Asia - 2017 - Days 1 - 3

Asia – 2017 – Days 1 – 3

We boarded the American Airlines flight to Dallas at Bloomington right on time and had an uneventful flight to Dallas.

At Dallas, because we had First Class tickets (purchased on points), we were able to use the Admiral’s Club and relaxed and ate snacks in their lounge for the couple of hours before boarding for Hong Kong.

It s hard to put into words how great it is to fly when you are in your own little cubicle with a seat that went all the way flat, a large pillow, a great heavy, warm blanket and a 17” television screen with a Bose headset and also with all kinds of movies!!  WOW was that ever the way to fly for the 16 hour flight to Hong Kong.  On top of it all, each person had their own overhead storage bin to store their suitcase and anything else you wanted out of the way.

The first thing we did after taking off was to put on the pajamas that they gave us - much more comfortable than the clothes we were wearing.  They even gave us slippers and socks.  We changed in the largest bathrooms that we have ever seen on an airplane.

We first had snacks and almost anything you wanted to drink.  Then dinner, more snacks, later on sliders and finally a brunch just before we landed!!   On top of it all, they constantly had really good food snacks and an open bar set out in the prep area that we could just walk up and take anytime.

Basically I watched television like I do in bed, all comfortable, under the covers and just relaxing.   No way we would ever purchase these kinds of tickets, but was it ever a great flight.   Our flight ended up a little less than 16 hours and covered 8,500 miles.  I don’t think that people who can afford to fly like this do not understand the reality of coach flight!!  

After going through Customs and getting our bags, we rode the Airport Express Service rapid train into the city, a 24 minute ride and then transferred to a free shuttle bus to the hotel.

From when we landed to when we checked in, it was only 2 hours, which we thought was great.

We are staying at a JW Marriott and everything is very nice.  The room isn’t the largest we have ever had with Marriott, but it is very, very nice.  You even have to push buttons to open the drapes on the windows.

After unpacking we headed for the Subway, which is a 3 minute walk underground from the basement of the hotel and we took the subway to The Temple Street Night Market. 

The Market was huge, running blocks and blocks including many side streets.  We ate a fried shrimp dish in the middle of the market, finished the market and walked back to the subway and the Marriott and called it a night.

Day 3 – We were able to sleep until 8:00am as our tour didn’t start until 11:00am.  So we first went up to the lounge and they had a great breakfast of both Asian and Western food.

Then we took the subway about 30 minutes, had to walk a couple of blocks and made it to the tour starting point.  The tour was a free walking tour of the city and while it lasted 3 hours, it wasn’t very good, but we did learn a little, had a good Mango drink and ate some street food.

After the tour, we went to the 108^th  floor of the tallest building in Hong Kong and the 5^th tallest in the world for some great views of the city.

Next we took a taxi to the Ladies Market which was a huge street market, selling all kinds of treasures you just had to have.  Barb’s only purchase was some neat Christmas cards.

Then we went to a food market and outside of that market we went to a Chinese restaurant where even though they had an English menu, I don’t think anyone in the restaurant could understand English.  We had a good noodle dish and then since it was raining lightly, we took a cab and subway back to the hotel.

We are 13 hours ahead of Bloomington and this should be a great trip; however,  just found out that the Cubs lost- but anyway, it has been a great start to our trip.

Also good news in that they are not blocking Google and Gmail so I can post the blog, pictures and videos.  Enjoy - we did!!

Night from Hong Kong.

Menu

Her P. J.'s

Just relaxing

Barb's Dinner

Brunch, including Baileys

The middle of the Market

Add Dinner from this very freash selection

Walls of Goldfish

Our dinner - noodles and beef and veggies

This is how you pick out your fish dinner on a daily basis!!

Arriving in New York

Here are some pictures from the last day of the cruise when we docked in New Jersey with a fantastic view of New York City.

From the cruise ship, we took a Uber car to the Courtyard where we had left the car.

Then it was a 14 hour drive to home which went well with both of us sharing the driving time.

What a great cruise - seeing our old friends Vera & Jeff from New York and Barb & Tim from Washington - we had a blast with them.

It was also great seeing old friends in the casino and making new friends - this was just a fun trip and thanks to all who made it happen.

Thanks for following our journey.

Lady Liberty and the World Trade Center

We went under this bridge!

