Hmmmmmmmm......

I believe I am fast becoming the queen of unfinished projects. I haven't finished writing about my cruise, haven't finished posting about the trip to SC, haven't finished innumerable art projects, haven't finished painting the living area, haven't finished putting away the laundry, haven't finished putting down the plastic to prevent weeds in the garden (yes, the weeds are doing quite nicely)..... The list goes on and on. I do finish reading a novel a week, but that's not particularly productive. I should never have read Richard Carlson's Don't Sweat the Small Stuff. It's too easy to categorize nearly everything as "small stuff." Maybe if I post more short blogs....

What Happened?

Wow....I was just blogging along when days became weeks; weeks became months.... I fell off the edge of the blogosphere. The loved one had back problems followed by back surgery and recovery impeded by gout flareups ( how does one limp on both feet?) and a falling blood pressure episode. I discovered that taking care of all of the animals in the cold and dark after work was no fun.

Recovery celebration--- road trip to SC!

It was my first visit to a marshland... fascinating. I am a fan of author Pat Conroy, and visiting Brother Richard also gave me an opportunity to see the areas immortalized in some of the most beautiful prose I have ever read. We traveled in the RV to allow us to take 6 month old Sioux and keep her from shedding allergy stimulating dander around Dick's house. 1,100 miles of retrieving later, we arrived and parked behind Dick's garage.

Dick and Denise's lovely house is located in a marsh-bordering sub-division in Beaufort. The marsh is right across the street. There is a row of houses that backs up to a walking trail and a dock for residents' use.

Low tide= sand and marsh grass

High tide= salty water

A channel allows navigation, but a person had better know where he's going and keep an eye on the tides.

Low tide reveals oyster beds. Not quite the same as coastal oysters; smaller because they aren't in water all the time.

Live oaks, cabbage palms, and Spanish moss grace the walkway along the marsh.

Portugal: First Visit for Me and Ruby Princess

16th October 2009- Lisbon, Portugal

....you would have seen initially the town of Caxias on our left hand side which is one of the suburbs of Lisbon, on the right hand side the white cliffs and the Cristo Rei statue similar to that found in Rio De Janeiro, some 350 feet above sea level, you would also see the Belem Tower and the monument to the Explorers on the left hand side. We transited the Rio Tejo passing under the April 25th Bridge at 11:01, so named due to a peaceful revolution which happened in 1974.

We sailed into Lisbon mid-morning and docked not far from Europe's longest suspension bridge (so they said) very reminiscent of the Golden Gate Bridge. The tour guide on the bus said it was built by the same folks. As we approached the docking area, there were boats with flags flying spraying water. Kinda cute. Found out later that they were welcoming Ruby Princess on her first visit to Lisbon. The ship went into service in 2008 and just turned one year old. I also heard that this will be the ship's first trans-Atlantic voyage. Hmmmmmm.....first voyage.....comforting thought? Actually, later someone said that the ship had crossed the Atlantic sailin in an easterly direction, so not really a first crossing.

We loaded on a bus headed for Cascais, a small, fashionable fishing village on the Bay of Cascais. We passed a number of fortifications guarding the coasline, some apparently still active military installations.

"Small"...clearly a relative term. For a person who lives outside of a community of roughly 600 people, Cascais didn't seem so small. There are mixtures of older and newer buildings, the latter lacking the charm of the former, as is usually the case.

The streets are narrow with poorly delineated sidewalks, but some open areas sport patterned pavement made of 2 1/2- 3 inch squares. Painstaking work, that.

Not as much statuary as in some other places.

Lack of raw materials, lack of inclination?

Portugal is known for its tilework featured on the exteriors of many buildings. Both Cascais and Sintra sported fully clad buildings, as well as featured displays on exteriors. Permanent siding! One little square at a time would be daunting, but it sure seems to hold up. I wonder how it would hold up in an area with temperature extremes such as those found in oh,.....say..... northeast Oklahoma.

Road signs were tile plaques, and displays were traditional blue and white or more colorful landscapes. Some were inspired by religious belief, some civic oriented, and some just for fun.

