More Travelog

Monday night was our first formal dinner. Our cruise was for 8 days so we had two formal nights. I wore a suit, and the Goddess wore an silver evening gown with a little piss ant silver purse that would hold little more than her �Sail and Sign� card which is the size of a credit card. This was the night that they honored birthdays and anniversaries. We were honored for our wedding anniversary. The waiters (none of them native English speakers) sang �Happy Birthday� or �Happy Anniversary� as appropriate at each table with a celebrant. These guys weren�t singers, mind you, so the songs were quite funny. Imagine a mix of foreign accents singing �Happy Birthday� off key about 10 different times!

The show for Monday night was a Las Vegas style show. I asked our dining companions what a Las Vegas show was, and they answered that it was young women dancing with very few clothes on. When I asked if there would be pole dancing, they said they didn�t think so. They were right. The performers for the shows were excellent. I was very impressed.

Day Three - Tuesday January 20

All Day at Sea

Tuesday was another day at sea. Now, get this, they had a morning seminar on shopping led by the Cruise Director. �What,� I asked, �a seminar on shopping?� The Goddess sure didn�t (and doesn�t) need a seminar on how to shop, but there she was, attending one anyway. Yes, the Cruise Director visits merchants in the ports and arranges special deals with certain shops for his travelers. He puts on a PowerPoint presentation telling which shop offers the free bracelet for just coming in, and which one has a special on Tanzanite earrings. Tanzanite? Yes, that�s a new and scarce indigo, blue, purple gemstone from Tanzania. �But, isn�t Tanzania in East Africa?� you might ask. �And weren�t you in the Caribbean?� Well, yes to both questions, but somehow Tanzanite is a hot item for sale on the island of Sint Maarten/Saint Martin. You could probably find it for sale on other islands too without putting forth very much effort, it turns out that Sint Maarten is the shopping capital of the Caribbean. Everything there is duty free, at least on the Dutch side. The Dutch used to be the only world superpower a few centuries ago, and they did it by buying and selling anything to everyone. That tradition remains alive and well on Sint Maarten. Things weren�t looking good for my bank account, because the Goddess was really energized by the seminar.

We sailed along the coast of the Dominican Republic and later Puerto Rico. The show Tuesday night was a comedian named Eddie Capone who flew to the ship to join us. At least he said he flew to the ship, but I sure didn�t see any landing strip on board. He was very good.

All in all, a very smooth day.

Day Four - Wednesday January 21

Sint Maarten/Saint Martin

We woke up to the ship sitting still in a harbor. On inspection we realized we were anchored in the harbor of the island of Saint Martin. This little island is about 37 square miles, but is divided between two countries. There is a Dutch side (16 sq mi) and a French side (21 sq mi). We were anchored on the Dutch side at the port town of Philipsburg. We had signed up for an island tour so we went ashore, and got on the tour bus. Our driver was from the Dutch side, and he told us that the girls on the Dutch were friendly, and the girls on the French side were grouchy. But, he said he preferred to go to the disco on the French side, because even though the French girls were grouchy, they could shake it better than the Dutch girls. He explained how to call from one side of the island to the other is an international call. So, it�s actually cheaper just to drive (or walk) to the place you want to talk to. He drove us around the island to Marigot on the French side. We spent an hour there shopping. The French side had an open air market, the Dutch side had well tended shops with Tiffany�s as one of them. The French side has a casino that anyone can gamble in. The Dutch side has a casino too, but the locals can only go there once a month. Otherwise, they get in trouble with the authorities. Of course, visitors are free to go to the casino as much as they want. I told you there was something mercantile about those Dutch folks! We bought things on both sides. The French side was shirts and crafts, the Dutch side was a camera, Tanzanite earrings, and T-shirts. What does that tell ya? The Goddess picked up her free bracelet, of course.

Our bus driver told us the local legend about how the island was divided between the two countries. They put a Dutchman and a Frenchman back-to-back on the beach, and had them start walking around the island. The amount of land they covered would be claimed for their country. The Frenchman was a hardy soul, and he took off walking in a purposeful manner. The Dutchman started walking, but after a little way he got hot and decided to sit down and have a beer. He continued after a short nap, but later began drinking gin. It turned out the the Frenchman covered 21 sq miles, and the Dutchman only 16. But, the Dutchman said that it wasn�t quantity but quality that mattered. He had claimed all the salt mines, the sugar cane, and the indigo fields. Maybe, there really was a method to his madness.

We set sail for Barbados at 4:00 pm.