to dip my toes into the waters of the South Pacific. So Bora Bora and Moorea - here I come.
Wednesday October 7 Samba at Sea and Bora Bora
We were originally scheduled to arrive at the island of Bora Bora at 8 am and depart at 5 pm for Moorea, but adverse currents and choppy seas over the preceeding five days had forced a reduced cruising speed and that meant we would not arrive in Bora Bora until around noon.
This caused some concern among those who had booked early morning excursions, and lots of scrambling on the part of the staff to reschedule everything. I had not booked an excursion so it did not bother me. I was more concerned with the fact that I had rashly signed up to do a Samba routine in the talent show at 10:30 am and we had not really rehearsed anything.
I woke as usual around 6 am and by 6:30 was sipping coffee and eating a banana nut muffin and yogurt in "my office" on the aft deck outside the Pacific Buffet. We had arranged for Jorge to come and help Richard and I choreograph a short samba routine - really simple stuff but energetic enough to look like we were doing something good. I had my I-Pod with some great samba music and we put together three mini-routines that we thought would be fun.
We went through several variations and by the end of our brief practice i already felt I had had my workout for the day. I went back to the cabin to recharge my I-POd and get changed. Ruby and Jorge decided to put together a tango routine. Cool - so as it turned out of the 6 "acts" 2 were from the Dancers at Sea group.
There is something strangely liberating about being among a mass of strangers who don't know your name, and whom you will never likely encounter again. I think I can almost understand why some people can make absolute idiots of themselves on those reality TV shows without it seeming to bother them. So although I was a bit anxious at first, when it came to actually getting out on the floor with all these strangers watching, I sort of forgot about them and just focused on not falling over when the ship rocked, and having fun.
I even made a joke about not having any Brazilian blood so that this would be a "Canadian samba." Since what I actually meant was that there wouldn't be any of the "frenziedly shake your chest" action that seem to be the most favoured celebrity moves in the Dancing with the Stars samba routines, I should probably have qualifed it further by saying this would be an "age-appropriate Canadian samba" but I don't think fast with a microphone held in front of me.
Anyway we got through the routine and Wendy videoed it on my small digital camera. Having viewed it, i don't think I will post it. Too many things to work on before I will be comfortable having anyone see a video of me dancing!. Having said that, the husband of one of the other performers said he had videoed our dances and said he would mail us a copy. Hopefully he wouldn't post them anywhere without asking first. Oooohhh...
Friday October 2 - the first of 5 days at sea, and the Formal Night dinner
We departed from Hilo shortly after 4:30 pm on Thursday afternoon and set course in a southerly direction across the Pacific Ocean towards Christmas Island. The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of all the oceans and covers two-thirds of the earth's surface. Compared to the distance between our various ports in Hawaii, an average of 100 nautical miles apart, the distance to Christmas Island from Hilo is 1088 nautical miles so it was no wonder that when we awoke early as usual and went up on deck, there was only the ocean to see all around us.
Wendy had scheduled 2 dance workshops each of the 5 days we were to be at sea. Originally planned for 9 am, the Cruise staff moved them earlier to 8:30 so that the next activities in the Pacific Lounge could start on time at 10:30.
Since both Wendy and I are early risers, we were up on deck having coffee and a light breakfast by 7 am. It was quite lovely out on the aft deck behind the Pacific Buffet. Fresh air, a V sign of bubbles trailing behind us and the vast Pacific Ocean all around.
The Pacific Ocean was named by Ferdinand Magellan, the 16th century Portuguese explorer whose fatal voyage (he was killed during fighting in the Philippines) nevertheless provided the proof that one could circumnavigate the globe without sailing off the edge and that therefore that the world was round and not a disc.
Pacifc means peaceful although that is difficult to believe when you are trying to do a Bolero and the ship rolls you down when you are supposed to go up!
When you think of the conditions under which Magellan sailed, and even as recently as when my great-grandparents immigrated by ship to South Africa and Scotland, it is absolutely amazing to think of what we take for granted these days. Forgetting about air travel - which to my great grand-parents would have seemed as bizarre as a time-travel machine seems to us today, we can be out "in the middle of nowhere" and yet expect hot showers, clean laundry, gourmet food - and what to me is quite mind blowing - wireless internet access as good as at home - though at many times the price.
