Now us – we are at sea today – crossing the Arabian Sea and will be in Oman tomorrow and Dubai on Monday. We are 6 hours behind your time. Our position has been notified to NATO because we will be entering the Gulf of Aden shortly – with pirates active in the area. Our Captain has direct access to Intelligence Reports. The area is being monitored by NATO helicopters and planes. We will be having “pirate” drill on the ship (probably today). All very exciting.
I could write a book on India – absolutely a land of contrasts. We did a Princess ship tour in Cochin but it got a bit tedious towards the end and the weather is very hot. So we cancelled our tour for Mumbai and decided to go it alone. We ended up sharing a cab with a couple from San Francisco – cost us $US30 for 2.5 hours for four of us – Patsy did the negotiating. In both places there was rubbish everywhere – in Cochin they have introduced a program for women to sweep up the streets but all they do is sweep it into piles and no one ever collects it. The main streets were better than the side streets – you could hardly walk down some of them for the rotting rubbish. The traffic is amazing. Very few traffic lights – everyone just goes and toots continuously. At one point we were on the inside lane of a roundabout with four lanes and somehow we crossed over all of them and out of it. But no one lets you in – if there is a space they go for it. Two cars in one lane and a motorbike passed us on the inside..... We saw incredible architecture, the Gateway to India, the Railway Station and the Taj Mahal Hotel; (I am having trouble describing next bit) – then absolute slum conditions like I have never seen anywhere – only the photos can give any appreciation of how bad it is; people hanging out of trains – 10 a day die from falling or wandering up the tracks; local buses – no windows, no air conditioning, women up the front, men up the back – squashed in. But in Cochin, education is free and the children were all at school and dressed in uniforms. Not so in Mumbai, and this was the most shattering part – as we stopped, small children were pressing their faces against the car window – one in particular, a beautiful little boy made gestures with his long fingers to his mouth and throat for food. But our driver told us not to open the window – that is a picture I will never forget. Apparently they all have a pimp and anything they get is taken off them. Our driver – Imran Khan had a little five year old and it was costing him 80000 rupees to send him to school – only about $2500 but to them it was a fortune. There are 60000 cabs in Mumbai. As we got out of the cab to go back to the ship – women and children were all begging for chocolate – still don’t have an explanation for that...
Waiting for the ship to leave Mumbai, we watched rats running all round dockside – and skinny stray dogs were everywhere. An amazing experience– so glad we were on the ship and able to see but not stay because I could never stay there. Captain gave a speal yesterday about how he would gladly negotiate the Gulf of Aden and pirates than have to deal with Indian Immigration authorities. How they demand food, drink, cigarettes from the staff always with the veiled threat of delaying the ship. He said he will not stand for his staff being threatened and this time they had come very close to being booted off the ship. Everything is negotiable. Even when I called you from dockside – it was at a phone with a guy sitting there – initial charge was $US1 for 3 minutes (good deal) but when none of you were there – he only charged me $US1 for the 3 calls I made. I went back later and another guy was there – I did exactly the same thing and he said that will be $US2 – so I told him that previously I was only charged $US1 and he said OK $US1 – everything is totally negotiable. Except for a little china camel and elephant that I wanted to buy from a stall and the guy said $US10 each (no way) so I walked away and went back later and another guy said the same thing – so I said no, I will give you $US10 for both and he said NO – bad luck, I am sure there will be more along the way. It all just becomes a game.
Dawn Princess - 104 Days - Around the World
Click here to see Itinerary (this will take you to Princess website)
Friday, June 25, 2010
Tuesday 8th June - Cochin
We left Langkawi and have three days at sea now and are heading across the Bay of Bengal (the largest Bay in the World). Capt McBain has warned us about the unsteady sea conditions and high winds. We can certainly feel the ship moving and shaking. Out on the decks the air is hot and the wind is phenomenal. We are moving fast – probably about 20-21knots. We will be on Cochin on Tuesday 8th June.Arrived in Cochin at 7am. Absolutely no port side facilities, just old sheds. We had booked a tour with Princess – Cochin City Highlights. Diane and George were booked on the same excursion and we arranged to meet in Wheelhouse Bar so that we would end up in the same bus but before our departure from the ship, we had to deal with Indian Immigration. .
