Sunrise in San Juan, Puerto Rico (where our cruise began 10 days ago)…
We will spend a very long day flying from San Juan to LAX. First a flight to Miami … then after a several-hour lay-over, we will fly from Miami to LAX. After that, it’s a 1-hour drive to Newport Beach. The price one pays for traveling to exotic places 🫤
We are looking forward to being united with both Apple and Tillie ❤️❤️. Both pet sitters have sent us photos every day… We have missed “our babies” a lot.
Thanks for traveling with us again! We’re exhausted and looking forward to relaxing at home.
Whether it was a big show in The Star Theater or an intimate setting with a guitarist in the Explorer Lounge, there were many entertainment choices every evening.
A violin/cello duo played each evening in the Atrium. (Of course, they played “La Vie en Rose” for me.)
One night, Viking offered DANCING UNDER THE STARS. Ginny joined in the fun!
Needless-to-say, we were impressed with all the talent displayed by the entertainers.
As always, Teddy was on our trip with us. Our room steward placed him in amusing positions each time the room was made up (thus twice a day)! Here are a few:
Of course, Viking had a special stuffed animal for sale: Fuddlewuddle. Below is a description…
So… our own new Fuddlewuddle joined Teddy … and they had quite a lot of fun together. More cute poses continued throughout the cruise!
I think our room steward had fun each day, also.
All tucked in for the night!
We felt our room steward deserved an extra tip for all his efforts!
St. Maarten is divided into two parts – one owned by the French, one by the Dutch… and boasts an 80,000 population with over 120 nationalities. The French capital is Marigot; the Dutch capital is St. Philipsburg, where our ship docked. With tourism being its most important “industry”, St. Maarten has beautiful beaches and two busy airports. The large private jet airport welcomes many celebrities, such as Michael Jordan and Oprah Winfrey.
The port is busy… where huge private yachts are docked.
St Maarten seems very welcoming!
We took a tour of the island – beautiful views of the beaches and nearby islands…
Other sites along the way..
This is The Old House, with a history dating back 250 years.
Upon returning from our tour, we had a fabulous time (along with lots of other tourists) enjoying drinks at Sharky’s.
The Guava Berry Coladas (recommended by our our tour guide) were DELICIOUS!
And our waitress was adorable! She rang the tip bell very loudly when we gave her a generous tip!
Every Viking Ocean ship (such as our VIKING SEA) displays artwork throughout the ship.
In every stairway landing, tapestries adorn the walls.
On the backs of the seats in the Viking Bar is beautiful rosemaling embroidery.
Paintings are displayed in hallways.
Travertine “carvings” are also displayed. And to the right of every piece of artwork is a symbol (just as if one were at a museum) to click on (using the Viking Art App) to hear a detailed description.
Beautiful metal works are displayed in some areas.
Models of ships (glass-enclosed) are in the Upper Explorer Lounge area.
Beautifully embroidered art works adorn numerous walls.
And, in every stateroom hangs an original painting , created by a Chinese child. (Viking supports several schools in China.). Hanging alongside the original painting is the reference material used by the young artist.
The Viking Sea was built in 2016, and it holds 930 guests. It is 745’ in length and 94’ in width. Viking now has 9 (or it might be 10) of the same size ship… having built one each year!
Below is a plaque giving important dates — you can enlarge it to read the details.
Here are some photos of the interior, showing the nice spots for gathering with friends.
The pool area is so welcoming! One night the band played by the pool for DANCING UNDER THE STARS.
One deck above the pool is the sports deck. Shuffleboard anyone?
Window washers are always busy..
Our room steward practiced the safety drills with enthusiasm…
Antigua (pronounced Antiga – no “u”) and its smaller sister island Barbuda boast having 365 beaches! Antigua has 100,000 inhabitants; Barbuda has only 1,200. Robert deNiro just opened the newest NOBU resort on Barbuda (at a cost of $250,000,000) purported to be the best one (in this chain of amazing hotels) anywhere in the world, and it is famous for its pink sands.
The capital of Antigua is St John’s; there are four major harbors; and this British West Indies island group gained independence in 1981, but remains within the British Commonwealth.