The fact that I can talk to my children on Skype from the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and it seems as if they are in the room next door - impressive - thanks to satellites, wireless routers, and the exponential increases in processing and data storage capacity that have occurred over the past couple of decades
So when I caught myself grumbling that wireless internet access was costing me 40 cents a minutes, 35 c if I had been smart and bought 500 minutes up front instead of 250, I reminded myself instead to say a silent thank you to the thousands of scientists and engineers who made internet access from a ship "in the middle of nowhere" possible with minimal effort on my part. Anyway, on deck in a fresh breeze, I used up some of my precious internet time to check emails.What a great office.
By 8:30 we were up in the Pacific Ballroom, Wendy had her I-Pod connected to the sound system and we were ready to go. Of the two couples in our group, both women loved to dance and their partners were there because they loved their women! So the range of dance abilities went from rank beginner to quite experienced. In order not to lose the beginners - and we all wanted to encourage Bob and Charlie to get as excited about dance as they claimed to be about golf! -the workshops were very basic. We essentially just did the box step in both the foxtrot and the rumba. I didn't mind though as it was additional exercise, although I thought a bit wistfully back to the West Coast Ballroom Dance Cruise rumba and chacha workshops where we learned some quite complex doublespin moves to practice on the dance floor.
The opportunity to join Wendy and the Dancers at Sea on a South Pacific Cruise from Honolulu to Tahiti came up unexpectedly while I was on the Labor Weekend Getaway Dance Cruise. A test of my developing capacity for spontaneity - something I have really been working hard to achieve - I needed to decide on the spot whether to take up an unexpected vacancy that had arisen - the only problem was that the cruise was scheduled to start a mere two weeks after I returned to Vancouver from New York (New York, New York 2009).
I checked my calendar to see if there was anything that could not be rescheduled, decided not to check my budget and my bank balance, and just go for it. So after just enough time back in the city to see a couple of plays, do my laundry and tidy my apartment, I was packed and ready for another great vacation dancing at sea.
I see those harbor lights... the ports of Seattle and Victoria
On Thursday, May 14th we arrived in Seattle and were moored by 9 am. I decided that I had to try out the gym facilities at least once since I lugged my workout clothes and shoes with me to California so I thought I would go there early before having breakfast. I was up at the gym area by about 7:30 and to my amazement there was not an unoccupied treadmill or elliptical machine. These baby boomers do not let a mere holiday mess with their fitness goals. I hung around for a bit admiring the view - its great to work out with a wonderful sea vista all around - and finally when someone vacated a treadmill I was able to get on it.
After a reasonably good workout I decided to check out the Horizon buffet, so after a quick shower, I dressed and went to have breakfast. It was still really cool - cold actually. We had had quite cold weather from Santa Barbara onwards. I guess it is not surprising for early May. Anyway the buffet was good- I found fruit, yogurt, and lots of coffee. I had decided that I would not bother with tours in either Seattle and Victoria, both cities that I had visited often before, and that I would try and get some writing done. I had a dance lesson scheduled and that was fun. Then I took my lap top up on deck and worked till it was time to get ready for dinner and more dancing.
That night the Sapphire Princess orchestra was playing "A Tribute to Big Band" in the Explorer's Lounge; a venue we had not used despite a slightly bigger floor than the Wheelhouse - because they always seemed to have stand up comics or trivia games going. It was actually quite nice. They played one set at 8:30 and then another was scheduled for 10:30.
In between the Cruise people held a "Passenger Feud Gameshow" - apparently like Family Feud- something I have never watched. Anyway to keep our seats near the floor, Carrie who was standing in for Wendy, suggested we wait it out. Raoul entered four of us as a team to play. I agreed to be one of the team members but luckily our team did not get selected.
We danced the second set and then most people seemed pretty exhausted and took of to their cabins. I have this problem that the more I dance the more energised I get - sort of like a wind-up toy that just keeps going instead of wearing down - so it took me ages to fall asleep with big band music running through my head.
