St Lucia

Update on our situation

My brother-in-law, Eugene has some severe kidney problems.  He has a kidney stone that the doctor described as a "boulder".  He will have surgery on Thursday morning to have it manually removed because it is the only way.

He was in the hospital from Friday, January 2 to Sunday January 4 for emergency intervention to drain his right kidney which swelled to three times its size.

There is still another procedure that needs to be done to remove the remaining stones in both kidneys so that we do not have a repeat situation.  This will be done sometime in the future when he is strong enough to tolerate it.

Please say a prayer for him that he pulls through these next few days.
Terri and Jim

We cancelled our cruise at the last minute

Unfortunately Jim's brother became ill and we have to return home.  We cancelled our cruise.  We cannot have peace of mind being away from home for such a length of time while decisions must be made for his care.

So I will not continue with this blog for now.

I will post an update on his health when I have more information.
Terri and Jim

I'm doing a Happy Dance!

A quick update:  Tonight I’m doing a happy dance

I lost a lot of sleep last night--mostly from anger, but also trying to figure out how to get to the places we wanted to see from the port of Coquimbo.

I wasted more time than I should have today, but we do have a tour set up in Coquimbo. We will be using Patagonia Shore Excursions. Deposit paid with PayPal to ensure that we will be accommodated.

They will customize the tour to go to the towns of Vicuna and Monte Grande and also the Archaeological Museum in La Serena to see the Moai statues from Easter Island. We have no problem skipping the Pisco factory or the Puclaro Reservoir (where it's too windy anyway) to see the places that are on my bucket list.

So we're happy cruiser's again.

One more day at home and then we head to Fort Lauderdale.

More later

12/30/2014--I'm Unhappy--Big Disappointment

We do not like to do ship tours.  And frankly the ship tour was not going to take us to where we wanted to go in the port of Coquimbo, Chile.

I majored in Spanish and spent a lot of time studying the works of Gabriela Mistral.  She was a Chilean Poet who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1945.  She was born in the town of Vicuña and lived a good part of her childhood in the town of Monte Grande in the vicinity of this port. Notably, Gabriela and my grandmother were born on the exact same day, April 7, 1889.

I contacted a company by the name of Jeep Tours La Serena to provide a private driver to take us to these towns so that we could visit the various places of interest pertinent to Gabriela.  It was all set, so I thought.

At 10:30 PM on Monday December 29, just two hours ago, I received an email from this company that they would not be able to provide the tour for us.  They were sorry but they have other commitments for that day.  Mind you I set this up on June 28, 2014.  And now, two days before I am ready to head to Fort Lauderdale, I am without a driver to take us to this town.

They offered no alternative.  I chose this company because of their stellar reviews on Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor and now they are leaving me in the lurch. They were also willing to customize the tour to my interests.   In going back to Trip Advisor tonight I discovered  there is another review written in Spanish by another party who had the very same thing happen to them on December 14 of this year. That was well after I had done my research on this company.

So what do I do at this late date?  The ship does not have a tour that goes only to these towns.  The cost for a private car hired from the ship is exorbitant for just two people and I am sure there are not many others who will wish to join us  only  to see these two places.  This was on my bucket list.

We may try our luck with just getting a taxi at the port.  Not sure yet.  Will have to think about it until the morning.  Will keep you posted.

12/28/2014--Decisions, Decisions, Decisions!!! What to Pack?????

Today was a day of decisions! Many of them. I'm still not finished. I have read of people sending luggage ahead and always thought "Why would someone spend the money to do this?" Well, after Jim's crisis in Rome and his lifting limitations, guess what we did? We sent our luggage ahead. The people who are taking the full cruise who are in an Ocean View cabin or higher get free luggage delivery to and from their homes to the ship if they live in the United States or Canada. Those in Interior Cabins, or not doing the full cruise do not receive this benefit.

Those in countries other than the US or Canada get an extra $200 OBC. This was an early booking benefit for those paying in full prior to July 1, 2014. Well, we did not qualify because we were not doing the full cruise and had no intention of sending any luggage ahead until things changed in August. We figured on sending the heaviest bag ahead and home from Buenos Aires and bringing another with us. So how is that working for me. Not too well. I have one bag full and no where to put the rest of my stuff. Jim wants to know what I'm bringing. So now I'm starting another bag. Remember, we're flying from Buenos Aires to Santiago and then staying two days and then to Miami. I think I needed to send two bags ahead. ARRRGGGGH!!!!!

We're packing for all sorts of climates and I guess I want to take everything I own with me. So the weeding out process must now begin. I want to again thank all the well wishers. I hope I can live up to your expectations and not bore you to death.

Terri and Jim.

12/25/2014--Getting Ready to Go

In August we had a scare when Jim became ill in Rome and needed emergency surgery in Rome for a strangulated hernia. If we had decided to fly home, he would not have made the trip alive. We did not know this until we got home and consulted with the doctors here in the states. We are the caregivers for Jim’s brother and try to take a vacation from our caregiving duties once a year. Well, our Roman escapade and Mediterranean cruise is not what you would really call a vacation since we had to cancel our cruise and return home early. So it has now been a good 18 months since we have had a break from these duties and in my opinion, long overdue. On Friday, December 19 the doorbell rang and the UPS man was there to pick up our two heaviest pieces of luggage. We were happy to see them go. We spent many hours trying to decide what would go ahead of us and now pray that we will see them again on the Prinsendam on January 3.

They have been tracked and we now know that they are in the Luggage Forward facility in Dania Beach Florida waiting to be loading onto the Prinsendam on January 3. We only hope and pray we see them again. On January 1 Jim and I will drive to Fort Lauderdale and stay at the Fairfield Inn. We will spend January 2 resting and making sure we have everything we need for this long voyage. We will make sure we have enough wine and any and all sundries we need for this trip. We hope to keep you updated along the way with our adventures.