Saturday, February 13, 2016

Post World Cruise (3rd) in Sydney and Departure

Post World Cruise (3rd) in Sydney and Departure

Day #38-Sydney day #3


My first night off the ship and I found that I was still feeling I was being rocked to sleep by the ship at night. I love that feeling.

 
After having a nice breakfast at the sumptuous breakfast buffet at the Intercontinental Hotel, I walked over to Circular Quay then, up to Harbor Bridge. Along the way, I could not take my eyes off of the stunning Sydney Opera House. That is one of my favorite structures. It has such a beautiful design.

It was tricky to find the multiple sets of staircases leading up to the harbor bridge. I walked through the intricate maze of streets in the Rocks district passing some of the oldest buildings in one of the first districts of the city.

I was happy to finally reach the top. In all, it took about 20 to 25 minutes from my hotel. This includes a few stops to look at the map to verify I was headed in the right direction.

As I walked along the bridge, I just stared at the glistening opera house, so pristine, housed in its own little world it's a little I was surrounded by glowing, iridescent blue water, seagulls flying about, tourists along the harbor front, happily posing for photos in front of this magnificent structure.

I decided to walk half way across the bridge, a walk which was approximately 15 minutes in duration. I slowly strolled back, descending various staircases while exploring the cafés, shops, open market, and food stalls, in the trendy Rocks area.

It took me forever to locate the rocks Discovery Museum nestled away among the labyrinth of streets in the rocks area.

The museum shares the history of pre-European Time to the present day using interactive displays and four permanent exhibitions that include discussions of the port, the colony, and the activism during the 70s that succeeded in preserving the historical Rocks area. Included were exhibits about the gadigal people, the colony built by British convicts and European settlers, the thriving port filled with merchant ships and new immigrants, and finally how the rocks has flourished as a treasured precinct.  Importantly, my tour guide from two days ago recommended this museum as one of her favorites and believe it or not, there is no admission fee.

 

Next, I decided to take a slow stroll up George Street, one of the main arteries of Sydney, lined with many shops, cafés, administrative buildings, and government centers and more.

 
30 minutes later, at Liverpool and Dixie streets, I found Chinatown. I was a bit disappointed because it was much smaller than what I had expected. I suppose I was very spoiled by the vast extensive Chinatown in Singapore. There were no more than three blocks with mostly Chinese restaurants and a couple of souvenir shops. Singapore is Chinatown is composed of street after street replete with large merchandise-filled stores and shops with only a few restaurants nestled in between the merchandise. Although this was distinctively Chinese with all of the red lanterns, it almost wasn't worth the long walk. However, I did enjoy my stroll on George Street. In the end I was so exhausted and had walked more than 18,000 steps, so I decided to sample the metro system. I bought a one-way city ticket for four dollars for  the 3 stops back to circular Quay.

 

I strolled around the area that staring at my beloved Sydney Opera House a bit more before heading back to my hotel at 4 PM. 

 

Dinner was with friends and friends of friends at seven chophouse five minute walk from the Intercontinental Hotel near Australia Square.

 

Conversation was lively and included mostly travel politics.

 

I headed home after 10:30 PM knowing that my wonderful 38 day adventure had come to an end.


I slept well for the second night in a row felt the movement of the ship, rocking me to sleep at night, in my hotel bed.


Sydney observations: fast-paced, cosmopolitan, ethnically diverse, polite people, expensive, beautiful city, spectacular architecture with the old juxtaposed with the new, lots of construction – apparently second only to Dubai in the number of construction cranes found in the city. In direct competition with the city of Melbourne for most cultural city in Australia.

Learned that voting is mandatory in Australia.

 February 13

Next day at airport: ran into guy who stood our group up for dinner Thursday. I just said hello. He asked me what I did for two days in Sydney. I asked him and he said I had a couple of drinks. SMH.

