Sunday, August 15, 2010

Sunday, July 18, 2010 – Bayonne, NJ

Our unique two week combo cruise has come to an end – we are back in Bayonne.

Back to Bayonne (Small) (2)

Manhattan in the distance

Summit waiting for its next cruise (Small) (2)

Celebrity Summit ready to go again

Disembark was quick and soon we were on on our bus to the Newark Airport.  It wasn’t long that we found out that there would be a weather delay (storms on route and in Chicago).  After an hour, we boarded the plane but were told that we were in a gate hold due to weather.  We finally did take off about 40 minutes later.

Regional Jet bound for Chicago (Small)

ERJ ready to take us home

Climbout Bayonne (Small)

Climbout Newark International

Newark Oil Storage Climbout (Small)

Newark Oil Storage tanks

T Storms on the way home (Small)

Thunderstorms in the distance

Final Approach over Evanston 

Final approach over Evanston 

Deplaning on Tarmac ORD (Small)

Deplaning the old fashion way

Home again…

Saturday, July 17, 2010 – At Sea – Atlantic Ocean - 80s

Because we left Friday afternoon, we will need only one sea day to return to Bayonne.

Rough Seas 7-17 (Small) (2)

For the first time, the seas were a bit rough.  Today is my last talk “Cold Cases Solved” and I am revising the talk to include the cracking of the decades old “Grim Sleeper” case.  I need a special graphic for my talk – a pizza crust (the evidence used to nail the Sleeper) so I am going to stage a pizza lunch photo.  We wait for the pizza place to open (12:00 Noon), grab some pizza and set up the shoot.  It worked out perfectly.

A good final crowd (200 plus) for my final talk including Ryan Ahern (pianist) and his wife (from Argentina), who are big fans of the show (and who might have attended earlier but I did not notice).

Tonight is the farewell show in the Celebrity Theater – James Stephens III and Ryan Ahern perform and are great. The ship also had great dancers and singers.

 Celebrity Summit Dancers and Singers (Small) (2) (Small)

Celebrity Dancers and Singers

We listed to some piano in Michael’s Club.

Our bags are packed and we are ready to go home.

Wednesday - Friday, July 14 - 16, 2010 – King’s Wharf, Bermuda – Sunny – 87F (muggy)

The Bermuda itinerary is unique in that the ship docks at King’s Wharf for three days – Wednesday through Friday – so that passengers can take advantage of Bermuda’s beaches and other sites.

Approach Bermuda w Veendam (Small) (2)

Approaching Bermuda – HAL Veendam on the way to Hamilton

Summit at Kings Wharf (Small) (2) 

Celebrity Summit from King’s Wharf 

E and Summit (Small) (2)

Ellen and the Summit

Ferry Docking area (Small) (2)

Kings Wharf Marina (Small) (2)

King’s Wharf – Ferry docking and Marina

We did not sign up for any excursions on this trip but rather opting to take the ferry or other public transportation to spots around the island. 

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Today, we are going to walk to the Tourist Village area at King’s Wharf and check out the shops – there appear to be some new ones since 2007.  We are also looking for internet connections since there is no wifi to be co-opted from the ship.  Some of the stores are new but everything is very pricey and the main mall – The Clocktower – is essentially unchanged in three years.  We walked to the small beach area but chairs were not available and again it was hot.

We ducked into the Tourist Center to escape the heat and were told that their internet connection was down.  There were three Tablet PCs on stands (which makes it difficult to work with since the virtual keyboard is difficult to use when the screen is straight up).  I fiddled a bit with the computer and was able to get to Google – from there I got to gmail and was able to check e-mail and write the kids.  No one from the Center came over to check on me so I was on line for about a half hour.  I did want to check on the Grim Sleeper case but it was too hot and we returned to the ship.  The other internet connection was at a nearby restaurant and they were charging $10/hr. 

Spent some time at the Revelations Lounge on Deck 11 (the Observation Lounge)– on my way back to the room I met a fellow and his son in the elevator.  We did some small talk about the heat and he said he had been playing basketball (too hot for me, I said).  He said he was the comedian on board and he was playing some ball to loosen up for his show.  I didn’t get his name but found out later it was James Stephens III.

We caught his show that night and he was indeed very funny.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Today, we are going to take the Ferry to Hamilton, the capital city, and walk around and see any sites we missed the last time we were here. 

  First Class on Ferry (Small) (Small)

First Class on the Hamilton Ferry

 Summit Ferry and NCL Dawn (Small) (2)

Departing King’s Wharf – Summit and NCL Dawn 

Where the rich folk live (Small) (2)

Where the rich folk live – approach to Hamilton

On Ferry to Hamilton (Small) (2)

Self shot on the ferry – not bad 

HAL Veendam in Hamilton (Small) (2)        

HAL Veendam docked in Hamilton

The ferry was crowded but it was a pleasant run over to Hamilton.  We were able to walk about an hour before the heat and humidity took their toll.  Again, as last time, everything was so pricey in Hamilton.  The decision was made to return to the AC and food on the Summit. 

In the afternoon, I braved the heat to walk to the Visitor’s Center to use their internet to check e-mails and download some information on the Grim Sleeper.  I did that until they closed at 5 PM. 

Ryan Ahern, a very talented pianist, was the headliner tonight.  He had an interesting look complete with piano graphic tennis shoes.  His music was enjoyable.

Friday, July 16, 2010

We have an mid afternoon departure today.  I walked back to the Visitor’s Center for the last time to get more Grim Sleeper information for my final talk and to check on e-mails. 

We watched the Sailaway from the Observation Lounge.

Sailaway from Deck 11 Revelations (Small) (2)

Sailway Bermuda St George (Small) (2) 

St. George’s - Sailaway

 Sailaway Bermuda (Small) (2)