We moved into Princess Theatre and waited our turn to depart. Down stairs to Deck 4 we clambered and there waiting for us was a table with three Indian officials. I went first and my Landing Document was signed by the first person, stamped by the second person and signed again by the third person. All totally meaningless but that’s the way it is in India. Off we went, down the gangplank, had our obligatory gangplank photos taken and headed along the dock to the gates. Soldiers were dotted all along and at the gate there was a group standing around. My document was checked and I was told I could head out the gate to the area where our buses were parked. But hang on, George,Diane and Ray were all told they would have to go back to the ship because they didn’t have THE STAMP on their document.. George said, “that’s because the guy in the middle got up and went to the loo or something – it’s not our fault” No No No, back you go and I was told again that I could go to the bus. So here was our first experience of Indian Officialdom = self produced chaos. Finally we boarded our bus last, but at least we were on the tour. The bus was old, but it had windows and it had some form of airconditioning because it was cool. Metal fans were strung from the roof but they weren’t in use. The local buses are horrendous – no windows and packed tight – women at the front and men down the back.
Well, nothing could quite prepare you for India. I had heard it was a land of contrasts and to be prepared for the smell. The smell wasn’t too bad – just a faint odd smell every so often. The traffic is a nightmare – many tuk tuks and cabs. Everybody goes fast, and often up the wrong side of the road. In Cochin, education is free, so there were many schools. The children all wore uniforms and looked immaculate. Medical treatment is also free. A program has been introduced for women to sweep the streets – so all along the streets are little piles of rubbish neatly swept up – but it seems that no one ever comes along to remove them – and the sidestreets were just dreadful – rubbish everywhere.
Driving is amazing – everyone just goes and toots. Cars all seem to go in different directions but somehow don’t seem to crunch each other.
Our first stop was St Francis Church - Vasco Da Gama memorial stone. Amazing teak carvings.
Fishing Nets were donated by the Chinese – streets are dirty. Fish are sold off the ground nearby.
Dutch Palace – too many people – hot. No photography allowed here and it has been set up as a museum. Jewish Synagogue – no leather allowed here – thought that would only affect the men and their belts then realised it also meant purses. Had to be covered up to enter. Decided not to bother. Too many people, too hot but as a result we ended up standing around waiting for those who did go inside. And then our Guide Raj left us in the street to shop but we had no idea where the bus was and all the nearby streets looked the same so we were frightened to move. Enjoyed the first part of this tour but the end part was tedious. As we headed to the Dock a policeman came on board to check our documents and also under seats –still not sure what he was looking for. But no dramas we were then allowed to enter the dock area.
Lots of green weed in the water but it didn’t seem as bad as what was described last year.
We are the last ship for the season in Cochin because Monsoon Season has begun.
We moved into Princess Theatre and waited our turn to depart. Down stairs to Deck 4 we clambered and there waiting for us was a table with three Indian officials. I went first and my Landing Document was signed by the first person, stamped by the second person and signed again by the third person. All totally meaningless but that’s the way it is in India. Off we went, down the gangplank, had our obligatory gangplank photos taken and headed along the dock to the gates. Soldiers were dotted all along and at the gate there was a group standing around. My document was checked and I was told I could head out the gate to the area where our buses were parked. But hang on, George,Diane and Ray were all told they would have to go back to the ship because they didn’t have THE STAMP on their document.. George said, “that’s because the guy in the middle got up and went to the loo or something – it’s not our fault” No No No, back you go and I was told again that I could go to the bus. So here was our first experience of Indian Officialdom = self produced chaos. Finally we boarded our bus last, but at least we were on the tour. The bus was old, but it had windows and it had some form of airconditioning because it was cool. Metal fans were strung from the roof but they weren’t in use. The local buses are horrendous – no windows and packed tight – women at the front and men down the back.
