March 2, 2014 to March 11, 2014 - Manaus, Brazil Day 2 to Aruba

Sunday, March 2, at breakfast we learned that a group of 9 went to the Sambadrome On Saturday evening. They had a good time, but got drenched in a torrential downpour. The crowd was not great and they did not feel threatened. They stayed for several hours and enjoyed themselves. We are glad to have our memories of Recife in 2012. That was Carnaval enough for us.

We left Prinsendam at 8:40 and walked to the cathedral in hopes of finding Mass at 9:00. We arrived in alight rain at 9:00 to discover that Mass was not until 10:00. We decided to attend Mass onboard in the afternoon, so we returned to the terminal where Alice waited while I went to get our computers. We would use the free wi-fi. After updating the blog, I returned the computers to our cabin. We then set out for the market. The buildings that were being refurbished in 2012 were completed now. The ironwork had been beautifully restored.

We visited the meat market, the gift shops and the fish market inside the main building. Spices and oils were in a round building adjacent. As we left the fish market we discovered a walkway above the launch area where fishermen brought their catch. Below us were tables for selling the fresh fish. We watched as people selected the fish they wanted, and the fishmongers cleaned them. It was a remarkably efficient process.

Across the street were the docks for the river busses. It was Sunday morning and the area was fairly quiet. However, there were many river busses at the docks. There was not as much loading and unloading of the boats as there is on a weekday. We spotted the pier with the barbershop on it, but the “shop” was not open. Although this pier was clearly still in use, it was quite run down compare to our last visit.

We crossed the street again, and entered the large old market building. This is where the real action was. It is much larger than the restored buildings where we had started. 

Our guess is that the restoration was done for tourists. This working market is fine just as it is, old but clean.

As we walked back to the terminal, I felt a slight twinge on the top of my left foot. By the time we got inside the gate the bottom of my arch was aching. When we got to the gangway, every step up was very painful. I could hardly put any weight on my left foot, and I limped to the cabin. After resting on the bed until dinner, I hobbled to the dining room. Karol suggested that it might be plantar fasciitis. I have experienced that before, and this pain was far greater than that.

Monday, March 3, after a good night’s sleep, my foot felt up to walking in Parintins. This is our last port on the Amazon. It is home to the Boi Boomba Festival, which we attended last time. We just walked the craft shops and the town market before returning to walk to some riverfront parks. Alice had bought a beaded necklace here two years ago, Regrettably she did not purchase earings to match the necklace. We checked for earrings at all of the shops and stalls, but we did not see a match. Then I noticed a small pile of unsorted earrings on a vendor’s table. Alice searched through it. She found a pair that matched the necklace perfectly. The man asked for $2. We settled on $1. Perfect.

The rest of the walking was uneventful. We returned to the ship and I iced my foot. Those who saw the Boi Bumba were quite pleased with it. Good Show!

We all had a good time.

Tuesday, March 4, a day at sea. This started a new pattern for me. If we were not eating, I was in the Crows Nest icing my foot and reading one of the Aubrey and Maturin series by Patrick O’Brien. The movie Master and Commander is based on the firs novel of this series. It features Captain Aubrey and Dr. Maturin, his friend and ship’s surgeon. Sean has a five-volume set of the twenty novels in this series. I took volume three with me on this voyage.

Wednesday, March 5, I continued the pattern started yesterday with icing my foot and reading.

Thursday, March 6, we arrived at Devil’s Island. Unlike the last time, the sun was shining. The island looked more inviting, but we had a very good visit here the last time. My foot, while improving, still does not beg for walking.

More icing and reading. Progress is being mad on both fronts

Friday, March 7, is another sea day. Guess what I did. Alice has been working on organizing her photos and attending wellness lectures.

Saturday, March 8, we arrived at Bridgetown, Barbados promptly at 8:00 AM. Alice and I met our tablemates, Marion and Ken outside the terminal where the guys hawking tours were working. A fellow offered us a two and a half hour tour that sounded very interesting for $25 each. After a brief consultation we decided to take this tour. The driver asked us to have a seat while he tried to sell more spaces. His van hold 14 and we were the first 4. Shortly he had two more from our ship, but we still had to wait for more. A couple from a different liner joined, followed by another from Prinsendam. We were off and running.

The driver was very good in pointing out sights, and allowing time for pictures. He could not always stop, but he did slow down. At one stop, while we took pictures he left to buy something. After driving us through a professional golf course he took us to a quiet area where we got out. He started calling. Soon a green monkey came out of the brush. We don’t know why they are called green because they look gray to us.

Our driver had bought bananas at the last stop. He cut them up for us so we could feed the monkey. The monkey very gently, but quickly, took the pieces from our hands. He flicked the skin from the slices and put the banana in his mouth. Before we all had our pictures taken by the driver, several other monkeys joined us.

We then visited an old church, drove to an overlook to view the ocean shore, and passed through sugar cane fields. 

