Aruba
Wednesday morning found us sailing east . The sea was calm but we sailed through a shower. At that latitude, even the rain is warm. We sat on the balcony and the watched flying fish. The wake of the ship would cause them to leap out of the water and glide to the next wave. This is a defensive instinct. I suppose the ship represents a big fish that is trying to eat them.

On the other side of the ship, we could see hazy mountains on the coast of Columbia. We have never been to South America, but we have seen it. I suppose we could say the same about Cuba. We followed our usual "at-sea" routine of attending lectures, eating, soaking, eating again, listening to music, eating some more, walking the decks, eating, watching the ocean and eating again before going to the evening show. Some how, we both avoided gaining any weight. I am not making that up. The secret is avoiding dessert and exercise. Lots of exercise. In the spa area, there was a health food lunch counter. The menu was in French, so we never knew exactly what we were eating. That didn't matter much because most of it was fairly tasteless anyway. By trial and error we managed to find a few good dishes. Everything was low calorie and tea and coffee were decaf. I admit stopping by the pizza place sometimes after eating that healthy stuff.

Thursday was Aruba, the only island stop on the whole cruise. The island is a desert, surrounded by a warm ocean. Inland, you would swear you were in Nevada. But the shore lines were beautiful beaches and wave sculptured rocks. The island is quite small, about 20 miles long, and they say you can see South America from there. But the sky as slightly hazy and visibility was limited to ten or twelve miles. We took a bus tour to see some interesting rock formations. We even climbed to the top of a hill. It was really a pile of rock and the trail at one point went under a 100 ton bolder that appeared to be balanced between two other such rocks. It was a good view, but we barely go back to the bus before it poured rain. Rain is rare on Aruba.

Friday morning we were sailing north with showers in the area. Our actual course was 330 degrees, or 30 degrees west of due north. Our speed was 23 knots or about 27 miles per hour.

Haiti is the west end of Hispaniola. There are two peninsulas pointing toward Cuba and the southern peninsula came into view about noon. At one point we passed a small island, about 100 acres. It sat on a white limestone foundation, with darker rocks above that. There was very little vegetation but it had a tall white lighthouse and some small buildings. With binoculars, it appeared that nobody was at home. I couldn't see any beaches, and there was no harbor or pier. I guess the light house is serviced by people who arrive by helicopter. It would be fun to explore an island like that.

Friday evening was baked Alaska night in the main dining room. We have never been on a cruise that didn't have baked Alaska night, complete with a parade. For some reason, you are expected to swing your napkin around your head as the parade of servers marches in with the dessert. On that one night, a band replaced the harpist who had entertained during dinner each night.

Saturday was the last full day of cruising. We sailed north west along the coast of Cuba. During the night, lights were visible along the shore, but throughout the morning it was rainy and hazy. In the afternoon, clearing weather revealed that Cuba was still there.

The morning rain mixed with periods of sunshine and with the sun directly astern, the ship seemed to be sailing through rainbows. Every time the sun came out a rainbow would appear directly ahead. They would disappear just as we reached them and in a short time there would be another one in the distance. I sat up in the Constellation lounge and watched them for a long time.

That evening, and the next morning we said goodbye to our table mates (main dining room) and other friends that we had made on board. You get to know people very well on a two-week voyage, and it was a little sad to say goodbye.

We sailed through a powerful storm just before Florida came into view. There was no lightning, but the wind was strong and the rain was heavy. We watched it from the balcony and it was more beautiful than frightening. A short time later we docked in Fort Lauderdale.