Leaving for home

Videos from the July 4, 2016 Celebrity Summit Trip to Bermuda

At the Church Of The Most Holy Trinity in St. George, Bermuda

A show on the Celebrity Summit

More from the Celebrity Summit

Leaving New York

July 4 – 2016 – Day 9

It was nice waking up with an extra hour of sleep and without worrying about anything except just getting some deck chairs where we always sit.

This is our last day of the cruise and it is wonderful as it was a relaxing one with great weather to start.

Ed was up at 8:00am and all of the chairs by the pool in the lower level were already taken; but, where we like to sit was vacant so he grabbed them and then had breakfast.

Barb followed and we sat in the sun until 10:30am as we had received an invitation to tour the bridge so we decided to go see it as we had not been there for several years.   It was fun hearing and seeing what they do on the bridge.  There were only about 20 people and the actual Captain of the ship spent about ½ hour giving us a great presentation.

By then it was Noon so we this time went to the Aqua Spa and had lunch there, splitting a grilled salmon dish.  Why go inside and eat in the dining room when the weather is so nice; however, when we finished lunch, the clouds were blocking out the sun.  This is probably the least amount of time we have been in the sun on a cruise – just an hour!!

So we went to the cabin and did some packing to save time later.

During the week, if you had a blackjack they gave you a ticket for a drawing.  That drawing was at 2:00pm so we went to the casino and with the dozens of tickets that all three couples had, none of us won.

Then at 2:30pm there was a blackjack tournament and Ed came in second by 1 chip.  Still, it was a $130 win.

Since we were already in the casino, we all played a session where both Barb and Ed won nicely.

After that we played a session in the casino where both Ed and Barb won, making it a great afternoon.

The show tonight was a production number by the cast and it was not the best cast show, but we enjoyed it.

Then we had another really good dinner in the dining room and of course went to the casino.

For our last night in the casino, Barb was down just a little and Ed broke even so we called it a night making it one of the better cruises in the casino.

Tomorrow we will leave the ship, probably by 8am, take a Uber car to the Marriott and try to drive straight home – a 15 hour trip with a 1 hour time change.

This is our last blog for this trip – it has been a fun trip with good friends.

Night and thanks for reading and next I will post some videos of the trip.

Going out for our last night on the ship

The Captain

Dwayne, Casino Supervisor on the left and Craig, Casino Manger on the right

Our long-time wonderful, wonderful friend Carla (one of the great Celebrity employees) on the left
and new friend Silvia our Host who was one of the best on the right

July 4 – 2016 – Day 8

Our last day in Bermuda was again a beautiful day – 85 degrees and very hot but of course we enjoyed the weather.

We left the ship a little after nine and took a historical walking tour of the Dockyard area.  This is the area where the ship is docked and it is the former British Navy base and has been developed into a great destination harbor area.

The tour was all about the settlement of the British and how they protected the island during the 1800’s and it was fun as they had different people at different locations who were dressed in period costumes.

After the tour we shopped until 1:00pm when we met Carla and Silvia, the casino supervisor and our casino host for lunch.  We had a very enjoyable lunch talking about families, travel and just family thinks.

After 2 hours it was time for all of us to get back to the ship which was about a 10 minute walk away.

Of course when we came on board, we headed up to the buffet area and brought snacks back to our cabin to eat and watched the ship sail out of the harbor.

The show was a new comedian and he was very, very funny.  His name is Al Ducharme and he also is in the next round of America’s Got Talent so it will be fun following him in the television show.

Then it was on to dinner where we were joined by the casino manager, Craig and our Host Silvia or a wonderful meal

Of course our next stop was the casino where Ed was up nicely and Barb was even – so we are happy at this point.

As we had a good run, we left the casino after only playing 45 minutes to protect our winnings and are going to be early tonight and also we set the clocks back giving us another hour of sleep tonight.

Heading to New York and tomorrow is our last day of a delightful cruise.

Night

Part of the tour of the British Dockyard

L-R, Silvia, our Host, Carla, Casino Supervisor, Ed & Barb

Three fun ladies, Carla, Barb & Silivia

On our way back to the ship

July 4 – 2016 – Day 7

It was a beautiful day when we woke up again in Bermuda to start our second day here – perfectly clear sky, no wind and about 80 degrees!