Next, we loaded on the bus and headed for Sintra. According to our guide, the beaches were unusually busy, and some flowers were in an unseasonal bloom. The weather had been particularly warm for mid-October. We continued on up the coast, stopping for a photo op in sight of what the guide said was the westernmost point in all of continental Europe.

The coast is very rocky, and it was easy to see that it could be very inhospitable in harsh weather. There was very little, stunted vegetation.

Sailing,sailing......

15th October 2009- At Sea

At 03:59 Ruby Princess passed The Prime Meridian, ...the meridian at which longitude is defined to be 0 degrees.... Throughout the day we followed a southwesterly track where at 11:00 altered to a due west heading. At 18:30 this evening we had the engines ready and started to transit the Gibraltar strait....You could clearly see Africa on our port side and Europe on our starboard side. At approximately 19:00 we passed the rock of Gibraltar on our starboard side while transiting the strait at an average speed of 18.5 knots.

I can't believe I slept through the Prime Meridian! Just one more opportunity lost through the need for sleep. Oh,well.... My knee reminded me that I'm no longer young. Woke up to a re-injury of (thankfully) only one knee. Who knew that merely dancing on deck would have such repercussions? It turned out to be a sensory overload day. Too much food, too many people... No breakfast, pizza at 11ish, and time to get ready for class. Well, I definitely need to draw more. I can't seem to render an architectural wonder and transfer it to ridiculously expensive pastel paper and produce anything satisfactory. It's overwhelming!

I spent class time talking to Mike instead. He may be more convinced than ever that I'm a total head case, but I love that guy. He's so kind and such a good listener. He is most definitely on the list of the many blessings in my life.

Pizza again for dinner--couldn't face a dining room. Sensory overload! Seeing too much, eating too much, too many people. Just needed to chill... sooooo I watched a movie outdoors on deck as we sailed through the Straits of Gibraltar. Weird. Never thought that would be my experience. By the way, looked at the rock, and it didn't look like the Prudential commercial. Must have been a different angle.

Sufficiently recovered to go down to Club Fusion on 7 where Mike sang Karaoke, and Mike and Janet sang "All I Have to Do Is Dream." They're so cute! It was a good time, and I'm all better! Well, except for the knee. I'm not liking this whole aging thing!

Exploring Barcelona

We walked along the Via Rambla, a busy shopping area. There were many vendors along the street, as well as in shops. KFC and Mickey D's were in evidence. Once again, unfavorable exchange rate and shallow pockets caused me to come away with only pictures, but I find I enjoy them more than I would have appreciated one more thing to introduce into my materially cluttered existence. Loved the cows and happy mannequins.

Listed as a "must see" in a brochure was the market on the Via Rambla. All sorts of things were available for purchase, much of which were foodstuffs. No shortage there aboard ship, but those who wanted wine or alcohol found it much less expensive to purchase while on shore.

It was a crowded, busy place- difficult to keep track of each other. We also had limited time available. Soooo....onward! But first:

"This little piggy went to market...." Evidently it was in Barcelona!

Something I don't see every day...

or ever!

How is it they don't look particularly unhappy?

Hung a right to the Gothic Quarter. No people dressed in black with weird make-up and black fingernail polish--just really old but often ornately decorated buildings.

Probably the best illustration of the penchant for embellishment was a second floor walkway between buildings above the road. No opportunity for decoration was ignored. Following the picture of the entire structure is a series moving top to bottom from the eaves to the underside.

Beautiful! It is this attention to detail and concern for beauty that I find missing in so much of urban building. I understand the financial limitations that make so much prohibitive. I mean, look at my house! No passers-by are stopped by the beauty of the place. I did so appreciate the efforts to make every surface the feast for the eye that I frequently saw on this trip.

We made it back to the ship early, and I caught the Flamenco dancers in the Princess Theater. Not as impressive as the shows at the resort in Playa del Carmen, but I guess they bring out the big guns for the evening shows. Then I ordered pictures from the day's outing and waited for 5:30 to meet Mike and Janet for dinner in one of the dining rooms. Nothing too adventurous for dinner---I came armed with reading glasses to avoid any pitfalls. Later Janet and I went up to deck 15 for the "White Hot Deck Party." Lots of fun, and no need to get up early in the morning!

Tomorrow: at sea.