My first two pieces of luggage were included. I informed them I weigh less than 90 lbs. and do they give consideration if my luggage is overweight since the average passenger weighs 165. No of course. My third cost 200AUD plus extra 75 AUD for weighing 30.6 kilos---17 pounds overweight. Total about $193US total. Not too bad. I had invested so much time trying to get someone to take a suitcase (or two) off the ship for me when it returns to Ft Lauderdale April 30. Glad I decided to simply bring all of my luggage with me. That way I don't have to stress about retrieving bags at the port in Fort Lauderdale at the end of April. So many things could've gone wrong.

 
I spent almost a 30-hour travel day and a half complete with a 15 hour flight from Sydney, Australia to Dallas, Texas, a five hour layover, a three hour flight back to Miami. I crossed 14 time zones.

 

 

 















Thursday, February 11, 2016

Disembarkation in Sydney-World Cruise Continues Without Me





Cruise World-Day 37--Cruise ends in Sydney-Disembarkation in Sydney--off the ship February 11, 2016.

 

I enjoyed my last room service meal in the privacy of my room. I knew I would get distracted with conversations and hugging new friends goodbye so I decided to just be alone this morning. It served me well because I was ready in time to leave at around 8:30 AM, as planned.

 

First I checked into the Intercontinental Hotel, left my bags in storage, and headed to the Wildlife Sydney zoo to see some kangaroos, koalas, and other animals indigenous to Australia.

 

10AM: My first stop was to the Darling Harbour, A large complex of shops, restaurants, all set against the backdrop of the harbor. Situated on the north end are a series of attractions including an aquarium, a small zoo, and a wax museum. Here, I visited the Wild Life Sydney Zoo, known for its collection of the largest variety of indigenous Australian animals. There was no way I was coming to Australia without seeing a kangaroo, a koala bear, a wombat, and a wallaby. Although small, the zoo did not disappoint. I saw Ringo the wombat, several wallabies, a cassowary, (the world’s deadliest bird who fiercely protects its young, it’s the world’s 3rd largest bird. Emu and cassowary are cousins of ostrich). Later on, I observed groups of kangaroos relaxing in their habitat, with an occasional one hopping around visiting the others. The Tasmanian devils were so cute and I was surprised to see they had a red beak which was prominently displayed as they were being fed. I saw one of the largest crocodiles I ever seen.

 

I was a bit disappointed that I could not get as up close and personal with the koalas as I had wanted to. Alas, they charged a separate fee to go inside another small enclosed area to interact with koalas. Importantly, here in Sydney you cannot hold the koala bears as a visitor. The province of Queensland is the only place where customers can hold a koala bear.











I learned that 80% of species in Australia cannot be found anywhere else in the world. I'm not sure how this statistics compares to other countries and their indigenous creatures but it was certainly impressive to me.

 

I spent about an hour and a half looking at and reading about all of the animals on display. I think the museum does a nice job of providing an overview and they employ a variety of learning aids to educate visitors. I recommend this attraction for those who do not want to make the huge commitment to go to the zoo that's at least a 30 minute ferry ride and 3 to 4 hour minimum visit.

 

I strolled around the lush botanical gardens and along some of the shopping areas around Pit Street. Attention: I did not make any purchases!

 

I stopped in to the basement of a gourmet food store and purchased a meat pie. It was delectable.

 

1:45-Next: I visited the Hyde Park Barrack's Museum, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

This is a museum that serves as a reminder that Australia is the world's only penal colony that became a nation.





As my tour guide yesterday had promised, this is an excellent museum, well designed, with clear interactive educational displays.

 

The Barracks is a UNESCO world heritage site that was built by convicts in the early 1800s in Hyde Park. More than 50,000 convicts passed through its gates between 1819 and 1848.

 

Beginning in 1848, and lasting through the end of the century, was a period when the barracks became an immigration depot for 40,000 immigrant women and their children; an asylum for destitute, aged, and infirmed; and eventually a bustling complex of courts and government offices.

 

And audio guide was included in the admission fee of $10. It provided a succinct overview of the contents of 20 galleries.

