I would love to share the 50 or so really great pics we took today, but the internet is so bad that it took upwards of 45 minutes to try to upload ONE picture only to be kicked off the server. I cannot begin to tell you how fucking frustrated I am. Once we get to Europe, I'll do a gallery post.
Anyway, here's Tangier in words...hardly justification.
We pulled into dockside this morning at 7:30ish, and as I looked out our window, I was surprised...not at all what I expected. Tangier is a large city that's spread all along the coast, with little exception. It's a good thing there's a big coast. About 800,000 people live here. Arabs, Africans. Spanish, French...they all converge here. Religions too...Muslim, Jew, Catholic/Protestant, all here. And soooo many languages. Fortunately almost everyone speaks English.
Our guide for the day, Adine, is an American citizen (his sister lives in Houston), but he is Moroccan. And hilarious! He is a good shepherd for his mostly American sheep.
We started off driving around the French and Spanish quarters, then headed to the Kasbah - the meeting place. It's an old area of the city where everyone who was anyone used to live. If you wanted to meet someone, you would go to the Kasbah to find them. Movie stars, secret agents, the rich and famous, and those doing dirty deeds all could be found here. We hopped off the bus and started walking through little neighborhoods. It's mainly lots of little intertwining streets with small markets and a few cats. Morocco's national insect is a hawker. They are everywhere, trying to get you to look at and ultimately buy their wares - fezzes to pottery to jewelry to full on rugs. They swarm you and will not leave you alone. We found the best way to get them to move along was to put up a hand and firmly say, "No!" Although that didn't always work. Note to self, next time bring pepper spray.
From the Kasbah, we walked down to the Medina - a shopping area with tons of markets. Fabrics, pottery, jewelry, leather. It's a total assault on the senses. There's so much color and so many things to see. Beautiful tile work is everywhere, and doors are intricately carved or painted. Spice stores and racks with buckets filled with herbs are everywhere, filling the air with pepper, lavender, and exotics scents. Music spilling from doorways, along with the hum of sewing machines. The salt air and the lingering taste of mint tea on my tongue. Hard and irregular stone steps, making me really work to keep my balance, and pashminas so soft to the touch you can barely feel them. Pushy salespeople, but I get that at Macy's. It's really overwhelming, but you want more!
Interconnected to the Medina are the Grand and Petite Succos - more marketplaces. The Petite Succo was sort of a hippie spot back in the 60s. Adine said he could confirm that was true. Ads for just about anything you want compete for position above beckoning entrance ways. Cafe's line the streets, crammed with folks taking a mid-morning break. Signs for the cafes, hotels, and sundry shops are in Arabic and either French or English.
After shopping a bit, we got back on the bus and headed for Cap Spartel - where the Atlantic and the Mediterranean meet. The water was gorgeous. and the beaches, empty. We really wanted to go down and play in the water. There's a beautiful sun-washed lighthouse at the point, and the sea rushes blue green toward the shore while whitecaps spray the gulls with skiffs of windblown seawater.
Our last stop was the Grotto Hercules. It's said to be the spot where Hercules rested before carrying out his 12 labors. It's a beautiful cave that looks out onto the sea. Here, the cave is cool and dark, and we are finally out of the wind. The opening out to the sea splits the darkness with a brilliant blue view, and you can hear the water rushing through the blowholes around and beneath the landing. Of course there's a hawker.
We headed back to the ship...amid dozens of hawkers...and said our goodbyes to the mysterious, bustling, overwhelming Tangier. I'd love to go back and spend a day or two wandering through the markets, overloading my senses, and then relaxing with a mint tea at the Continental Hotel overlooking the ocean.
Thursday, April 6, 2017
Wednesday, April 5, 2017
BINGO!
Hey, Joe won at BINGO today - just over $100! Hooray! We're whittling down that gambling debt.
It was a day at sea and sooooo windy! We walked across the empty pool deck and the wind literally pushed me along.
We had a quiet breakfast, played BINGO, ate lunch, and then took a 2.5 hour nap - I'm not kidding. It's not like we're tired or anything, it's just that the opportunity presented itself, and we took it. So nice.
