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Finally! Marlene woke to find her fever gone. But her leg was still swollen and very painful. I ate breakfast alone and took food to her in the cabin.
With random passenger at the pool
She rallied enough by noon to spend some time in the pool. We then dried off, changed clothes and went to the crew talent show – always one of our favorite events on board. At it happened, that was the one and only time we set foot in the theater.
We spend time on the balcony in the afternoon and went to dinner in the dining room – our only visit to the dining room on the cruise. She had an entree of lemon pepper shrimp – one of her favorite dishes – while I had broiled bluefish. We shared a bratwurst. All very good.
After dinner we packed and put our large suitcases out to be taken to the terminal the next morning. Then we tried to go to the theater show. We thought there would be a late show, as on Carnival, but there was none. Instead we went to the casino. I lost a bit but ended the cruise up $220. Marlene also lost a bit but ended nearly $500 ahead. Because the cruise cost us only $75 each we ended up making money on the cruise. But Marlene’s illness overshadowed all positive aspects of the cruise.
Marlene continues to have a fever and her leg continues to swell. The fever is less – around 101 – but the leg swelling and pain is worse. We discussed the option of going to the infirmary, but she declined. I didn’t argue because while her condition is cause for concern, I doubt that much could be done for her. We decided to wait two more days then go to urgent care on shore.
By the gingerbread art in the buffet
Because she was still ill and we would have to take a tender to shore, we just stayed on the ship. She was well enough to spend some time on the balcony, soaking up the very intense sun. But I had breakfast alone, taking food to Marlene in the cabin. She was well enough to have lunch with me. After lunch I did some blogging. She did accompany me to dinner in the buffet, then we spent an hour in the casino. We both lost, but not much. We are both still ahead.
We played one game of rummy and of course she won.
We had a late night snack at The Local, the 24-hour restaurant on the ship. We shared pretzel bites, a salad and some large wings with a sweet chili sauce. Delicious! And free!
Disney Fantasy on the left, Norwegian Encore on the right
Marlene taking one of many rest stops
Yes, Marlene is still sick. Her fever comes and goes but she is generally lethargic and has no appetite.
I had breakfast alone and brought some fruit to her in the cabin. I spent some time blogging then we ventured forth into the port area of Falmouth – a place neither of us had ever been. Across from our place in port was the Disney Fantasy, so there were lots of families ashore in Falmouth.
As in most ports the goods were wildly overpriced. We bought nothing except two souvenir magnets. I saw a pharmacy and thought I could get more Tylenol, but the price there was about 50% higher than the already exorbitant price on the ship.
Back on board we had lunch in the cabin and I read while Marlene napped. She rallied enough to have dinner with me in the buffet, but she ate very little. We then spent about an hour in the casino. She lost a bit but I continued to win. Up $370.
Another day at sea. Another day with Marlene sick. And her leg is getting worse.
We did have breakfast together and went to the casino for a bit. Good decision for Marlene – she won a major (about $950) and is up over $500. I broke even.
We played some rummy and Marlene won the single game.
This is #3 in the series of books by Baldacci featuring Will Robie and Jessica Reel, America’s premier team of assassins. I have read and reported on the previous book – “The Hit” – and I strongly recommend that you read that one first as this book is a direct sequel. Much of what goes on in this book won’t make sense unless you have read the previous one.
In this sequel Robie and Reel are sent to the “Burner Box” – a training facility in North Carolina – ostensibly to see if they are fit for a very high-profile assignment directly from the President of the United States. But they suspect, with good reason, that their boss, Evan Tucker, head of the CIA, may be trying to kill them. It won’t surprise you – or spoil the plot – to learn that they do survive and are sent on the mission.
Except it isn’t the original mission. It is a “clean-up” mission because the original mission was compromised and had to be aborted. Their new mission is to assassinate a North Korean general who had been feeding them intelligence but who had been compromised. The general committed suicide, saving them the trouble of killing him, but his dying plea was to save his family, who he knew would be sent to a concentration camp in North Korea. So, yes, the President wants Robie and Reel to infiltrate North Korea, gain access to the camp and rescue the family.
Simple, right?
The Robie/Reel narrative is intertwined with a narrative of a North Korean assassin who has been given an equally impossible assignment – to infiltrate the US and kill people close to the President.
This is a fascinating story with lots of action. Mostly unbelievable, but just barely so – it could happen as Baldacci lays it out.
Both Marlene and I thought we had been here before but we were both wrong. We have been to Belize but never to Harvest Caye which is a port area with a beach and a small zoo, strictly for use by cruise passengers. It is quite nice as these port areas go.
I had breakfast alone and then Marlene, fortified by Tylenol, and I ventured ashore. We shopped a bit but didn’t buy any of the obscenely overpriced goods. We did enjoy the “wildlife walk” (aka “zoo”).
We had lunch back on board the ship. Then Marlene slept and I read and did some photo editing. I had dinner alone and was in the buffet when it was announced that our next port of call – Cozumel – had been cancelled due to dock damage. We would be going to Jamaica instead.
Fine with us. We have been to Cozumel many times.
I bought some Tylenol on the ship – $13 for 24 pills. Expensive, but needed.
This was a bummer of a day. Marlene woke up sick with a high fever – almost 104 degrees. I gave her some Tylenol and went to breakfast alone. She slept most of the day. Her stomach is upset too, so probably the flu. Glad I got that vaccination.