 

When extensive conservation works began in 1979, archaeologist recovered more than 130,000 artifacts, from beneath the floorboards. Included in the exhibits were canvass hammocks in which the convicts slept in dormitories, cedar chest ls of private possessions brought by female immigrants, clothing, iron tools, iron dormitory beds for women, kitchen utensils including entire place settings, devices of torture and punishment including whips and chains, miniature models of sections of the building, construction equipment, and more. I was mesmerized as I immersed myself in this part of history. I spent almost 2 hours engrossed in the material.

 

In the early 19th century in England, sentencing and punishments for all crimes were harsh. Amazingly, pick pocketing carried a life sentence that could be shortened if a convict served time in the Sydney convict colony. Other convict categories included political protesters, machine breakers, bank robbers, pirates, slaves, petty thieves, and hardened repeat offenders.

 

One of my favorite displays was a large map of all of the penal colonies created in the Americas by European colonizers such as England, France, and Portugal. Outside of Australia (160,000 convicts arrived) French Guiana had the second largest number of convicts in the penal colony, 90,000.

 

I left there pretty mentally exhausted and took a slow stroll back to my hotel.

 

7:15-1045-I had dinner with friends of friends from Australia at the famous Chophouse.
 



The conversation was lively but with a bit too much politics sprinkled in. That should not be surprising because Michael has already run for local office and has strong political aspirations to serve in elected positions in the near and far future. He even discussed his campaign slogans.

 

I heard that after the ship sailed away from Sydney harbor today, it had to return to port to remove a sick man in his 50s. I will have to find out who this was later I bet it was Mark.

 
Here is a newspaper blurb about it:

 
My smart phone app indicated that I walked 8 miles and 23,000 steps today.

 
I fell asleep at almost midnight.  I slept surprisingly well given the fact that I would be checking out of the hotel and beginning the long 30 our journey back to Miami. This is the longest trip I have ever taken away from home since I spent the entire summer after graduate school in Europe several decades ago.
 

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Day #36-Last Day: Sydney, Australia

Day #36-Last Day: Sydney, Australia


I set my alarm to ring at 5:50AM so I could enjoy the spectacular sail-in to Sydney Harbor with up close views of the iconic Sydney Opera House, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

 
Since this was our last port visit, I was happy they opened the bow as they did for The Panama Canal, French Polynesia, New Zealand, and now Sydney. 


The Opera House was stunning as it glistened under the sunny skies. It took my breath away. I was so happy to add this beautiful symbol to my list of sites visited!


Sydney is the largest and oldest Australian city that began more than 200 years ago as a British penal colony. In 1806, Capt. Bligh (of Mutiny) was made governor of the province of New South Wales, where Sydney is located. BTW, Bligh was part of multiple mutinies and a coup d'etat.  

 
The city is known for its diversity and contains more than 200 ethnic groups within its borders.

Unfortunately, our ship did not dock in Circular Quay adjacent to the Opera House.  They gave us a story that we were assigned to the boondocks since our ship was small enough to pass under the harbour bridge. The Princess Dawn was docked next to the Opera House.

 
I passed up the free shuttle to town and instead chose to take to take the $9, 20-minute, scenic ferry ride. It was awesome to pass The Opera House up close and personal.

 
I decided to take a Sydney Free Walking Tour. Www.imfree.com.au  After stopping by my hotel to touch basis, I walked along the Botanical Gardens Street, thru Martin Square and up George Street to the tour’s Town Hall meeting point, in front of the anchor.

 

I arrived 15 minutes early and could not help but remark that for the first time in 5 weeks, instead of being surrounded by grandparents, I was among “their grandchildren”. The 20 something, Justine, guided our group and I learned she founded Free Sydney Walking Tours and Free Melbourne Walking Tours six years ago. See her photo on the brochure here. Www.imfree.com.au

Justine was charming and enthusiastic about both Sydney and Melbourne. I learned these cities have been competing for the title best and brightest, continually since their inception, trying to outdo each other with the tallest building, best street art, most efficient public transit system and more. It is obvious that Sydneyites resent Melbourne for being crowned “the cultural capital of Australia.”