We descended to sea level and admired the surf and beaches on the Atlantic. This was much rougher than the beaches we had visited on the Caribbean side. After having a beer on the deck of an ocean front bar, we continued through residential areas and downtown before returning to the ship. The tour lasted almost four hours. We all had a good time.

I thought I remembered passing through this terminal in 2010, but at dinner I said that I did not remember seeing any of these sights before. I must be mistaken about visiting here before.

After dinner I checked my computer and found my iPhoto library of 2010 travels. Sure enough there was the ships sign for port time in Bridgetown. We had 483 pictures from here. None of them matched what we saw on this tour. Seems like now we have seen most of the island. We liked it.

Sunday, March 9, we are sailing west toward Curacao on the smoothest seas yet. It does not even feel like we are moving. No pitching or rolling.

My foot was not too irritated with yesterday’s activity, but icing and reading is the order of the day. I finished the last book in this volume. I have now read 12 of the 20. I am truly hooked, and cannot wait to get the next volume from Sean.

The Filipino Crew Show was tonight. It was very well done. There is a lot of talent in the crew,

Monday, March 10, we met Marion and Ken at the gangway in Willemstad, Curacao at 9:30. We had so much fun Saturday that we decided to set out together again. 

We walked to the port entrance where we were accosted by a lady selling tours. Her itinerary seemed good, and the van would not be full so the $20 per person seemed reasonable.  We entrusted our soles to Urvin and drove off.

The pacing was good. The view stops were fine. The narrative was very informative. His tour took us to places we did not visit on the Noordam in 2010. When he finished the circuit, he dropped us off in town rather than bringing us back to the ship. That was what we wanted. Marion and Ken went their way and we went ours. We were all satisfied.

Alice and I headed toward the floating market. This is where boats from Venezuela tie up to sell their fish and produce. They come every day to create this market. Venezuela is 40 miles away.

After the floating market we worked our way toward the round market. This is a market where locals shop for produce, beauty and health products, as well as local crafts.

We finished shopping the round market, and were standing outside trying to figure out where we might find a rest room for Alice. An older lady noticed us and asked if we were looking for something. Sounds like Buenos Aires doesn’t it? When Alice told her she we were looking for a bathroom, The woman said there used to be one in the market, but she thought it was closed. She thought if we asked a clerk inside, we could learn where one was. She also said there would be a fee and she insisted on giving us the local coin necessary. As she fished through her purse for the coin, she asked Alice to hold her parcels and hat. I must confess to wondering if we were somehow being scammed. Not to worry. This kind lady had grown up here and gone to the US to work. She had spent time in Florida and New York. She really liked New York, but not Florida. She had returned to Curacao to live out her years. She found the coin, gave it to Alice and walked away. But first, she warned us to mind our things. They steal here she said.

She was so kind and gracious. She was also right about the bathroom charge. It would have been $1, but was only1 gilder, about half the cost. This is another person we will remember. We are sorry we did not get her picture.

Tonight’s on deck barbecue has been cancelled because our bunkering has been delayed, and we cannot have any open flames while the fuel is being loaded. All aboard is 10:30 with fireworks scheduled for 11:15 as we sail away.

We departed the dock at about 10:45 and headed into the turning basin. This is a large area of water in front of the oil transport loading area. We watched from the top deck in hopes of having a better view of the lighted buildings along the exit channel and then the fireworks. We did not seem to have a lot of room to spare as we made our turn, but we did not need the tug that stood by for safety. The fronts of the buildings were well lit, and the pastel colors were brilliant. 

Shortly after we passed, the fireworks began. This was a splendid display paid for by Prinsendam to celebrate the last days of our glorious voyage. To make this display even better the company responsible made 3D glasses available to all onboard. These had a kaleidoscope effect on the light bursts. It was quite brilliant.

We were in bed shortly before midnight. The final haircut of my package is scheduled for 9:00 AM Tuesday.

Tuesday, March 11, is the last port of call before returning to Ft. Lauderdale. We arrived on time. At breakfast we watched the Celebrity Eclipse dock next to us. It carries three times as many passengers and towers over us.

After my haircut we met Marion and Ken at the gangway. We then negotiated a two-hour tour of the island in a minivan. We had looked at pictures from our tour in 2010 and reviewed the shore excursion offering for this visit. Alice had a list of the highlights. The driver agreed to visit all of them and we started out. 

His narrative was good, and he was most accommodating. His driving was a little fast, and the van was difficult to board. At least we were not crowded. He did keep us safe, and we were back at the ship at 11:30.

After lunch we walked into the city center. We wanted to find earrings to match the pendant Alice bought in Barbados. The plethora of souvenir stalls sold mainly fabric and wood objects. The few that had earrings did not have anything suitable. After we had exhausted the stalls without success, we visited a few of the jewelry stores. Prices have not come down. This does not seem to hamper sales. We returned to our cabin without spending a penny. In another hour we will be leaving.

My next post will be from home.