There was a luncheon party for returning guests. Wasn’t much of a party – had one drink and not the one I ordered (which never arrived). I did learn that Norwegian has many more loyalty levels than Carnival. There are 8 “ambassadors” on board – people who have booked over 750 nights on Norwegian. Carnival tops out at Diamond, which is 300 nights.
I watched the Patriots vs Bills game. Bummer of a game for Pats fans. Losing after being up 21-0? Terrible.
Marlene rallied enough so we could have dinner together in the buffet but she is still very sick.
Yes, folks, we are off on yet another cruise. This one is “only” 7 days, to Belize, Cozumel and Grand Cayman, on the Norwegian Encore. We booked this cruise because both Marlene and I were each given $800 credits from our trip to Alaska in April (NCL2). That credit could only be applied to a future cruise. This is that cruise. Because of the credits this is pretty close to a free cruise for us: total cost is $150 or $75 each.
The day started early. We rose at 5am with the intention of being on the road to Miami (via Coral Springs to drop Becky off with Marlene’s brother) by 7:30am. We had to get up early because we hadn’t packed. It was a rushed morning, but Marlene is pretty good at packing. We actually got off at 8am. We got to Coral Springs around 10:15am and were back on the road to Miami by 10:30am. We got to out parking lot (actually a parking garage) around 11:30am.
Then the fun began. This parking lot and cruise parking provider was new to us. Apparently it was new to them too. Total chaos. There were over 50 people congregated at the entrance to the parking garage, waiting for transportation to various ships. One guy was handling everything and not handling it well. After checking in we got in the queue for the ship. And waited. And waited. We saw one small van leaving. And a lot of taxis. We finally figured out that the taxis were Ubers – people were giving up on waiting for the free shuttle and were arranging for their own transportation. We teamed up with two guys who were going to the Encore and I arranged for an Uber. The Uber showed up about 15 minutes later and got us to the ship just about when we were expected to be there.
I think if we had waited for the “free shuttle” we would have missed the ship.
We had to check our large bags (too large for the X-ray machines they said) which made me a bit uncomfortable as my shaving kit and all my pills were in my bag (I usually put them in my backback but we brought only one backpack for this short trip). But the bags did show up at our cabin as we set sail.
The good news is that we were able to carry 10 cans of cola on board, in direct violation of Norwegian’s policies. We brought soda on board for the NCL2 so it must be a policy that they don’t enforce.
Boarding the Encore (on the left)Marlene on boardUs on board
Check-in went smoothly and we were on board by 1:30pm.
We had a late lunch in the buffet and didn’t have dinner. We spent some time in the casino, of course. It was spacious, large and generous. I won $200 and Marlene won about $100.
So far we have made money by taking this cruise. But it won’t last.
This is #15 (though I found a list in which it was #14) in the long (27) line of Cussler books featuring Dirk Pitt, Special Projects Director at the (fictional) National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) and globe-trotting superhero. His adventures – and Cussler’s plots – stretch credulity but are great fun to read. In this one Pitt saves the world from a cataclysm planned by descendants of Third Reich survivors, the intent being to destroy everything so the world can be recreated as the Fourth Reich. The mechanism for inducing the cataclysm is to detach the entire Ross Ice Shelf from Antarctica, thereby causing a tectonic shift, generating massive tidal waves and disrupting the world’s weather for decades while the Fourth Reich plotters ride out the havoc in four gargantuan ships – each a mile long.
As I said, the plots stretch credulity.
There are dangers and attempts on his life throughout the book but in the final battle he and his sidekick, Al Giordino, take on a crack security force of several hundred, while driving a huge vehicle built in 1940 for exploring the Antarctic, armed only with small arms. You shouldn’t be surprised to learn that they defeat the enemy force and save the world.
Each of the three segments of the ATW has its own wrapup (ATW-1, ATW-2 and ATW-3) so all I can add here are some observations about our epic around-the-world trip.
Traveling around the world can be done inexpensively. The two flights (Ft Myers to Seattle and Sydney to Rome) and the two cruises (Seattle to Sydney and Rome to Tampa) had a combined cost of under $1,500 for each of us. The car rental and the hotels in Europe added roughly $3,000 to my cost but it really wasn’t an expensive trip. The aborted cruise to Venice in 2018 cost Jett and me over $10,000 each for 30 days. This was nearly 70 days for half that.
The US may be the best country in the world in many ways, but Europe and Australia both do public transportation better. Their subways, trains and buses are cleaner, more comfortable and operate more efficiently (and on schedule) than what you will find anywhere in the US.
The 4-year-old Tianfu airport in Chengdu China was fascinating. The place is HUGE and there were very few passengers when we were there. I assume it was overbuilt in anticipation of future growth. But that is something you never see in the US. Who spends billions for future passenger volume?
The bread in Europe is delicious. I was looking forward to tasting some good bread and I got it. Why can’t the US make good, inexpensive bread?
Gas is more expensive in Europe than in the US but it seems that food is considerably cheaper. Besides bread, cheese, fruits and vegetables seemed relatively inexpensive.
We loved Sydney. My sister says it is her second-favorite place after Paris. I might agree (though Barcelona is still a candidate). We were disappointed in the iconic Sydney Opera House but the public library blew us away. And the public spaces are beautiful and well-maintained. This is a city that does things right.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Marlene’s brother, who cared for Marlene’s dog for nearly 10 weeks, said “Never again.” He is right… we will never do it again. But we are glad we were able to do it once.
ATW wrapup
Each of the three segments of the ATW has its own wrapup (ATW-1, ATW-2 and ATW-3) so all I can add here are some observations about our epic around-the-world trip.