 
Some highlights of the tour were learning about: the Hyde Park Barracks, the Rocks' seedy history, underground mall in The Queen Victoria building, the bird cage outdoor art exhibit, free things to do, hidden cafes/bars and more.  The coat of arms contains the kangeroo and the emu. They are not hesitant to admit they eat both. If you order a “coat of arms pizza,” guess what it is!!

 
Sydney celebrates Chinese New Year with a variety of festivals and art installations including: see website excerpt here

 

The 20th Sydney Chinese New Year Festival will welcome the Year of the Monkey in magnificent style.

From 6 to 21 February, Sydney will come alive with the sights, sounds and tastes of Asia in one the biggest celebrations of the Lunar New Year outside of mainland China.

 

One of the festival highlights, the inaugural Lunar Lanterns exhibition, will begin this Saturday (6 February) when the City lights lanterns representing 12 animal signs of the zodiac in some of Sydney’s most iconic locations for the first time at 8pm. The lanterns, designed by Chinese-Australian artists including Laurens Tan, Fan Dongwang, Tianli Zu, Hu Ming, Claudia Chan Shaw and Justin Qian, include: three eight-metre high wise monkeys outside the Opera House; a majestic ox made with 700 mahjong tiles in Martin Place; a giant happy tiger lantern in the QVB forecourt; 14 giant rabbits at Customs House; and a Goat lantern gifted from the City of Guangzhou in Chinatown.

The exhibition will run for nine days and nights to 14 February and is designed to be equally impressive regardless of the time of day.

 

Lunar Lanterns, various locations, 6–14 February --Giant lanterns representing animal signs of the Chinese Zodiac will grace some of Sydney’s most popular locations for 9 days and 9 nights.

Lunar Lanterns is a contemporary take on a centuries-old tradition, with some lanterns standing several stories high and located throughout the city from Circular Quay to Chinatown.

 

We saw most of these spectacular animal lanterns on our tour.  See me with the rabbits below.

 

Our tour ended at Circular Quay across the harbor from the Opera House.

 

After strolling around circular quay a bit, I wanted to soak in more of the flavor of the city by walking up and down the bustling George Street, a major street lined with many businesses, restaurants, and is adjacent to main shopping streets.

I had another juicy steak pie from the Pie Face shop before taking the beautiful ferry ride back to the ship.

 
The ship was virtually empty tonight as many of the guests stayed in town or went back in town to see the opera, Barber of Seville.

 

Tonight's featured entertainer was a comedian, Jeff Green. He was really funny and touched on a number of universally humorous topics, especially all the popular gender-related ones.

 

I finished my packing and make sure all of my bags were out by 11 PM.

 

Tomorrow: disembarkation from my beautiful home for the past 36 days!

 

I will spend two nights in Sydney before flying back to Miami.

 

My fit bit indicates I took 22,671 steps and walked 8.3 miles.

 







Justine Tour Guide




Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Day #35-last sea day before Sydney!

Day #35-last sea day-Mardi Gras

Sad today!

I stayed up late to complete 70%  of my packing.

Up at 7:30 and had last relaxing cafe omelette, favorite link sausage, and croissant.

I had breakfast watching the aboriginal dance classes by the pool. Had I stayed on the whole trip, I would have joined them. 

It is so hard being part of the minority leaving the ship in 2 days. I have begun to say goodbyes, thank crew members, and ensure I have contact info of new friends.

Because there were early lenton season services, I noticed there were ashes on a lot of peoples for heads. I think it's nice that the ship invites a priest, a minister, and a rabbi, to conduct regular religious services on cruises.

Our trivia team placed first and third in the 11:45 and 5 PM trivia contests. I will really miss our stellar group.





I attended what would be my last ballroom dance class: this one was the single step jive or swing. I really enjoyed the format where we learned a few steps and regularly switched partners. That way you got to experience the dance with different partners.



Our last dinner was hard and two of the couples toasted the rest of us leaving.



They held a goodbye cocktail party for those of us leaving the ship. I heard between 150 and 170 will disembark tomorrow in Sydney. Eugene the cruise director gave us a nice send off. I left early because I was feeling a little sad.