Because we are returning Oceania cruisers, we were invited to a Captain's cocktail party this evening...so exclusive - for us and another 800 of the 1250 passengers on board. Nice to be invited anyway.
After dinner we played trivia and came in second. Time to head back to the cabin - you know, because we're tired. Whatever.
Tomorrow is Tangier - so mysterious - we're really excited. We have a tour that will take us to the Kasbah, the Medina, and the Grand and Petite Succos (large marketplaces). We should have some good pictures and stories to tell. It's also new brew Thursday. I'm not sure we'll find any beer, but if we do, BAM - most exotic Untappd check in ever.
Sorry for the short post. Maybe when we get to the Mediterranean we'll have better internet. Sigh.
It was a day at sea and sooooo windy! We walked across the empty pool deck and the wind literally pushed me along.
We had a quiet breakfast, played BINGO, ate lunch, and then took a 2.5 hour nap - I'm not kidding. It's not like we're tired or anything, it's just that the opportunity presented itself, and we took it. So nice.
Because we are returning Oceania cruisers, we were invited to a Captain's cocktail party this evening...so exclusive - for us and another 800 of the 1250 passengers on board. Nice to be invited anyway.
After dinner we played trivia and came in second. Time to head back to the cabin - you know, because we're tired. Whatever.
Tomorrow is Tangier - so mysterious - we're really excited. We have a tour that will take us to the Kasbah, the Medina, and the Grand and Petite Succos (large marketplaces). We should have some good pictures and stories to tell. It's also new brew Thursday. I'm not sure we'll find any beer, but if we do, BAM - most exotic Untappd check in ever.
Sorry for the short post. Maybe when we get to the Mediterranean we'll have better internet. Sigh.
More Pictures from Funchal
More pics from yesterday.
The Jolly Roger sailed by. Looked like a day cruise/ride. Must do on the next trip!
Surprising (and delightful) Funchal
So you'll recall that a storm pushed us south and east toward Africa (instead of north and east toward Portugal), and we landed in Funchal instead of the Azores. We had a tour planned in the Punte Delgado (Azores), but didn't like any of the new offerings in Funchal. We didn't need one!
The ship kindly provided a shuttle bus from dockside into downtown; it ran both directions all day long. So we hopped aboard and were delivered into a nice little shopping area across from a beautiful park. It's only April (how in the hell did THAT happen?), but the flowers here are in full bloom and absolutely lovely.
We strolled from the park on down the street and came across Blandy's - THE Madeira wine producers in Madeira. Remember in Gone With The Wind when Scarlet went to Atlanta (before it burned) to stay with Aunt Pittypat. While they were having dinner to wish Ashley a Merry Christmas, Pittypat pulled out some Madeira wine for them to drink, saying it was the last of her father's wine. Ashley's a lucky son of a gun...that's some damn good wine!!!
Anyway, we talked to the guy in the shop, and he gave us a great education about Madeira and the lovely grapes produced for this special wine. He suggested we book a tour of the winery and then have a tasting. And, that's what we did.
Since the tour wasn't until 2:30 and it was only 10:30, we thought about boarding the hop-on-hop-off bus, but now with a 2:30 commitment, we were afraid we might not get back in time. So, instead we did a bit of shopping in old town/downtown. They have beautiful plazas and parks here.
In one of the leather shops, we struck up a conversation with the owner, told her we were on the ship in port and that we didn't really have an agenda for the day. She asked it we'd heard about the farmers' market. No. She showed us on our map where to go, and then sent us happily in search of this grand indoor/outdoor plaza/market full of flowers, produce, fish, and crafts. We found it easily.
Of course while we were in the market, we also found a beer bar! Imagine that. So we settled in to sample the local beers.
Just about time for lunch, so we walked back to one of the streets we'd seen earlier filled with canopy-covered cafes and a lovely view of the bay. CafeApolo was the winner. Joe had a giant tuna steak (that I'm sure came from the market) and I had grilled shrimp with pineapples. Yummy. I usually hate pineapple, but these were juicy, buttery, and delicious.