Well, nothing could quite prepare you for India. I had heard it was a land of contrasts and to be prepared for the smell. The smell wasn’t too bad – just a faint odd smell every so often. The traffic is a nightmare – many tuk tuks and cabs. Everybody goes fast, and often up the wrong side of the road. In Cochin, education is free, so there were many schools. The children all wore uniforms and looked immaculate. Medical treatment is also free. A program has been introduced for women to sweep the streets – so all along the streets are little piles of rubbish neatly swept up – but it seems that no one ever comes along to remove them – and the sidestreets were just dreadful – rubbish everywhere.
Driving is amazing – everyone just goes and toots. Cars all seem to go in different directions but somehow don’t seem to crunch each other.
Our first stop was St Francis Church - Vasco Da Gama memorial stone. Amazing teak carvings.
Fishing Nets were donated by the Chinese – streets are dirty. Fish are sold off the ground nearby.
Dutch Palace – too many people – hot. No photography allowed here and it has been set up as a museum. Jewish Synagogue – no leather allowed here – thought that would only affect the men and their belts then realised it also meant purses. Had to be covered up to enter. Decided not to bother. Too many people, too hot but as a result we ended up standing around waiting for those who did go inside. And then our Guide Raj left us in the street to shop but we had no idea where the bus was and all the nearby streets looked the same so we were frightened to move. Enjoyed the first part of this tour but the end part was tedious. As we headed to the Dock a policeman came on board to check our documents and also under seats –still not sure what he was looking for. But no dramas we were then allowed to enter the dock area.
Lots of green weed in the water but it didn’t seem as bad as what was described last year.
We are the last ship for the season in Cochin because Monsoon Season has begun.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Langkawi - great place to holiday....
Arrived at8am today. Once again it was raining but fined up during the day.
Princess Shore Excursion today is Langkawi Highlights.
We left on time about 9.30am and drove to the Rice Museum. Interesting!
Then we went to the Craft Centre – lovely craft work but prices were a little steep and no one seemed to buy very much there.
Then we drove up into the mountains and stopped at a Rubber Plantation – on the way there was another shower of rain. But the lady came out and showed us how they cut the rubber tree to release the latex. We had never seen this done before.
Then we headed to the Cable Car – it is located in the Indian Village and there were long queues of people. Apparently school holidays had started today. We finally boarded our car with a young German couple and their two small children. It was a very steep climb to the first stop but we did not get off here because we were told the second stop would have the best views. Wrong! By the time we got there the whole mountain was covered in cloud. Another long wait to get back on the Cable car.
We had a short walk around the village and then headed back to the bus. Bus returning directly to the Ship but we asked if we could get off in the town. We had a short walk around the shops – used up the rest of our Ringitt and caught a taxi back to the ship. We agreed to pay $US3 which was probably a little overpriced but the ships shuttle would have cost us $14 ozzie. Once again today we bought Magnums for about $2.
Population of buffalo is growing quickly and causing some problems because they sleep on the roads etc. Monkeys also causing hassles for some of the resorts where they go into rooms and steal things. Guests have complained about other guests or staff stealing their things.
A ferry runs from Langkawi to Thailand about an hours’ ride. Beach at Langkawi looked good with lots of opportunities to use fun things like jet skis, etc. Lots of good things to do here – elephant rides, horse riding, the cable car, ferry to Thailand.
Everyone back on board on time today.
$1 AUS = 2.7 ringgitt – excellent rate –huge duty free shop = great place for return holiday.
Princess Shore Excursion today is Langkawi Highlights.
We left on time about 9.30am and drove to the Rice Museum. Interesting!
Then we went to the Craft Centre – lovely craft work but prices were a little steep and no one seemed to buy very much there.
Then we drove up into the mountains and stopped at a Rubber Plantation – on the way there was another shower of rain. But the lady came out and showed us how they cut the rubber tree to release the latex. We had never seen this done before.
Then we headed to the Cable Car – it is located in the Indian Village and there were long queues of people. Apparently school holidays had started today. We finally boarded our car with a young German couple and their two small children. It was a very steep climb to the first stop but we did not get off here because we were told the second stop would have the best views. Wrong! By the time we got there the whole mountain was covered in cloud. Another long wait to get back on the Cable car.
