Day 3: At Sea, again.

Day 3:  At Sea, again.

Day 3 started just like day 2, coffee in the cabin at 6:30, a walk around the promenade deck and breakfast in the buffet.  We spent the rest of the morning on deck 11 at the adult pool reading and people watching.  Lunch was a sit down with a waiter instead of the buffet and we met some folks from Texas and California.  One couple we had actually met before on an Alaskan cruise.  It is a small world after all! 

I took MA to a movie at 4pm called “The Switch” with Jennifer Anniston.  It’s about a single woman who wants to be a mom. Her BFF (best friend forever) is secretly in love with her but she doesn’t see that. She ends up having a very cute little boy she named Sebastian, the BFF turns out to be the father after-all and so they get married and live happily ever after!

At 6:30 pm we went to a cruise comedy show and once again we walked out within ten minutes.  The comedian was a big woman, 50-ish, from North Carolina but her brand of humor was rather crude and we were disappointed and, truth be told, surprised because there were a lot of children in that early evening audience.

We went to supper at eight and met two other couples from Ft. Worth.  There was no mistake about them being Texan from the accent. We finished the night with dessert in one of the cafes along the Grand Promenade.   

As you can tell the first part of this trip has been rather laid back and that’s a good thing for MA after an intense income tax “season”. On day 4 we go ashore in Honduras. Looking forward to that.

We arrived in Roatan, Honduras this morning.  It was foggy and a balmy 80 degrees.  Here is a photo of the dock, more to follow on day 4 (hopefully).

Day 2: At Sea

Day 2:  At Sea

The word for Day 2 was relaxation.  We watched the sunrise, had coffee in the room and headed out to the Promenade deck for a walk around the ship. It seemed like we were the only ones up that early and we pretended the ship was ours alone.

Next on the agenda was breakfast at the buffet and then on to the adults only swimming pool. Given that there are about 1000 or more kids on board, we were glad they had all the other pools to play in.  One thing about the pools though.  The water is freezing which is a disappointment. We took books to read, I started my Tom Clancy novel and promptly fell asleep! 

Later on, I saw that MA was enjoying conversations with the folks next to her so I decided to go get the computer and go online to send out yesterday’s travel blog. I quickly learned that Royal Caribbean thinks their passengers are more computer savvy than I am because getting the internet on this ship is a very complicated procedure.  Then at 65 cents a minute, one tends to “type fast” and log off.  Unfortunately for me, the log off didn’t work and I was charged for 48 minutes when my online time was really 3 minutes. Fortunately for me the passenger services clerk was very helpful and credited my account for the 48 minutes. 

While I was fussing with all that, MA went to an ice skating show.  The rink was about the size of an Olympic pool and she was amazed at what those skaters were able to do. Monday evening was formal night. We set up the tripod, put the Nikon on timer and took our own formal pictures. Then it was on to dinner where we met some nice folks from Dallas, Oregon and Nevada.  

Sunrise 3rd Day

Galveston in the Sunset

Day 1:  Galveston in the Sunset

Mary Alice (MA) and I finished packing Sunday morning, got and loaded up the car.  We also made sure to bring 8 bottles of water. Its 4 bucks a liter on the ship!

We had pre-paid our parking, so I entered their address into the GPS and we were off to Galveston about 11:00 am.  As we got closer to the dock area the GPS showed we still had a ways to go. I realized that I had entered the incorrect address of the parking lot.  We quickly made a u-turn and found the “Cruise Parking” lot and the end of Harborside Drive.  I ducked into a convenience store and while MA pulled into the adjacent parking lot. “Jose” quickly showed up to load our stuff into the shuttle. I got my camera case and the bag with all the water and we were off. 

Our van driver introduced himself as Jack Morgan and I thought he said “Jack Kevorkian”.  I said, “This is a round trip cruise isn’t it? Because I thought you said Kevorkian.”  He thought that was funny and asked if he could use it.  Jack never met a traffic law he like and this included the turning lane, red lights, and the speed limit, but we arrived at the cruise terminal in one piece.

As we were loading out luggage on the cart with the ship’s porter we realized that we were missing one suitcase. Panic was my first reaction and then I did a mental inventory distinctly remembering loading all our bags into the car. (I missed one once and let’s just say MA had a lot of fun going shopping!)

But what I hadn’t done was to make sure “Jose” got all the bags out of the car.  I left MA at the dock and quickly headed back to the parking lot.  I opened the truck of the car and there it was: one very lonesome suitcase. Whew! I hate to go shopping!

Back at the terminal we started the check-in process. The security line wasn’t too bad and we got through only to be escorted to the bottled water table where they confiscated all our water until we return to Galveston.  Princess doesn’t have this problem.  First comparative observation!

