RIO...It Justifies Its Reputation

Such an incrediblly beautiful city.  Built on hills with wonderful beaches, it is a great contrast of modern buildings and colonial buildings sitting side by side.  We arrived about 7:00am in the harbor and what a view of Sugarloaf Mt. and the Christ the Redeemer statue that is the trademark of the city. 

We walked the business area for a bit before lunch, then went out on tour to see Copacabana and Ipanema Beaches and take the cog train to the top of Corcavado to the Christ statue.  Today is Sugar Loaf.  Note the black dot about half way up. It's a man working on the statue.  That gives you a perspective of how tall it is.

Didn't venture out last night.  Too hot and tired and not safe.  The heat and humidity are higher here than it was in India.  Africa seemed cool after Brazil.  We are surprised that they are not merchandising the Olympics.  You don't see any reference to it anywhere. They are hosting the World Cup next year, so that's there focus.

Napoleon's Home in Exile...St. Helena

We've heard about it in history class, the place where Napoleon Bonaparte, was exiled and died.  Never thought I'd actually visit.  It's a lovely little island sitting in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean... looks much like Hawaii...and is cut off from the world.  There are only 2000 people living there and they get a mail boat stop once a month.  No airport.

The island is a British Protectorate and at the Governor's House, tortoises live on the grounds.  Of course, Jim had to have a picture with Tommy who is 179 years old.

The little town was so excited about our coming. They were hanging about the little downtown area to say hello and sell us some crafts.  They had a children's choir performing in the town square.

In case you are wondering where we are, it is  the second day at sea after leaving St. Helena.  We have 3 more days at sea to finish the crossing to Rio.










A view of the island. 

Thanksgiving Aboard Ship Included a Parade

A baton twirling majorette, a band, balloons and Santa Claus marched through the Atrium from Deck 4-11. We had an elaborate international feast, which was so beautifully arranged.  Jim captured a lot of the fruit sculptures which were very detailed.  Imagine cantelope lovebirds inside a watermelon cage.

Crossing the Atlantic...Two Days at Sea

Left Namibia yesterday with a wonderful impression of the country. We only saw a small bit of the coastal area, but the people are friendly and seem to have a good quality of life. You can tell by the cleanliness of the countryside and the lack of people standing around doing nothing.

The ship hosted a night under the stars in the middle of the desert. We went out on large buses into the dunes and found a huge tent with hundreds of luminaires lining the drive. I rode a camel and felt like a kid again. We visited Swakopmund, a nice small town with a lot of German architectural influence.

As we gave started the Atlantic crossing, we have trouble getting Internet service. Don't be surprised if the posts are sporadic.

Happy Thanksgiving! 

The Living Desert in Namibia

We arrived in Walvis Bay, Namibia this morning and took a 5 1/2 hour desert tour.  We loaded into 4X4 off road vehicles and traveled through the Namib Desert.  Quite an interesting experience.  It's starkness makes it beautiful.  Our guide was a Crocodile Dundee sort of fellow who showed us reptiles that we never expected to see.  I wasn't too keen on holding the cameleon or petting the lizard, but a number of women did.

What we've seen so far was very nice.  It is tidy and clean and the people seem to be workers.  It was a German Protectorate until the early 1990s.

Translucent Lizard:  the skin is so sensitive that we couldn't touch this lizard.  Our guide said you can see the eggs when they are pregnant.

A Day in the Wine Country

Stellenbosch, is the center of S. African wine production.  It has much of the feel of Napa Valley, but with Dutch architecture.  As we had visited the area before, we elected a gourmet wine tour there, which included 3 wineries and an incredible gourmet lunch.  There were only 9 of us and a terrific guide.  Each stop had something special.

We  tasted at Vergelegen, which is totally unpronouncible unless you speak Dutch, which is a beautiful estate with colonial manor house and gardens.  This vineyard was the beginning of the wine industry in S. A.

The second winery, Morganster, had some good reds, but the owner was Italian and was also producing olive oil.  We did an olive oil tasting which was a highlight.  You can't believe how clean and smooth really good olive oil is.  We bought some lemon olive, but resisted the truffle olive oil.  The third winery included cheese tasting as a food and wine pairing.  The cheese was better than the wine here.  The sad news was that our favorites at the 2nd winery aren't exported to CA  and Canada.

Christmas in South Africa

The Australians call it Summer Christmas. 
Here is a glimpse of the mall with holiday decorations.