Time for the Madeira tour. Madeira is like Champagne in that it can only be made from grapes grown on Madeira, just like champagne can only be made from grapes grown in the Champagne region of France. There are six special grapes - four of them are the names/types of wine: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, and Malvasia. These grapes result in dry, medium dry, medium sweet, and sweet wines. And man are they delicious. Not as dry as Sherry, not as heavy as Port. So good! The oldest known bottle is on site in a safe. It's from 1748. It's priceless.
After the tasting, we wandered back down to the bay and sat at a little cafe across from the docks. It was a bluebird day, and we hated to have to leave...Funchal deserves much more than a day, and we'll come back sometime and pay it a much longer visit.
The ship kindly provided a shuttle bus from dockside into downtown; it ran both directions all day long. So we hopped aboard and were delivered into a nice little shopping area across from a beautiful park. It's only April (how in the hell did THAT happen?), but the flowers here are in full bloom and absolutely lovely.
We strolled from the park on down the street and came across Blandy's - THE Madeira wine producers in Madeira. Remember in Gone With The Wind when Scarlet went to Atlanta (before it burned) to stay with Aunt Pittypat. While they were having dinner to wish Ashley a Merry Christmas, Pittypat pulled out some Madeira wine for them to drink, saying it was the last of her father's wine. Ashley's a lucky son of a gun...that's some damn good wine!!!
Anyway, we talked to the guy in the shop, and he gave us a great education about Madeira and the lovely grapes produced for this special wine. He suggested we book a tour of the winery and then have a tasting. And, that's what we did.
Since the tour wasn't until 2:30 and it was only 10:30, we thought about boarding the hop-on-hop-off bus, but now with a 2:30 commitment, we were afraid we might not get back in time. So, instead we did a bit of shopping in old town/downtown. They have beautiful plazas and parks here.
In one of the leather shops, we struck up a conversation with the owner, told her we were on the ship in port and that we didn't really have an agenda for the day. She asked it we'd heard about the farmers' market. No. She showed us on our map where to go, and then sent us happily in search of this grand indoor/outdoor plaza/market full of flowers, produce, fish, and crafts. We found it easily.
Of course while we were in the market, we also found a beer bar! Imagine that. So we settled in to sample the local beers.
Just about time for lunch, so we walked back to one of the streets we'd seen earlier filled with canopy-covered cafes and a lovely view of the bay. CafeApolo was the winner. Joe had a giant tuna steak (that I'm sure came from the market) and I had grilled shrimp with pineapples. Yummy. I usually hate pineapple, but these were juicy, buttery, and delicious.
Time for the Madeira tour. Madeira is like Champagne in that it can only be made from grapes grown on Madeira, just like champagne can only be made from grapes grown in the Champagne region of France. There are six special grapes - four of them are the names/types of wine: Sercial, Verdelho, Bual, and Malvasia. These grapes result in dry, medium dry, medium sweet, and sweet wines. And man are they delicious. Not as dry as Sherry, not as heavy as Port. So good! The oldest known bottle is on site in a safe. It's from 1748. It's priceless.
After the tasting, we wandered back down to the bay and sat at a little cafe across from the docks. It was a bluebird day, and we hated to have to leave...Funchal deserves much more than a day, and we'll come back sometime and pay it a much longer visit.
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
From yesterday
Okay, so it was very late when we got back to the room last evening. We were very busy winning (and then losing) at blackjack...but we had a blast. We met some new friends at trivia (we placed 2nd) and then continued the evening in the casino. Great fun!
We'll be in Funchal, Madeira tomorrow - finally on land after five days at sea. I hope I can walk. The weather will be a bit cooler as we're now on a more northern path toward Africa and the Strait of Gibraltar. We are not going on an Oceania tour, but hope to find a Hop-on-Hop-off city tour, or at least a shuttle that will take us into old town. Plus, there's always my homing device - the one that locates brewpubs - in case we tire of shopping and beautiful architecture.
We're testing out the new camera, so, pictures. Yay! Being at sea for so many days, it's kinda hard to make the horizon interesting.
Land Ho!
We'll be in Funchal, Madeira tomorrow - finally on land after five days at sea. I hope I can walk. The weather will be a bit cooler as we're now on a more northern path toward Africa and the Strait of Gibraltar. We are not going on an Oceania tour, but hope to find a Hop-on-Hop-off city tour, or at least a shuttle that will take us into old town. Plus, there's always my homing device - the one that locates brewpubs - in case we tire of shopping and beautiful architecture.