We had a short walk around the village and then headed back to the bus. Bus returning directly to the Ship but we asked if we could get off in the town. We had a short walk around the shops – used up the rest of our Ringitt and caught a taxi back to the ship. We agreed to pay $US3 which was probably a little overpriced but the ships shuttle would have cost us $14 ozzie. Once again today we bought Magnums for about $2.
Population of buffalo is growing quickly and causing some problems because they sleep on the roads etc. Monkeys also causing hassles for some of the resorts where they go into rooms and steal things. Guests have complained about other guests or staff stealing their things.
A ferry runs from Langkawi to Thailand about an hours’ ride. Beach at Langkawi looked good with lots of opportunities to use fun things like jet skis, etc. Lots of good things to do here – elephant rides, horse riding, the cable car, ferry to Thailand.
Everyone back on board on time today.
$1 AUS = 2.7 ringgitt – excellent rate –huge duty free shop = great place for return holiday.
3 June - Our day in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is an hour and a half’s drive from Port Kelang where we docked. Port Kelang is very industrial – absolutely no shops or market stall here. Princess is running a shuttle to the nearest town 20 minutes away – cost is the usual $7 each/one way.
Princess Shore Excursion – Kuala Lumpur On our Own
Another option for us was to go to the International Marketplace but we would have needed to catch the Hop On Hop Off bus or take a taxi so we just opted to do things nearby. I was sorry to have missed seeing the Blue Mosque but we just can’t do everything.
Skybridge visit was awesome – 44 floors up. The building is 88 storeys tall but most of the floors are occupied by offices.
Princess Shore Excursion – Kuala Lumpur On our Own
We decided to do this tour because it will drop us into Kuala Lumpur near Petronas Towers but still give us an opportunity to do our own thing. And Petronas Towers was high on our list of things to see because it is the location where the film ”Entrapment” was made.
Kuala Lumpur began about 150 years ago and has been virtually carved out of the jungle with no real planning. It is so different from SIngapore There is a lot of high rise public housing. The whole area looked swampy. They had a huge flood in 2003 that resulted in a lot of damage and destruction. As a consequence a huge tunnel has been built to protect from flooding in the future. Kuala Lumpur is not like Singapore.
Our Guide told us we wouldn’t be able to go up the Towers because they only sell a limited number of tickets each day and people queue up from 4.30am in the morning. However when we got off the bus we walked into the Petronas Towers building to look for Money Exchange and somehow managed to find ourselves at the Information Desk. When we saw a queue of people we joined the queue. Ironically there were still tickets available for the 1.30pm lift ride to the Skybridge. Added bonus was that they were free.
The Petronas Tower Building is a huge shopping mall so we had a quick look there and then decided to go to Bikit Bitang – another shopping mall. The Guide had told us there was a short cut and to our surprise, we found we could walk more than half way there, through a tunnel. Another enquiry at the Convention Centre and we found ourselves in the Pavilion. This Shopping Mall was beautiful – full of Designer Shops. We wandered around here for a while and then decided to head back to Petronas to get some lunch before our visit to the Skybridge.
Skybridge visit was awesome – 44 floors up. The building is 88 storeys tall but most of the floors are occupied by offices.
There was some confusion at the end in trying to find our bus and the weather was hot and very very humid. But somehow everyone eventually turned up and we headed back to the Ship on time. Interesting to have seen KL but no real reason to go back.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Great day in Singapore.
No Shore Excursion booked here. Everyone says it is easy with the MRT System located near the dock.
About this time we met George and Diane and when we compared notes, we wanted to do the same things and neither of us had been to Singapore before. At this point we revised our plan and decided to go to Sentossa Island straight away. They had already purchased an all day ticket but we needed different tickets for the monorail ($3 each). Sentossa Island is basically just a big fun park. The monorail is fun and reliable. We stopped at the first station and had a quick look. Universal Studios is located here. Hopped back on the monorail and continued to the Beach Stop where the Luge Ride was located. Ray and George rode to the beginning of the Luge on a chairlift and had magnificent views from the top. Diane and I sat and waited – very easy.......