Astoria and the South Oregon coast Wednesday May 13 The ship schedule stated: Arrive Astoria, Oregon 7 am - depart 5 pm.
When pre-booking my tours I decided that after three days of dancing and two wine tours it would be time to have a relatively quiet day, try out a Deep Tissue Massage in the Spa and catch up with my writing. That was wise planning as I was by that time three days behind in posting to my travelblogue. But the evening before, Raoul, Nancy and Dean had invited me to join them and share costs of a drive down the south Oregon coast to Tillamook. It took me about two seconds to decide that if I could change my Spa appointment I would join them. A phone call later and my massage was set for Friday , and I was up for the trip.
The view through my window showed a grey overcast sky so I decided jeans and layers would be wise. Raoul had rented the car so after assembling at the Passengers' Services Desk at 9 am, we disembarked onto the pier of a cold and very rainy Astoria and made our way through a series of market stalls to the rental car area. As Nancy observed ironically, the overhead announcement said it would be ”partially cloudy” but they neglected to mention that the other part was rain. Lots and lots of rain! It was very cold and wet but being from Vancouver, I found it nothing out of the ordinary.
Dancing at Sea: Dance and Workshops
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009
Tuesday was the only day when the ship did not call in at a port and we were at sea all day, sailing to Astoria, in Oregon. According to the ship's log - "throughout the day the Sapphire Princess steamed various northerly courses paralleling the coast of California on her starboard side at a distance of approximately 30 nautical miles." The sea is described as being "moderate" versus "slight" out of Santa Barbara, and "calm" on most of the other days.
What "moderate sea" translates to in practical terms is that the ship was noticeably rolling a lot more than on other days, and on the dance floor, a step could quite easily turn from a graceful sway into a Frankensteinian lurch.
Wendy had arranged for dance workshops in the morning, so we assembled at 10 in the wheelhouse lounge for a rumba lesson from Piero followed by a lesson in cha cha from Brian. It was good to learn some new and different dance sequences. We rotated partners but since more of the ladies turned up (naturally)than the men at each change a couple of people were partnerless. The sequence Brian introduced included a double spin which led to some interesting "new" moves when the ship rolled just as one was spinning. And one really needs a strong and steady lead for spinning, so it is hard to practice it on your own.
Dancing at Sea: Gourmet San Francisco Food and Sonoma Wine Tour
Monday, May 11th, 2009
Part II. The Wine
As we headed into the Sonoma Valley wine country, Jim told us about the wineries we would be visiting. We were going to the Carneros region, the southern part of Sonoma.
As it turned out our first stop actually was not at a winery but at Cornerstone Co-Op - a little village with several interesting stores, a gallery with some unusual and expensive sculptures, a gourmet food market / coffee shop and 4 winery tasting rooms. As we alighted from the bus, Jim handed each of us a coupon, good for a tasting at one of the four wineries.
The village area looked arid, dusty, sand-covered. I guess Sonoma is a desert and the area had a dry desert feel about it. I wandered away from the crowd who were heading for the closest tasting room and further back in the village I found Roshambo. When I heard that the only white wine currently up for tasting was a Chardonnay, I asked the pourer about other varietals. He said that he thought Larson was pouring a Gewürtztraminer, and though he gave me a taste of his wine, he very kindly did not take my coupon.
I wandered back to look for Larson. It was warm and windy - and I was feeling rather tired by now. I found my way into the Larson Winery and had a nice chat with Bob, the gentleman manning the tasting bar. He first poured their 2005 Sadler Wells Chardonnay - and then their 2006 Gewürtztraminer. I also tasted a Merlot which was quite pleasant- not much tannin but little body also.
We were allocated a fair amount of time at Cornerstone. Too much I think. I wandered in and out of the various stores - saw some great coffee table books with exquisite illustrations. But nothing really tempted me.
I also had a look at the sculptures in the gallery - the theme of the work currently on display seemed to be the human body. I was curious about one called Trophy Wife. It was a figure with a pin sized head, huge breasts and long legs. I figured there must be a story behind that but the man at the computer in the store did not know anything much about it. Too bad really.
