We got up early today for breakfast and then set off on our 7.5 hour excursion. The excursion included a bus ride where we got to see some of the local sites and then on to the Veragua Rainforest Research Center. We met up with our naturalist guide, Daria, who began the talk with how safe it was going to be, except for the Bullet Ants, these 1-inch long black ants whose bite is very painful and can last up to 24 hours. These ants love to walk along the hand rails, and sure enough, along the first handrails we encountered, we saw these large insects.
The weather was a little cool (the rainforest is at a high altitude) and lightly raining. We saw some beautiful tropical flowers and as we went through the exhibits and laboratory, we saw several snakes, frogs, butterflies, and birds.
We boarded an aerial tram that took us from the visitors center/research lab to the forest floor. The ride was gentle and allowed us a great view of the rainforest. Unfortunately, with the rain, no animals were visible.
Our trek involved several hundred stairs and we were all very wary of placing our hands on the handrails. Besides watching for snakes and biting insects, our guide stopped to show us one of the most toxic plants that grows along our path. We made our way down to see a nice waterfall.
When we returned to the visitor’s center, we had a nice lunch (chicken, beans, veggies and plantains). We were then off to the Tortuguero Canals where we boarded a boat and traveled on the canal looking for wildlife. We saw several sloths, some blue herons, snowy egrets, and an emerald lizard. One of the highlights, however, was a glimpse of a group of white-faced capuchin monkeys who were feeding on the wild bananas that grow near the canal.
Food seems to be a big part of our adventures. The first square shows the meal we received at the rainforest visitor center. The others are the meal back on the ship: sliced fruit for dessert, island seafood fritters and a plantain for appetizer, and the chef’s version of Loco Moco for dinner. Fried egg over ham over hamburger over rice and covered with brown gravy. Yum. The evening meal had a tropical theme. You can see the two penguins having dinner below.
Our watercolor instructor seems as interested in sketching as he is in painting. Our homework after the first lesson was to do some sketching in the sketchbook he gave us. I tried to copy Ron’s photo of a green iguana we saw on the Cayman Islands. Apparently they are very common and somewhat of a nuisance. All of the telephone poles and many of the trees have a collar of smooth metal several feet off the ground to prevent the iguanas from climbing.
Luckily, we had no sea-sickness symptoms since that first day at sea. After a nice breakfast, we went to a cooking demonstration by Samantha. This class was entitled, All About Salmon. We learned about two new recipes for salmon that each look good. Poached Salmon with Herb and Caper Vinaigrette and oven-roasted salmon. The additional sauces or salsas also seem very tasty.
In the afternoon, there was a class about New Italian Favorites. One was a pork fillet (pounded to a thin slab) with a piece of prosciutto layered on top and then topped with a sage leaf. This is called Pork Saltimbocca. These were cooked in a hot pan to sear each side. They looked very tasty. The second recipe had a funny name, Tagliatelle with Proscuitto and Peas. We may have to make these for potluck sometime.
These penguins keep popping up around the ship. We feel a little low class taking pictures of our food, but here are two shots from the dinner. Ron had an appetizer featuring salmon and some little pancakes. For my dinner, I had a Parmesan crusted veal chop. Yum. Tomorrow we visit Costa Rica.
Ron attended a Windows class and I did a little more in my Watercolor/Sketching class.
The Cayman Islands are composed of three islands: Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman Brac. They are a sovereign territory of Britain. They have an independent government but still claim Queen Elizabeth II as their Head of State who appoints a Governor as her representative on the Islands. Besides tourism, Banks are big business on the Islands. They have become one of the largest off-shore tax havens in the world.
Today we saw two of the main attractions on the Grand Cayman Island: Hell and the Turtle Center.
Hell isn’t more than about 1 block in size but it does have a Post Office and a very unusual set of rock formations. The unearthly limestone rocks are formed by acid rain and rock eating algae. The name is supposed to have come from a British explorer, who upon seeing them, exclaimed “So This is what Hell looks like”.