Now we continued our adventure – on the monorail back to the MRT Station. We discovered that Raffles is on the same line as Bugis Street but we needed to change lines on the way. The train system is fantastic. They are fully automated and safe, clean, fast and reliable. In fact they went so fast that at one stage we thought we may end up in a different country.... We didn’t wait more than 2 mins. We managed the change well and hopped off at City Central. Raffles is just as you would expect – a haven within the city. We girls had a Gin Sling while they boys had a very tall glass of beer (probably a pint glass). The Gin Slings did taste like lolly water but we both agreed we felt a bit tipsy afterwards so they must have had a bit of a kick (in any case, the bill gave us a kick - $S96 for four drinks). Oh well, we will only ever be there once so it is one of those things we can tick off our List.
Back to the MRT and on to Bugis Street. But my ticket failed and a guy came up to help. He took us over to the ticket machine. Lodged the ticket in the slot and bingo – out came a dollar – “now you can purchase your ticket to Bugis Street”, he said. So we tried this little trick each time we had a problem, we got a dollar back – so we even did it at the end of the day when we had finished travelling and bingo, it worked again. Seems this is the way they stop tickets littering and I guess they re cycle them. Incidentally we were disappointed with Bugis Street but were happy to return to the ship after a great adventure in unfamiliar territory.
Our departure was delayed because we needed to report to Immigration officials on our return to the ship and then hand our passports back to Princess. But as usual, several people didn’t hand in their passports and after several calls our departure was further delayed because SuperStar Virgo needed to dock beside us and consequently we had to wait. The Captain put over a stern message voicing his annoyance at having been delayed a further 45 mins
There were lots of shops at the dock so immediately we found the money exchanger to get local currency ($AUS50=$S57) and had a quick look around. We were offered a great deal on a movie camera but decided it was too early in the cruise for major purchases. We obtained a map of the MRT system from the Tourist Information Desk. We had a vague plan of going to Sentossa Island so that Ray could do the Luge ride and to Raffles for a Gin Sling and maybe Bugis Street or Orchard Road. Tourist Information advised us that Orchard Road is full of Designer Shops while Bugis Street is more funky - sounds like us. We could see Sentossa Island and the monorail from the ship so decided it might be better to go there in the afternoon because we would be closer to the ship and less likely to have problems returning on time. We had been told we could purchase an all day pass on the MRT for $8 (you pay $10 dep which is returned to you in exchange for your used ticket). Instead we decided we only wanted to go to Bugis Street (Monorail uses a different ticketing system) so we went to the machines and purchased tickets but they were only one way (more about that later). Machines were incredibly easy to use. You just selected your destination on a screen and the price was displayed with an option for purchasing more tickets. I should mention here that everyone speaks English – and signs are also displayed in English. We noted that the majority of people were young – it is a vibrant city, well worth a visit if only to ride the MRT system and do some great shopping.
Now we continued our adventure – on the monorail back to the MRT Station. We discovered that Raffles is on the same line as Bugis Street but we needed to change lines on the way. The train system is fantastic. They are fully automated and safe, clean, fast and reliable. In fact they went so fast that at one stage we thought we may end up in a different country.... We didn’t wait more than 2 mins. We managed the change well and hopped off at City Central. Raffles is just as you would expect – a haven within the city. We girls had a Gin Sling while they boys had a very tall glass of beer (probably a pint glass). The Gin Slings did taste like lolly water but we both agreed we felt a bit tipsy afterwards so they must have had a bit of a kick (in any case, the bill gave us a kick - $S96 for four drinks). Oh well, we will only ever be there once so it is one of those things we can tick off our List.
Back to the MRT and on to Bugis Street. But my ticket failed and a guy came up to help. He took us over to the ticket machine. Lodged the ticket in the slot and bingo – out came a dollar – “now you can purchase your ticket to Bugis Street”, he said. So we tried this little trick each time we had a problem, we got a dollar back – so we even did it at the end of the day when we had finished travelling and bingo, it worked again. Seems this is the way they stop tickets littering and I guess they re cycle them. Incidentally we were disappointed with Bugis Street but were happy to return to the ship after a great adventure in unfamiliar territory.