Eventually Jim got us all back in the bus and we were off to the next winery at Cline. They had set up a tasting area outside for us but by this time the wind had seriously pickd up and it was quite blustery. The plastic cover snapped and crackled in the wind. They were pouring two white wines, a Rosé and two reds. The 2008 Pinot Gris, an unoaked blend of 60% Pinot Gris and 40% Chardonnay was pleasant; fruity with a nicely balanced acidity.
The 2007 Los Carneros Viognier was a little dry for my taste. The 2008 Mourvèdre Rosé was really nice, slightly dry but full of fruity flavour. I debated buying a bottle but the hassle of carrying bottles of wine home does not really appeal to me unless something is absolutely outstanding. I had not heard of Mourvèdre - apparently it is a Rhone varietal. Or maybe Rhine- I can't read my own handwriting.
My son is driving me to the Cruise Terminal. We turn it into a family outing so my grand-daughter can see what a really big ship looks like. It's a short 1 hour drive along the highway to the cruise ship terminal at San Pedro from which the Sapphire Princess is to sail. We made excellent time until we got to the last turnoff to Harbor Boulevard where somehow we missed the turnoff. As, far too late, I yelled "go right, go right" we found ourselves driving onto a very very - yes very - long bridge to the opposite side of the harbor. I looked back with dismay as the Sapphire Princess rapidly receded into the distance.
To make matters worse there was a huge traffic jam on the bridge and the traffic appeared stalled. I had visions of missing the boat- really. Well, not really - since it was only leaving at 4 and of course we were there hours before.
As the two lines of traffic slowly inched forward and the minutes ticked by, I couldn't help but remember one day on a long ago family visit to Provence, when we were trying to leave Avignon. We kept missing the exit which was admittedly poorly marked and ended up driving over the same wrong bridge at Avignon at least three times. This made it into the family annals of travel stories, remembered with much laughter as our own special version of "sur le pont d'Avignon" at later family gatherings. Well hopefully history won't repeat itself with Keith instead of Bob as the errant driver. Keith assured me, and himself, that it should be simple to do a U turn at the other end and get back to the right exit.
We finally got past a stalled truck which was causing all the problems. the traffic surged and we rapidly found our way back to Berth 93. I handed my suitcase over to a porter and hoped I would see it again sometime soon. And then it was goodbye to kids and grand-kids and time for me to board. Considering the numbers of people that need to be dealt with in a very short time, it all went really quickly and I found my way to my port side cabin. It was great - not too many places for me to misplace things. The only flaw was the paucity of outlets for plugging in my computer and other chargers.
T
Our South Pacific Cruise is rapidly coming to an end and this is the part that most of us had been waiting for; visiting the beautiful islands of French Polynesia that sit like exquisite jewels in the warm blue and green waters of the Pacific Ocean.
We were originally scheduled to arrive at the island of Bora Bora at 8 am and depart at 5 pm for Moorea, but adverse currents and choppy seas over the preceeding five days had forced a reduced cruising speed and that meant we would not arrive in Bora Bora until around noon. 
Friday October 2 - the first of 5 days at sea, and the Formal Night dinner
We departed from Hilo shortly after 4:30 pm on Thursday afternoon and set course in a southerly direction across the Pacific Ocean towards Christmas Island. The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of all the oceans and covers two-thirds of the earth's surface. Compared to the distance between our various ports in Hawaii, an average of 100 nautical miles apart, the distance to Christmas Island from Hilo is 1088 nautical miles so it was no wonder that when we awoke early as usual and went up on deck, there was only the ocean to see all around us.
So when I caught myself grumbling that wireless internet access was costing me 40 cents a minutes, 35 c if I had been smart and bought 500 minutes up front instead of 250, I reminded myself instead to say a silent thank you to the thousands of scientists and engineers who made internet access from a ship "in the middle of nowhere" possible with minimal effort on my part. Anyway, on deck in a fresh breeze, I used up some of my precious internet time to check emails.What a great office.
South Pacific Ballroom Dance Cruise 2009: Part I
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