Au Revoir and Sayonara

Tomorrow is our last day of the cruise. Saturday we disembark in Tampa and fly home late in the afternoon.

Tuesday night was very rough with seas up to 12 feet, but the ship was remarkably stable through it all. However, Wednesday morning as we approached the harbor at Grand Turks Island the Captain abruptly put out to sea as the wind had picked up to 35 knots and the swells into the harbor would have made it dangerous for ship and passengers to attempt docking.

So we left and took a northerly course toward the Bahamas and Half Moon Cay which is owned by Holland America. The Cay (pronounced "key") is only 2400 acres in size and virtually all of it can be seen from on board the ship. They have built up only 45 acres on a beautiful crescent shaped beach with bright white sand and the contrasting light blue to green water. Like many of these islands it seems to be formed of coral but there is sufficient soil to support tropical plants.

Along the crescent beach they have cabanas which can be rented for the five hours we are here for $250.00 to $1200.00. Each has a porch, refrigerator, chairs, food and drinks and an assigned steward to fetch whatever you want. For $50.00/hour it was a no-brainer to say "No". Holland America has a full-time staff of 40 or 45 people that maintain the various structures, roads and man ferry boats which bring passengers ashore. There are ferries which bring the staff from nearby islands where they live. They do have dormatories for them for extended stays. On the days they come to work from home they have to leave at 3:00 AM.

We took a glass-bottom boat over coral reefs to see fish, but it was not that great. We saw more boat bottom than fish. Unfortunately a wave splashed over the bow and got my camera quite wet and it is now working erratically. We then ate lunch ashore and quickly returned to the ship for real comfort and food. We were suppose to leave at 2:30 PM, but one party lost track of time and the last ferry was half-way to the ship and was turned back to find the missing party. After 20 minutes or so they located them and we got underway about 3:00 PM.

It is overcast, windy and with diminishing seas as we head in a northerly direction through the Bahamas and on to Tampa. We look forward to coming home but have enjoyed the cruise immensely. There has been very little rain and at no time did it interfere with any shore trips - just the wind that kept us off Grand Turk Island yesterday.

We appreciate your interest in our cruise as well as your prayers. We look forward to seeing some of you soon and send our love to all.