Our departure was delayed because we needed to report to Immigration officials on our return to the ship and then hand our passports back to Princess. But as usual, several people didn’t hand in their passports and after several calls our departure was further delayed because SuperStar Virgo needed to dock beside us and consequently we had to wait. The Captain put over a stern message voicing his annoyance at having been delayed a further 45 mins
2nd June – Singapore
Arrived early and went up on deck for photo shoot. But it was dark and not long after I walked out on the deck, there was a huge clap of thunder and lightning. I flew back inside. But true to form, rain stopped and the sun came out for the rest of the day.
No Shore Excursion booked here. Everyone says it is easy with the MRT System located near the dock.
There were lots of shops at the dock so immediately we found the money exchanger to get local currency ($AUS50=$S57) and had a quick look around. We were offered a great deal on a movie camera but decided it was too early in the cruise for major purchases. We obtained a map of the MRT system from the Tourist Information Desk. We had a vague plan of going to Sentossa Island so that Ray could do the Luge ride and to Raffles for a Gin Sling and maybe Bugis Street or Orchard Road. Tourist Information advised us that Orchard Road is full of Designer Shops while Bugis Street is more funky - sounds like us. We could see Sentossa Island and the monorail from the ship so decided it might be better to go there in the afternoon because we would be closer to the ship and less likely to have problems returning on time. We had been told we could purchase an all day pass on the MRT for $8 (you pay $10 dep which is returned to you in exchange for your used ticket). Instead we decided we only wanted to go to Bugis Street (Monorail uses a different ticketing system) so we went to the machines and purchased tickets but they were only one way (more about that later). Machines were incredibly easy to use. You just selected your destination on a screen and the price was displayed with an option for purchasing more tickets. I should mention here that everyone speaks English – and signs are also displayed in English. We noted that the majority of people were young – it is a vibrant city, well worth a visit if only to ride the MRT system and do some great shopping.
About this time we met George and Diane and when we compared notes, we wanted to do the same things and neither of us had been to Singapore before. At this point we revised our plan and decided to go to Sentossa Island straight away. They had already purchased an all day ticket but we needed different tickets for the monorail ($3 each). Sentossa Island is basically just a big fun park. The monorail is fun and reliable. We stopped at the first station and had a quick look. Universal Studios is located here. Hopped back on the monorail and continued to the Beach Stop where the Luge Ride was located. Ray and George rode to the beginning of the Luge on a chairlift and had magnificent views from the top. Diane and I sat and waited – very easy.......
Now we continued our adventure – on the monorail back to the MRT Station. We discovered that Raffles is on the same line as Bugis Street but we needed to change lines on the way. The train system is fantastic. They are fully automated and safe, clean, fast and reliable. In fact they went so fast that at one stage we thought we may end up in a different country.... We didn't wait more than 2 mins. We managed the change well and hopped off at City Central. Raffles is just as you would expect – a haven within the city. We girls had a Gin Sling while they boys had a very tall glass of beer (probably a pint glass). The Gin Slings did taste like lolly water but we both agreed we felt a bit tipsy afterwards so they must have had a bit of a kick (in any case, the bill gave us a kick - $S96 for four drinks). Oh well, we will only ever be there once so it is one of those things we can tick off our List.
Back to the MRT and on to Bugis Street. But my ticket failed and a guy came up to help. He took us over to the ticket machine. Lodged the ticket in the slot and bingo – out came a dollar – "now you can purchase your ticket to Bugis Street", he said. So we tried this little trick each time we had a problem, we got a dollar back – so we even did it at the end of the day when we had finished travelling and bingo, it worked again. Seems this is the way they stop tickets littering and I guess they re cycle them. Incidentally we were disappointed with Bugis Street but were happy to return to the ship after a great adventure in unfamiliar territory.
Our departure was delayed because we needed to report to Immigration officials on our return to the ship and then hand our passports back to Princess. But as usual, several people didn't hand in their passports and after several calls our departure was further delayed because SuperStar Virgo needed to dock beside us and consequently we had to wait. The Captain put over a stern message voicing his annoyance at having been delayed a further 45 mins.
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