Tonights's show was Australian tenors.

Tonight's party was a Mardi Gras blast!  The ship was decorated throughout and they distributed Mardis Gras beads in all the lounges.






Some of us danced in the crows nest til late late!

Sydney tomorrow!




Monday, February 8, 2016

Melbourne, Australia Day# 34-My 90th Nation Visited

Melbourne, Australia Day# 34-My 90th Nation Visited
 
Cruise World-Day #34-Australia marks my 90th nation visited!!  I was surprised to learn that it is such a large country that is comparable to the size of the United States and has 3 separate time zones. It is the world six largest country and the world's largest island.

Today: Melbourne, Australia--a young, modern, energetic, diverse, port city and home of Vegemite! Its diversity includes having more residents of Greek decent than any other city outside Athens, also a large concentration of Italians, Lebanese, Vietnamese and more. In fact, a third of Melbournians were born overseas and more than half their parents were.  The city blossomed in the 1850s when gold was discovered. It is almost entirely surrounded by lush gardens and parks.

This is the second to last port on this first segment (36-days) of a world cruise.

The sail-in was cloudy but nonetheless, magnificent.

Immigration and customs is so strict here that everyone must leave the ship to present passport and meet face-to-face with immigration officials. There must be a zero passenger count before any anyone is allowed back on the ship.

 
I can’t believe some folks will go into town, watch the super bowl, and drink beer. Just shaking my head!


As we disembarked the ship we were greeted by the "waterfront welcomers", a group of passionate, friendly locals on hand to answer a variety of questions about what the city has to offer especially around Melbourne's waterfront. Importantly, the cruise ship terminal is located about an hour walk to the popular St Kilda beach, a seaside playground known for its expansive view of the bay, sandy beaches, amusement park, palm-lined boardwalks, parks, gardens and a host of cafés and shops.

 
I had planned to take the free 2 1/2 hour walking tour leaving from in front of the state library at 10:30 AM. Imfree.com.au. Alas, the group talked me out of it and I joined them taking the 9AM Hop On Hop Off sightseeing bus (on the red line) into town. Actually, I found out the brown line bus for St. Kilda came to the cruise ship terminal to pick us up and drop us off and connect us with the redline route. It took us past Port Melbourne, across the Yarra River into the docklands, passed Harbor town and that soccer stadium through to Queen Victoria market area (which was unfortunately closed the day I was there, Monday). I got off the bus there and walked around the area winding my way back to Harbor town where I decided to soar up 40 stories high on the “Melbourne Star”, giant ferris/observation wheel that gave me a 360° view of the city. I relished having a private compartment because I could stroll from one end to the next soaking in and photographing the exquisite city, without bumping into other passengers. The commentary throughout the 30 minute ride was enlightening.

Next, I walked around the city center in the uniquely (and controversially) designed Federation Square, the city's cultural and civic hub that host thousands of annual events. It is surrounded by multiple museums, arts venues, and St. Paul's Cathedral a stunning Gothic church.  I toured Hosier Lane, allegedly Melbourne's most photographed street art lane that was simply fantastic-a feast for the eyes.  For lunch, I tried a famous steak and mushroom meat pie from the popular Pie Face fast food chain.  For 4.95AUS, I had a delectable snack/meal.

I migrated back to the Federation Square area and hopped on the Saint Kilda/brown line of the Hop on Hop Off bus. The view from the upper deck was magnificent-I saw a city teeming with opulence and elegance. Riding through the flourishing Fitzroy Gardens was a real treat and the vast, lush and blooming royal botanic Gardens was a pleasant teaser for my next visit here. I am so impressed with this beautiful city that shows they take great pride in beautification and they value juxtaposing the old with the new.

Melbourne is one of the most architecturally interesting cities I have visited. The diversity is spectacular.

Bicycle lanes are located on most streets. There are many picturesque parks, white sand beaches, and even botanical gardens galore.

 
Another interesting feature of the city are the “beware of rhinos” signs. This is a quirky safety campaign created by the tram company to bring awareness to passenger and pedestrian safety that cleverly compares the weight of a tram, to that of a more than 30 rhinos.  