There were four ships in the port today, and the Antigua flag is very colorful! Another glorious day: sunny and 82 degrees.
We went on a wonderful tour – consisting of two main attractions: rum-making and a special chocolate experience!
Our tour was led by Omega, a fun and energetic guide. Check out his cute shoes!
Our first stop was at a lively beach bar/restaurant area.
The rum distillery was located just across from this beach.
We were treated to an amazing rum-making activity, where all the necessary equipment was set up and ready to go – each of us had our own station, complete with a still, special measuring devices, jars of flavors, etc.
The art of rum making is quite precise: different stages of measuring, pouring, adding flavors, and of course tasting!
The final result was a bottle of homemade rum for each of us to take home. Each bottle is labeled, including the unique flavors each of us used.
What a fun experience!
We then drove to a different part of the island, called Bay Gardens. We were introduced to the art of making chocolate … at a brand-new enterprise, ANTIGUA HOUSE OF CHOCOLATE, located in an idyllic setting. Sam explained the process of making chocolate (100% dark chocolate): drying the beans, stirring the beans while they are roasting, crushing the beans (without removing the hard shells), and adding flavors at the end. (A pod contains 30-40 beans.)
Here is a short video showing the process of mixing in a special machine.
This small chocolatier offers a lovely area (surrounded by exotic palms), which has a small restaurant, shop, and a peaceful area to relax and enjoy a chocolate drink!
Here is the menu, created by Sam, her partner Peter, and the chef . Wish we could have stayed for dinner!
A fun-filled day! We were entertained by Omega on the ride back to the ship: here is a video…
With three “fancier” restaurants (no shorts, no jeans, men required to wear long pants with collared shirts) and at least 7 other more casual dining opportunities (including the pool bar and grill area), we have enjoyed fabulous meals.
There are also several lounge/bar options, where music (piano, violins, guitar) adds to guests’ experience. (I’ll share some musical videos in another posting.)
Manfredi’s is one of the two “specialty” restaurants (reservations are required, but no extra fee) – and we were there twice!
Both food and wine were delicious!
“The Restaurant” is the main dining room (amazingly serving 400 guests!) offers two menus every night: the left side of the menu is offered every night (offering multiple courses) and the right side changes every night. We ate there many times! Below is an example of the right side.
Of course, special wine selections are available.
The Chef’s Table is the second “specialty” restaurant- we had two AMAZING dinners there. The theme changes every three days – the theme for our first dinner was “California Cuisine”.
The Seared Halibut was the best any of us had ever tasted – it melted in our mouths!
The wine steward (“Super Duper Cooper”) explained the wine pairings for the various courses.
Our second experience at The Chef’s Table was Scandinavian fare.
Every course was delicious!
The crowning glory was the dessert. In the shape of a Viking Warrior, we loved every morsel!
Of course, there were other culinary delights throughout the cruise…including breakfast delivered to our stateroom every morning!
And here is a photo of the executive pastry chef…
We know that diets will be in our immediate future upon returning home…😵💫
Dominica (pronounced “dom.i.NEE.kah”) is known for its rainforests, agriculture, 9 active volcanoes, and 360 rivers! Roseau is the capital, and the population is 70,000…it is located between the French islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique.
Most of the islands we visit on our cruise were discovered and inhabited by the French, the British, Africans and the Carib Indians. The Carib Indians inhabited the islands 500 years prior to Christopher Columbus — thus the reason for naming them the Caribbean islands (and the Caribbean Sea)!
Our ship was the only ship docked here in the very small port.
We took a bus ride (hairpin turns the entire way) up and down (and down and up) through lush foliage to Jacko falls. The mountain in the distance is 4,700’ high. We were told that growing herbs here is most important since many of the inhabitants prefer herbal remedies, rather than going to the hospital.
We stopped at Jacko falls (to take photos as well as enjoy a rum punch, of course). This is view from above the falls.
Leigh and Ginny walked down some 60-80 steps to reach the bottom of the falls. Some people went into the water … known for its rejuvenating qualities.
On our drive back to the ship, we stopped at a scenic viewpoint (you can zoom into this photo to read the details.)
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Travels with Will and Ginny 