We rounded the corner from there and to our dismay we encountered a sea of at least 500-700 people slowly moving in very long winding lines to the ship check-in counter. This is where they check your passport again, take your credit card information for onboard charges and give you your cruise card.

Our spot in the line waited, at the very end! Honestly, it was unlike anything you’ve ever seen, even in Disneyland. We also noticed almost everybody was speaking Spanish. MA eavesdropped long enough to recognize the folks as families from Mexico, big families, and she told me they love to travel and usually pick Easter week for one of their vacations.

This part of the process started at 2pm and we finally walked aboard over two hours later. MA was busy working out a better check in system in her mind and she plans to write NCL!

  I was not in the mood to let anyone take my picture but there they were, the cheery ship’s photographers, wanting to take our “happy boarding experience photo”.  We were polite, smiled as best we could and then walked up the gangway.  While waiting to step aboard I asked the gentleman behind us to take a photo of us.  I handed him my little Canon G9 and to my surprise we both really did look happy in the photo. 

We are on Deck 6 in room 6634.  It is aft and on the port side (left).  At about 6PM the ship pulled away from the dock, made a u-turn and traversed the Galveston ship channel and into the Gulf. My last sight of Galveston was the sun going down behind it. 

We are at sea for two days.  Our first port of call is Roatan, Honduras.

NOT Packing Light: We're driving to the ship.

MA and I leave tomorrow, April 17th, for a seven-day cruise from Galveston, about 70 miles from our home, aboard a Norwegian Cruise Line ship to Honduras, Belize and Cozumel. This is the first time we will be sailing on a ship other than Princess.  Comparisons await!

Because we can practically drive to the gangway, we won't have the hassle of airport security, TSA, baggage weight and extra fees, narrow seats  and all the other challenges that go with traveling by air.  We will still carry our basic "cruise clothes", but I'm not going to be washing socks in the shower this trip.

I'll take some additional camera gear with me like another DSLR, Nikon D200 and 300mm f/4 lens with a 1.4X tele-converter.  I hope to find some beautifully colored tropical birds in Honduras and Belize and I want to be able to photograph them.

This was MA's 30th tax season and she's anxious for it to be over. Our cruise is a way for her to unwind and relax after a very "taxing" season.

We'll be sending a daily update on the cruise so just log into http://travelingwaynesworld.blogspot.com to read them.

Next Cruise: Western Caribbean from Galveston

Royal Caribbean (RCL) - RCL Voyager of the Seas

7 Night Western Caribbean Cruise

Destination Arrives Departs    Day 1    Galveston       5:00 PM       Day 2    Cruising             Day 3    Cruising             Day 4    Roatan    8:00 AM    5:00 PM       Day 5    Belize City    8:00 AM    5:00 PM       Day 6    Cozumel    8:00 AM    5:00 PM       Day 7    Cruising             Day 8    Galveston    7:00 AM

We leave on the 17th, two days after tax season for MA.  It will be good for her to get away for a week after a very busy tax season.

Packing for a 2 week Cruise in August

Socks drying on the lamp shade

Weight limit:  40 lbs
No. of checked luggage:  1


4 pairs socks:  1-black dress, 1-casual tan, 2-white
4 pairs of underwear
1 pair of causal shorts (nylon Ex officio)
1 pair swim trunks
4 pairs of pants:  1-tuxedo, 1-dark dress slacks, 2-nylon Ex officio travel pants
4 shirts:  1-tuxedo, 1-long sleeve casual Ex officio, 1-Polo black, 1-casual short sleeve
2 coats:  1-tuxedo, 1-blue blazer
1 sweater pullover for cool weather
1 dress belt
2 ties:  1-bow tie (tuxedo) 1-silk tie
1 pair of pajama pants
4 t-shirts:  3 short sleeve, 1 long sleeve
1 pair black dress shoes
1 pair leather sandals
Toiletries:  razor, toothbrush, toothpaste, hair brush, nail clipper, deodorant
(all the other stuff the cruise ship provides)


total weight is 31 lbs.


The key to traveling light is to wash your dirty clothes nightly in the shower and allow to dry.  By doing this if you miss a night or two you will still have plenty of cushion to get through the next day.


I can't emphasize how important it is to pack light and carry only the clothes you absolutely have to have.

