What's Next For Me...

On Saturday March 3rd, I fly to Ft. Lauderdale, and board the ms Westerdam the following day. This contract is only a month and a half long. Here is the itinerary...

• March 4 - March 31 : Four different Caribbean cruises : 1. Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos islands -- Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands -- Philipsburg, St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles -- Half Moon Cay, Bahamas 2. Half Moon Cay -- Grand Turk -- George Town, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands -- Costa Maya, Mexico 3. Half Moon Cay -- St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands -- San Juan, Puerto Rico -- Grand Turk 4. Key West, Florida -- San Juan, PR -- St. Thomas -- Half Moon Cay.

Then I'm off to Rome!!

• April 1 - April 16: Half Moon Cay -- Grand Turk -- Funchal, Madeira, Portugal -- Casablanca, Morocco -- Cadiz (Seville), Spain -- Barcelona, Spain -- Monte Carlo, Monaco -- Rome, Italy.

The ship goes into drydock (in for repairs) on April 17th -- the day my contract ends. It will be in drydock for almost a month. I am planning on staying in Italy for a bit before heading back home (we'll see how much money I have saved my then!)

Keep yourself posted for new adventures and photos from my life at sea.

O'ahu, Hawai'i

Be sure to check out all ten sections of photos below chronicling my trip to the beautiful island of O'ahu in the Hawai'ian Islands. I'm going to close this section with a few photos from around the island.

Me, Sharon, Colleen, and Siena (sleeping) on a carriage ride!

Me at the statue of Makua & Kila on Waikiki Beach.

Waimea Valley

One day we hiked to a waterfall at Waimea Valley Audubon Center. It was rainy that day, but it felt great! Here are a few photos from that...

Siena styling in a trash bag for the hike!

Pearl Harbor

Dedicated in 1962, the USS Arizona Memorial commemorates the 1,177 sailors killed aboard the ship during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The memorial floats on the water above the sunken ship -- you have to take a boat to get to it. It is a very moving experience.

On the boat coming up to the memorial.

Inside the memorial.

Scenes from the memorial.

Me in front of the archor from the Arizona.

Kingdom of Hawai'i

Between 1810 and 1893, Hawai'i was ruled by a constitutional monarchy. The Kingdom of Hawai'i came to an end when Queen Lili'uokalani was overthrown in a coup. Hawai'i is the only place on American soil where royal palaces can be found. Being the history buff that I am, I had to check some of this out...







'Iolani Palace is located in the capitol district of downtown Honolulu. It is a National Historic Landmark listed on National Register of Historic Places. Both King David Kalakaua and Queen Lili'uokalani governed from this palace.





In this photo, I'm standing in front of a statue of King Kamehameha V. The building behind us is Ali'iolani Hale, orginally intended as the royal palace for Kamehameha, but completed after he died. Today it houses the Hawai'ian State Supreme Court.










Downtown Honolulu.

Dole Plantation

Near Colleen and Sharon's house is the Dole Plantation -- definitely a must-visit if you're in the area.

Surfing @ Waikiki

Something else I got to try on this trip was surfing! Colleen, myself, and our friend Jen took an hour lesson from a surf instructor on Waikiki Beach. Here are the results...
(From left to right), me, Colleen, our instructor, and Jen.

Me going to catch a wave!

Wipeout!

Parasailing

There are many extreme sports I want to try: hang gliding, paragliding, BASE jumping, snowboarding, sky diving, kitesurfing, etc. I was finally able to check one off the list when Colleen and I went parasailing! Here are some photos from that!

Submarine Tour

One day the three of us took a submarine tour, descending 100 feet underwater off the O'ahu coast. We saw some shipwrecks, sunken airplanes, and some artificial reefs. Here are some photos from that adventure!

This is a shot I took as the boat left the pier, with Diamond Head in the distance. (The boat met up with the submarine once we got quite a distance out from the shore).












Groups getting on the sub.







The sub getting ready to descend.
In the sub!
















The wreckage of a ship that we saw!

North Shore

O'ahu's North Shore is a haven for surfers who take advantage of the huge swells originating from the stormy North Pacific. The area is also a great mix of coffee shops, surf shops, restaurants, and beaches. TV's Lost is also filmed here.

Siena and I taking a walk.

This is where we ate -- Giovanni's Original Shrimp Shack!

There was one beach in the North Shore that was a basking area for giant sea turtles!! Here are a few shots of what I saw there...

Caution! Turtles may bite!! :)

Beautiful North Shore!!