We're testing out the new camera, so, pictures. Yay! Being at sea for so many days, it's kinda hard to make the horizon interesting.
Land Ho!
Sunday, April 2, 2017
A Glorious Day
Today we're still at sea, but the waves are much smaller, and the sun has come out full blast. Joe and I took advantage of it and headed for the sun deck. We weren't alone, but found a nice spot in good proximity to a waiter, who brought us frozen margaritas.
As I posted last night, I lost at Karaoke. I'm still stinging a bit, but vow to sally forth and return to give it another go the next evening that presents itself. By the way, last night I sang, "I Feel the Earth Move" by Carole King and "Let's Give Them Something to Talk About" by Bonnie Raitt (both total go-to songs for me). I guess I should have gauged my audience a bit better...the Karaoke hostess was unsure of the pronunciation of "Raitt." Sigh.
Not much else going on today...we'll play trivia tonight and set our clock forward one more time zone. I think we're now about five hours ahead of Miami, as we have been instructed to move our clocks ahead each evening. It reminds me of a story from my childhood - a girl named Genevieve who was told she should go to bed an hour earlier each night. So each night she went to bed an hour earlier than the previous night. At some point in the story, she was up all night chatting with the mice. I'll have to see if I can figure out the name of that book.
Anyway, the internet is still hinkey...I tried to log in on my phone...it still thinks it's Wednesday. Things will catch up with us in Funchal...only two days away!
Tchau (ciao in Portuguese)
As I posted last night, I lost at Karaoke. I'm still stinging a bit, but vow to sally forth and return to give it another go the next evening that presents itself. By the way, last night I sang, "I Feel the Earth Move" by Carole King and "Let's Give Them Something to Talk About" by Bonnie Raitt (both total go-to songs for me). I guess I should have gauged my audience a bit better...the Karaoke hostess was unsure of the pronunciation of "Raitt." Sigh.
Not much else going on today...we'll play trivia tonight and set our clock forward one more time zone. I think we're now about five hours ahead of Miami, as we have been instructed to move our clocks ahead each evening. It reminds me of a story from my childhood - a girl named Genevieve who was told she should go to bed an hour earlier each night. So each night she went to bed an hour earlier than the previous night. At some point in the story, she was up all night chatting with the mice. I'll have to see if I can figure out the name of that book.
Anyway, the internet is still hinkey...I tried to log in on my phone...it still thinks it's Wednesday. Things will catch up with us in Funchal...only two days away!
Tchau (ciao in Portuguese)
Saturday, April 1, 2017
I lost at Karaoke
Today was a do-nothing day. Hard to believe we did even less than we have been doing. We slept in. Ordered room service. Got dressed (shocker). Played BINGO. Ate lunch. Took a nap. Read. Sat on the balcony and took a nap, then read. Got dressed. Ate dinner. Came in third at trivia. And then our new friends Jacques and Bernice talked us into going to Karaoke. Jacques went on about how he'd been practicing in their cabin...Bernice was shaking her head. I told them I KILLED at Karaoke.
We went. I sang. Jacques did not. I sang again. Jacques still did not. I came in second to a 60-something British man dressed in a black and white striped jacket over a black and white striped shirt who sang King of the Road, New York New York and You're Sixteen (oh so very wrong on oh so many levels - go on...think about the words. Eww). Are you fucking kidding me?
Truth be told, I had several layers of rust on the old pipes, but at least I had on a tasteful sweater set and cute sandals.
Seriously!??!! King of the Road????
Shit.
We went. I sang. Jacques did not. I sang again. Jacques still did not. I came in second to a 60-something British man dressed in a black and white striped jacket over a black and white striped shirt who sang King of the Road, New York New York and You're Sixteen (oh so very wrong on oh so many levels - go on...think about the words. Eww). Are you fucking kidding me?
Truth be told, I had several layers of rust on the old pipes, but at least I had on a tasteful sweater set and cute sandals.
Seriously!??!! King of the Road????
Shit.
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