Our second site was the Turtle Center. This is a breeding center for the Green Sea Turtle. Since 1979 they have released over 31,000 turtles back into the sea. Once matured, they return back to the Cayman Islands to lay their eggs.
The center has a huge breeding pool of turtles with a sand beach where the turtles can lay their eggs. Workers then collect the eggs and take them to hatching facilities until they’re old enough to return to the sea. Paul was able to hold one of them! He made sure to wash his hands afterwards as the turtles carry Salmonella bacteria, amongst others.
Here we are on our first sea day traveling to Grand Cayman, the largest of the three Cayman Islands, just south of Cuba. The seas were a little rough and after breakfast and exercise (four times around the deck = 1 mile), we headed off to the first lecture, but we both felt woozy and could not stop sweating. We ended up taking a pill and a nap and were fine by lunch. During sea days, there are various lectures and activities onboard. Luckily, all of the ones we really wanted to see were after lunch. There is a demonstration kitchen on board hosted by America’s Test Kitchen. Our on-ship chef/presenter was Samantha (Sam). The presentation was entitled “Blue Ribbon Breakfasts” and was a combination of video-recorded segments by America’s Test Kitchen staff and live presentations by Sam. Ron recorded the recipes so we can try those recipes later at home for fluffy omelets and blueberry pancakes. Sam was very personable and fun to watch, but since she only boarded the ship yesterday (the same as we did), she was still getting to know the kitchen and the equipment. She did a great job.
We went to a lecture about our next two ports of call and then I went to my first watercolor class. It was a big class and we practiced some basic skills of shading and drawing. Jack, our instructor, has a lively attitude and this looks to be a wonderful class. The dinner was our first Gala Dinner, so we had to dress up for dinner. The food was wonderful (escargot and rack of lamb and breast of duck). Sorry… no pictures (too busy eating). There was a captain’s toast in the theater before the show, but I could not keep my eyes open during the toast, so we did not stay for the comedian.
When we returned to the room, we found a few gifts on our beds. We received a great little travel journal, a small bag to keep our passport and other goodies safe around our necks, and a messenger bag. On Ron’s bed, we got our first towel animal… a manta ray. Tomorrow is our first port and first excursion.
It was windy and a little wet at the hotel. At breakfast, we met up with some friends from the 2017 Grand World Voyage. Some were going on our cruise and some were off on the 2018 World Voyage. It was fun to do a little catching up. At noon, about 100 people were to meet in the lobby to board busses headed to the pier, Port Everglades. Three Holland America ships were at the port headed for three different tours. Our ship, the Princendam, is the smallest.
Our bus had a delay (a minor fender-bender) so when we reached the port, there were no lines or waiting. We boarded the ship and were greeted by a line of stuffed penguins! After the mandatory muster drill, we had a chance to explore the various floors of the ship. America’s Test Kitchen sponsors the culinary theater where Ron will probably spend much of his time. We had to find the Lido Deck around the pool for the sail away celebration. Some punch (with a punch) and some yummy finger foods were a great way to start the voyage.
Luckily for us, all of our luggage showed up, so the next step was to fit it all into our stateroom. It is a nice room with a large window and a bathroom with a tub. It is all quite spacious for a cruise ship and a fine place to spend the next 68 days. After cleaning up a little, we headed off to the dining room and met our dining table of guests with whom we will be sharing the cruise. Besides ourselves, our friends from the Grand World Voyage, Ann and Pat, were assigned to the same table (by mutual request). Our new acquaintances include Jane, a retired RN; Claudia, a retired medical researcher; Mary, a stay-at-home mom and one of her daughters, Jean, who is a retired Special Ed teacher. Everyone seems very nice and friendly. It should be a great group to share with.
The dinner was excellent, as expected, but I only remembered to take a photo of the dessert, a hazelnut parist brest, which turned out to be a sort of cream puff. Very nice.
We did some more exploring after dinner and I was able to do my exercise by walking around the inside of the ship on the various decks. We tried to go outside, but the wind was still very strong, so strong that we could barely open the door, much less walk around on the outside deck.