Friday, October 27 – Land at Last

We are having a dispute, here in Cabin 584, regarding how many times we have been to Horta.  Without our journals, we cannot resolve the question.  One of thinks we have been here just once; the other says have been here often.  What is indisputable is that we have missed this port more often than we have visited. 

Horta is a port on one of the Azores, islands rising out of the Atlantic far off the coast of Africa.  Although they are territories of Portugal, they islands have their own culture and architecture.   Like West Virginia, they get more money from the federal government than they contribute, money used for capital improvements like roads and the clean-up from the 1957 volcanic eruption. This is the other side of the political battle in Spain where Catalonia complains that it contributes more than it receives.  We’ll get to test the sentiment in Catalonia when we stop in  Barcelona.

When we visit Ponta Delgada tomorrow, it will look a lot like Horta.  The seas and winds around Horta make docking the ship difficult which is why we have missed it so often.  Ponta Delgada, on the other hand, has a more protected harbor which is less at the mercy of the elements.

On our first/only time here, we took a ship’s tour to see parts of the island and to visit a pineapple plantation.  The main tourist attraction, however, is a twin lake in a caldera [the empty cone of a volcano].  This particular pair of lakes is unique because one lake is green and the other blue.  We’ve seen pictures.

Skies were overcast and rain threatened when we were finally cleared to leave the ship, so we didn’t.  There is no cruise terminal [read: free WiFi] and the walk along the sea wall from the ship to the nearest street is a half-mile or so.  We had no pressing needs and stayed aboard.

So here are some recent events and random thoughts:

Dessert Tuesday night was a cappuccino bomb, coffee ice cream encased in a dark chocolate shell.  And it was da bomb.  On Wednesday morning, Roy asked D what he wanted for breakfast and D said he’s like another bomb.  As a result, and despite the fact that it was known to be a joke, Roy brought the cappuccino bomb along with the eggs.  Needless to say, D did not really eat it for breakfast, but we suspect Roy did.  At dinner, we told the story to our waiter, Eka, who took the joke one step further and brought another bomb to the table along with the fruit plate.  Guess what D ate for dessert.

On the World cruise in 2015, our waiters brought tempura vegetables as an appetizer almost every night.  When other people found out, they wanted to eat with us so they could share in the bounty.  We told Roy this when he was our waiter last Fall and, sure enough, we were inundated with tempura vegetables for most of the cruise.  When we finally told him to stop, he explained that he had been ordering two plates – one for us and one which he shared with Sudi, his assistant.  Now, he said, he would continue to order two plates each night and they could each have their own.  Word travels fast on a cruise ship.  Last night Eka said, oh so slyly, “I hear you like tempura.” You can figure out what happened at dinner tonight.

We are a long way from home, not the best place to be when a hearing aid dies, but that’s what happened to MA.  This gives a whole new meaning to staying on her good side.  Guess where we will go the day we get home [six weeks from today]?

Holland America makes a big production about conservation and saving resources.  There are signs everywhere there is water – save the water; reuse the towels; shower with a friend.  But they waste so much paper that it is sad.  We are besieged with ads for the clothing shops; the spa; the casino; the jewelry shops; and for their tours.  And where does all this paper end up?  In the trash can where it is later picked through, sorted and bundled for recycling. 

The highlight of most sea days is the New York Times crossword puzzle.  Sometimes we race to see who can finish first.  By the end of the week, when the puzzles are harder, we work together to fill them in.  We solved today’s, but tomorrow’s will be nigh impossible.

Time flies when one cruises.  It’s gone by so fast that we have gained 4 hours so far.  The four time changes meant four days of only 23 hours, and, since the change is effected at 2 am, four nights of less sleep.  There will be two more hours lost before we head back to Florida and start having 25 hour days.

Tomorrow – We visit The Cow