On my next visit, I will tour the old Melbourne jail one of the districts oldest surviving buildings that has dozens of interactive displays telling the story of the early criminal population.  I will also take the free 2 1/2 hour walking tour that I had originally planned to take and I will take a more in-depth visit of the Royal Botanic Gardens with its more than 12,000 plant species from all over the world, it's Ferngully, it's rain forest packed with fruit bats, and ponds full of ducks and black swans. Finally, I will go up to the Eureka Sky Deck 88 and take the extra excursion on "The Edge" which is a 6-ton horizontal opaque glass cube elevator which emerges from inside the walls of the tower. It gives a three-sided uninterrupted view of the city below, from 935 feet above ground.

 
Of course, if I had more time, I would have toured the famous Melbourne zoo, the world’s oldest zoo built in 1862.  I will save my visit of kangaroos and Koala bears for Sydney.


Of note, I took a wonderful walking tour of Sydney two days later from the Justine, the founder of that walking tour company I had originally planned to take.


Our last sail-away party was both exhilarating and sad for me.  I even felt moved to tears.  As Melbourne’s skyline faded into the distance, I felt immense gratitude for having experienced such a wonderful journey.

The sunset tonight was dazzling!!


For the record, I am annoyed there is no show tonight in the theater. Instead, they will replay the Super Bowl to a few passengers after having already played it live earlier today. What are the other 60-70% of us to do?  Also, a chunk of our day in Melbourne was spent with time-consuming immigration AND we had to return 30 minutes early for a required lifeboat drill. (Once every 30 days or so).


All's well that ends well it was another splendid day on my wonderful 36 day journey from Florida to Australia.

 










Places Where I Have Traveled *=more than once

  • India
  • China
  • Dubai
  • Israel
  • Russia*
  • Iceland
  • Cuba Aug 2016
  • Egypt*
  • Indonesia
  • Tahiti Feb 2016
  • Northern Ireland
  • Cook Islands Feb 2016
  • New Zealand Feb 2016
  • Australia Feb 2016
  • Belize
  • French Polynesia Jan 2016
  • Mallorca
  • Shetland Islands
  • Faroe Islands
  • Brunei
  • Morocco*
  • Brazil*
  • Philippines
  • North Borneo
  • Crete*
  • Ionian Islands*
  • Singapore
  • Hong Kong
  • Azores*
  • Norway
  • Dodecanese Islands (Rhodes)
  • Bosnia
  • Palestein
  • Croatia
  • Romania
  • Argentina
  • Ecuador
  • Tunisia
  • Corsica
  • Bulgaria
  • Columbia
  • Peru
  • Montenegro
  • Columbia
  • Chile*
  • United Arab Emirates
  • Uruguay
  • Jordan
  • Gibraltar
  • Turkey*
  • Bermuda
  • Estonia*
  • Viet Nam
  • Finland*
  • Malta*
  • Thailand
  • Guatemala
  • Crete*
  • Jamaica*
  • Panama*
  • Grand Canyon
  • Scotland
  • Niagara Falls
  • Greece*
  • France* lived there
  • Japan*
  • Bilbao, Spain*
  • Canada*
  • Costa Rica
  • Bahamas*
  • Banff Hot Springs
  • Hawaii*
  • Italy*
  • Catalina Island
  • Luxembourg*
  • St Johns
  • St Marteen/St Martin
  • St Thomas
  • South Padre Island Texas
  • Mexico*
  • Vatican City*
  • Austria*
  • Denmark*
  • Monaco
  • Portugal*
  • Belgium*
  • Holland*
  • Ireland*
  • Alaska
  • England*
  • Sweden*
  • Switzerland*
  • Spain*
  • Germany*
  • Madeira