Last Piece of the Puzzle Solved

200mm f/4   &  70-200mm f/2.8

Last Piece of the Puzzle

     I solved the problem of the heavy wide angle zoom 16-35mm f/4 with a straight 20mm f/2.8 lens,  and so my attention turned to shedding the heavy 70-200mm f/2.8 telephoto zoom with a straight 200mm.  A telephoto is essential to carry with you for all types of photography.  My requirements for this lens was that it had to be light weight and fast enough for low light photography.  I looked at all of the manual zooms from 80-200, 70-210, you name it, I looked at the specs on the lens.  I settled for a straight 200mm f/4 manual focus lens.  It is light, and fast for an f/4 and it had great reviews.  In addition, I bought this one for $86 on eBay.  I can also carry this lens in one vest pocket and the 20mm in the other.  I just can't wait to put the two to work on our next travels.

New Legs

Benro C-1691 Carbon-fiber tripod and B-0 Ball head

     Another thing that I changed is tripods.  My old carbon fiber tripod was the Slik 614.  It is light weight and small, too small.  I wanted something a little sturdier and could handle the D3s without me worrying if it would top over.  I researched the current carbon fiber tripods available and found this Benro C-1691.  It is called the "Travel Angel".  I found the lowest priced one on eBay, of all places, from Hong Kong and ordered it.  The tripod came DHL express in 3 days.  It is perfect.  The legs fold up over the ball head making making it easy to put in a suit case.  I am going to try it downtown if the weather would just warm up a little bit.

New Glass

Sold on eBay

Nikon 24-120 VR  vs  Nikon 24-85

The rumors from last two years about two new Nikon lenses became fact in 2010 with the release of the 28-300mm and the 24-120mm, both with VR (vibration reduction).  After the Med trip I was ready to sell the 24-85mm, which is a great lens, however, it requires a moderate amount of light and only goes to 85mm.  I found myself taking the lens off and putting on a 70-200mm for people shots.  It did not have enought telephoto for portrait shots walking around.  I then had to decide which new Nikon to purchase.  I thought about this long and hard.  Both lens are superior travel lenses.  I looked at the photos from the Med trip and found that I took more wide angle photos at 24mm than all other ranges.  In fact I carried a heavy Nikon 16-35mm f/4 for extremely wide angle photos, mainly in buildings like churches where there is limited lighting.  So I chose the 24-120mm, bought it, sold the 24-85mm for about what I paid for it years ago.  The 24-120mm is a 77mm AFS VR lens and it is very, very sharp.

My next project was to eliminate taking the heavy 16-35mm wide angle zoom with me.  I decided to go with a prime 20mm f/2.8 wide angle.  I had one years ago and regeted the day I sold it on ebay.  l found a replacement and bought it.  The 16-35mm will now stay at home and the small, light-weight 20mm will go with me in the bag and transferred to my vest pocket when walking around.



20mm f/2.8



I put a lot of thought time in to trying to reduce how much gear to carry while traveling.  It made no sense to me to carry a big heavy lens like the 16-35mm if I used it sparingly.  The smaller, faster 20mm fits in my vest pocket and will get used often on our next trip.  





16-35mm f/4



Changing Equipment: #1 New Camera Bag, Think Tank Urban Disguise 50

Think Tank Urban Disguise 50

 
      After we got home from the Med cruise I realized that I needed to change the way I carry my photo equipment.  I used a small roll-on Swiss Army luggage as a  camera bag and a shoulder bag for my laptop computer.  The problem with carry-on luggage is it must be stored in the overhead compartment of your airliner.  We would often find ourselves getting on the plane with the last group and all the overhead compartments were full.  These excess bags would be taken by the flight crew and sent below with the checked baggage.  That happened on our flight from Nice to Venice.  However, I removed my camera and lenses putting the camera around my shoulder and the lenses in my vest pockets.  Another problem I encountered was if I did find space in the overhead for my photo gear it was not where I was sitting.  This necessitated me making a mad dash to the bag on the final stop at our destination. Either way I had two carry-on bags.  My goal was to eliminate this problem.  I began a research of bags and at the suggestion of a friend, David Billingsley, I looked at the line from Think Tank.  The one I chose to purchase was the Urban Disguise 50.  It has compartments for a pro DSLR with lens attached, 2-3 additional lenses, accessories with a pocket for carrying a 15 in. computer.  I began to watch for it on eBay and found a used mint Urban Disguise for around $50.  I won the auction.

The Think Tank holds exactly what I need to take with me on travels; Nikon D3s, normal zoom 24-120mm, wide angle 20mm, med. telephoto 200mm f/4, and a 50mm f/1.4.  Looking at all the photos I took on the Med cruise, these lenses will cover 95% of them.  I will miss the 16-35mm wide angle zoom, however, I will not miss the weight.

     In addition I can take the wife's laptop in the side pocket and all this in one bag which will fit under an airline seat.  If you noticed I made some changes in lenses also. This is the subject of the next blog.