Last Sea Days, Hawaii, and Home

We had five more days at sea between Bora Bora and Hawaii.  We did a few trivia challenges, including the Progressive, took a few naps, and even watched a movie.  They did not have popcorn, so we got potato chips from Room Service.  There were a couple of cooking demonstrations, including one on making the perfect steak, which I found particularly ironic, since the first steak I had on board was totally botched!  We went to dinner with our Progressive Trivia Team the night before the “finale”.  We had joked previously that our goal was to make 7^th place.  It is tough to get first (and out of reach), but too easy to get last.  So, the trick (as they said) is to get 7^th.  Ironically, before the final round, we were in 7^th place!  But, we didn’t find out our final ranking, so we’ll assume it stayed put.

One of the sea days we went to one of the special restaurants.  There was a snag with our dining selection at the beginning of the cruise, and after quite a few back and forths, it was finally resolved and remedied with a complimentary reservation at the French restaurant (normally $45 each).  Theresa got the lobster tail (which the waitress did not recommend) and I got the venison (which she did).  The lobster was AMAZING!!  The venison was a little tough.

I tried Vegemite for the 3^rd time.  The first time was 2007, and it was AWFUL!!  The second time was in Adelaide, and it was…the same.  But we had spoken to lots of Aussies since boarding and were told the right way to have it.  First, take bread (or toast), then butter it liberally.  Then sparingly spread vegemite on the butter.  Then, sometimes you might put a slice of cheese on that.  So, the one morning, I decided to give it a third try.  At breakfast, we sat with 6 Australians, and I told them my plan.  All I wanted to know was, “What kind of cheese?”  The guy next to me, a 6 ½ foot tall billiard headed Aussie policeman, chided me with “No!  If you want to be a purist…”  To which, I replied, “If I wanted to be a PURIST, I wouldn’t be trying this for the THIRD time!!”  Cheddar was suggested.  I buttered the toast, and thinly spread the vegemite.  Then I put cheese on one half and tried both sides.  No cheese, was not awful.  With cheese, less awful.  I could survive on it, but not enjoy it.

By the way, almost everyone I asked about what vegemite is, said it is “a yeast extract” or “rich in Vitamin B”.  I finally found one guy who told me the truth.  There is a brewery (I forgot the name), and after the brew process, the dead yeast is scraped off the bottom of the tank.  They use that to make Vegemite.  Yeah, it’s beer sludge.

 We also had crocodile (twice), kangaroo, even kangaroo tartar.  And drinks.  Lots of drinks!  When we bought the cruise (over 14 months ago), it included a free drink package, so we had wine, beer, soda, even mixed drinks for free.  And water!  That’s big on a cruise ship!  Actually, they had one liter bottles of water which were very handy on port days, and also pretty nice when walking around the ship.  On the last day of the cruise, they dropped off the “bill”.  It was really funny, because our total bill was 10 pages, including about 3 pages for Theresa’s drinks, and 5 for mine, but all they were was the bar, the time/date, and $0.00.    

Honolulu at night

Before we got to Hawaii, I started getting a sinus infection.  Theresa gets them all the time, but I am not sure I’ve ever had one.  Anyway, by the time we got to Honolulu, I wasn’t enjoying a lot, didn’t sleep well, and didn’t want to do much.  So, we took it easy, took a nap, and just walked around a little bit.

The flights home did not look great, and before our trip started, we covered our options and bought tickets home.  So, we flew some other carrier from Honolulu to Portland, overnighted, and then on home.  The best part?  We flew a 737-900ER on the last leg!!  Now we have flown 8 of the 9 737 types possible (100, 200, 300, and 500 through 900).  So, I need to make a plan to get that last type!

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed our blog!  We do not know where we are going next, but we are always open to ideas!  Thanks for joining us!!