Events/Experiences

  • Pyramids at Giza
  • Taj Mahal
  • Climbed Great Wall of China
  • Western Wall-Jerusalem
  • Transited Panama Canal 3X
  • Rode Camel in Tunisia
  • fathom Adonia--1st US cruise ship to Cuba--Aug 2016
  • Old Town in Havana
  • Burj Kalifa in Dubai
  • Saw Kangeroos, Wallabees, and Koalas in Australia
  • Kayaked in Bay of Islands, New Zealand
  • Vaparreto # 1 in Venice
  • National Museum in Brunei
  • Saw Geysers Erupt in Iceland
  • Drink at Raffles Hotel-Singapore
  • Fish Spa in Greece and Philippines
  • The Peak in Hong Kong
  • Pedicab Tour in Manilla Philippines
  • Road Amalfi Coast, Italy
  • Chewed Gum in Singapore
  • Marched in St Pat's Day Parade in Dublin
  • Sailed Kotor Bay
  • Old Bridge in Mostar, Bosnia
  • Smithsonian Museums-DC
  • Toured Ancient City of Petra, Jordan
  • Transited Suez Canal
  • Rio for Carnivale 2X
  • Cruised along Cinque Terre, Italy
  • Fish Spa in Corfu, Greece (teeny fish scrubbed my feet!)
  • Subway in Russia
  • Flash Mob (dance) on stage on several cruises
  • Visted 21 Countries on 5 long cruises in 2012
  • Ceviche in Peru
  • Cremation Service in Bali
  • Saw Lamas in Lima
  • Vasa Museum-Stockholm
  • Buddhist Monastery in Viet Nam
  • Drove Amalfi Coast
  • Queen Mary 2
  • Berlin Wall
  • Mummies In Cairo Museum
  • Jordan River; Sea of Galilee
  • Hot Air Balloon Ride Over Luxor at Sunrise
  • Transited the Pirate-Infested Gulf of Aden
  • Ski Dubai
  • Fellucca Ride on the Nile at Sunset
  • 16-day Europe/Transatlantic on Queen Victoria
  • Tahrir Square-Cairo
  • Toured Pompeii
  • In Fashion Show Aboard Queen Victoria
  • Rode Elephants in Thailand and India
  • 7-Country Baltic Cruise
  • Hermitage Museum
  • Checkpoint Charlie
  • Transatlantic Crossing on QM2
  • Climbed Tikal in Guatemala
  • Mediterranean Cruise 6 countries
  • Audience with Swami in Rishikesh, India
  • Poetry Class in France
  • Kissed Blarney Stone
  • Pike's Fish Market in Seattle
  • Photo with Snake Charmer in India
  • Dacau near Munich
  • Hitchhiked from France to Scotland
  • Climbed Washington Monument in DC
  • Oktoberfest in Bavaria
  • Toured Panama Canal
  • Wine Country in France, California and many others
  • Guest of Placido Domingo in Chicago
  • The Alamo
  • United Nations
  • San Diego Zoo
  • Helicopter over Grand Canyon
  • Club Med in Cancun
  • Eurailpassed Twice Thru Europe
  • Hollywood
  • Albuquerque Hot-Air Balloon Festival
  • Rodeo in Dallas/Ft Worth
  • NCAA Playoffs in Charlotte and New Orleans
  • Cucchi Tunnels in Viet Nam
  • Grammys in New York
  • Paella in Spain
  • Rain Forest in Costa Rica
  • Xmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on 5th Avenue
  • Niagara Falls
  • Disney Land & Disney World
  • Voodoo Museum New Orleans
  • Cancun Jazz Festival
  • Reggae Sunsplash in Jamaica
  • Las Vegas for Trade Shows
  • Key West for Hemmingway Festival
  • Art Classes in Louvre
  • Black Ski Summit in Vail and Colorado Springs
  • Texas State Fair
  • Mardi Gras in New Orleans
  • Italian Class in France
  • Nude Sunbathing in St Marteen
  • Danish Pastry in Denmark
  • Palace of Knossos Crete
  • Anne Frank House Amsterdam
  • Karaoke in Japan
  • Leaning Tower of Pisa
  • Lobster in Maine
  • Belfast Black Cab Tour
  • Dozens of Transatlantic Sailings