Bermuda is a country of 67,000, all living within 20.75 square miles.  This makes it the fifth smallest country in the world. 

As Tim, Jeff and Vera are playing golf today; Barbara is joining us for a water ferry ride to the town of St. George.  St. George is the former capital of Bermuda and a World Heritage Site consisting of small alleys and it is a great place for the walking tour that we took.

We started the morning walking to the ferry which was just on the other side of the dock area, a 10 minuite walk.

To take a local bus to the old capital was about 1 ½ hours but to take the water ferry it was only 45 minutes and only cost $4.50 each so we took the ferry and relaxed inside in the air-conditioned comfort of the boat.

After we arrived we walked to the Information Center in the middle of the city and found the tour that we were looking for and spent the next hour walking around the old city and seeing the sites and hearing about the many contributions to the world Bermuda has made over the past centuries.   It was a very major trading stop in its early years and also was involved in helping the US in a number of wars.  The country has a fascinating history.

After the tour we had lunch at a great local restaurant and stuffed ourselves with a wonderful fish dish that is pictured below.

Then we took a little locomotive tram for a 45 minute tour of the city and the forts and beaches outside the city – it was fun.

After that tour, we took the ferry back to the ship and it was time for a snack before getting ready for the evenings activities.

Our deck was right in the sun so we ate inside our room and then got ready to go out for the evening.

As everyone who reads this knows, the evening is usually always the same and that is:

1.       Go to the show

2.       Have dinner with friends

3.       Go to the casino

Tonight the show was three female singers who were pretty good.  The meal was wonderful and both Barb & Ed lost in the casino.  The good news is that we are still up for the cruise.

Tomorrow is our last day in Bermuda and we plan to make it a fun day.

Night for now.

The oldest church from the 1600's

Lunch menu

Lunch - the Bermuda Triangle

The tour train - little toot!

One of their famous beaches - in a pretty cove

July 4 – 2016 – Day 6

Finally we woke up to land as we have arrived at King’s Warf, Bermuda and is it ever hot and humid!!

Where we are docked is a former British Navy base that has been turned into a dock for the public, including the ability to dock 2 cruise ships at the same time.

The island of Bermuda is 21 miles long by 2 miles wide, at its widest.  There are 3 main areas, the dock area where we are, then in the middle of the island the town of Hamilton, the capital and at the end St. George, the old capital.

Tim and Barb went with us as we were picked up by a private guide in his van for a 4 hour tour of the island.  Basically, there are some amazing houses at very expensive prices, a number of golf courses and not much else.  The main industry is banking and the influx of people in this profession has caused the housing prices to rise.  We saw a lot along the road in a residential area without a view that was ¼ of an acre for $750,000!!  There are a lot of wealthy people who have homes here, including Michael Douglas.

Everything that they consume is transported in.  A ½ gallon of milk is almost $8.00 and a gallon of gas is $9!!

When we got to St. George, we ate at a locally owned restaurant and Barb and Ed split a lobster salad sandwich which was very good.

Amazingly they have very few beaches and the ones they do are famous for their pink sand.  The water is also an aqua color, instead of the deep blue that we have seen in the Caribbean.

The tour was interesting and at the end of the tour our guide dropped us off in the town of Hamilton where we wandered around and then took the ferry back to the dockyards where our ship is docked for the next three days.

Then we went to dinner and of course it was great – great food, great service and good friends.  Ed had Tuna as an appetizer and then Sea Bass for the main course.  Barb had 3 appetizers, tuna, crab cakes and pea pod salad for her entire meal.

We finally got to the casino at 11:00 and it was jammed; however, we had a table and after only an hour, Barb was up and Ed was up the best of the trip so far, including having 3 blackjacks in a row on a $100 bet! 

The casino is probably the best we have ever had.  The Casino Manager, Greg is always on the floor.  Our Host, Silvia is always cheerful and there when we need her and Carla, the Casino Supervisor has been on a number of ships with us and she is also wonderful.  Then we have several dealers who we have been with and also Roger our bar server who had been on a couple of ships with us – a great staff.

After that good run, we left early to protect our winnings even though it was fun table.

Night from Bermuda and we will be in port for two more days.

Ready to go out for the day

The Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity

Lunch

The view from our deck

Our Ship - the Summit