New Years 2017 – Day 14

What a beautiful hot day it was in Cochin, India when we docked today to visit our 4^th city in India.

What we have found out is that each of the 4 cities we visited has almost totally different ways of life and culture.  The reason is that different countries like the Dutch, the English and the Portuguese have settled the different areas.  Some are more Hindu that others while some have a lot of Catholics as an example.  While we wanted to visit India and we are glad we did, we have no desire to go back.  There is just nothing to draw us back like Barcelona, London, Singapore, Rome, etc.

Last night our dinner partners had told us that they were going on a tour with a small group and we thought that we might like to go on it also.

So, we were the first off the ship and found the company that was putting on the tour and asked if they had room, which they did.   So we joined the tour but our friends were on another bus with the same tour.

We had a mini bus for 14 people and there were only 8 of us plus the driver and the guide.  The guide was a really good guide; however, the people who were there from the ship made this a trip from H**L at the end.

We started out by driving for about ½ hour and then first visited huge market selling everything from fruits, to nuts to fish, etc.  It was both retail and a wholesale market. 

Then we went to a Jewish Synagogue that was being restored by one man.  This city once had a very large Jewish population because the Dutch settled here first.  There are now only 5 people left who are Jewish as everyone has moved away.

Next we drove or about an hour to a river to take a boat ride that lasted an hour.  We had a few minutes before we boarded the boat so Ed & Barb went off the bus into a local “restaurant” and had a meal with the guide.  The boat trip showed us how the fishing people lived and they had amazing net structures that they would use at night to catch fish.  This was very primitive area. 

After the boat ride, we went to another Synagogue and then to a huge street market before heading back to the ship.  Then one of the major problems happened as a 6 of the 8 on the bus insisted that the guide take us all back to the shopping area because they did not have enough time to buy things.  The guide agreed and when they finally arrived back at the bus after shopping we were very concerned that we wouldn’t make if back to the ship on time, but we did – thanks goodness.   This group of people, all from the US were the most rude group of people we have every run into, on any cruise.  Oh well, we have some interesting memories.

The show was a combination of a hand shadow puppet show and the sax player from the other night.    The hand shadow puppet show was ok and the sax play was tremendous.

We had an excellent dinner with our new friends from London, Brian and Sandy and then went to the casino where Barb broke even and Ed lost.  We are now negative with Barb ahead and Ed behind.  10 gambling sessions left in the cruise – wish us luck.

We are finally done with India and tomorrow is a day at sea before arriving in Sri Lanka.

Night

Delivery Man in the market

Cleaning fish outside their fish stand

The kitchen where we had lunch before the boat tour

Regular fishermen

The catch of the day on Celebrity

New Years 2017- Day 13

While we were in Mumbai and in the Slums, we were not allowed to take pictures; however, I took one and was able to do a couple of short videos which I will post once we are in Singapore.  I just received a roof top picture from the tour company, so I have posted it on the Mumbai page, which is Day 11 – please look at it – you will be amazed as we were.

Our third stop on our tour of India was at New Mangalore, a city of 3 million people and they all seemed to be driving in Tuk-Tuk scooters.    There is a picture at the bottom of this page if you don’t know what a Tuk-Tuk is.

We did not have anything planned as we had been told that there really isn’t much here except a big city. Catholic churches,  temples and some beaches.

It cost a lot to take the ship’s shuttle to the town and back but we walked about 1/3 or a mile to the entrance to the pier and arranged for a cab to take us to the City Center which was a big modern shopping center in the middle of the town.   From there we walked a few blocks to the kind of street market that we love, lots of stuff and cheap.  Along the way we stopped at a local food market to buy a bottle of water.  We didn’t have the local currency and offered the owner a $1 and he said that was way too much and gave us change in their currency – he was very pleasant.  The cost was 37 cents for a bottle.

The market was a lot of fun.  First we had to find an ATM as they did not accept American currency.  When we found one, we had trouble figuring it out because of language and two local people helped me.  They were so nice we asked if we could take their picture and to our amazement, the Muslim lady said ok also.

Barb bought some bracelets at a very low cost and we hope that they gold color stay on past a couple of wearings!!  Local people were buying them so we hope they are good – they really looked good.

They for 50 cents we took a Tuk-Tuk back to the City Center Mall and next to it was a local restaurant where we had a wonderful meal and the total costs was only $7.37!!  Food, taxis and stuff are very cheap here.

We then took a taxi back to the ship; however, we paid a little more for a sightseeing trip to a beautiful Catholic Church and two temples as well as an old fort that guarded the harbor a long time ago.  At the Catholic Church, we once again ran into a couple, Mark and Nigel who we had eaten with on our second night.  They are from London and we hope to see these delightful guys when we go to London in October.

We had no expectations of what to expect when we arrived and it turned out to be a really fun inexpensive day, one that we enjoyed a lot.

The show tonight was a person called “Elton Jack” you did an Elton John impersonation and he did look and sound like Elton John so it was a nice show.

We had a good dinner with Brian and Sandy from London and then we went to the casino where Barb won and Ed lost for the 3^rd straight session.  We are still ahead, but not by much so we hope for better in the future.

Tomorrow is our last port in India, Cochin and we don’t have anything planned so we will see what the day brings us.

Night

My help at the ATM

Time to buy earrings

And now bracelets

Riding in a Tuk-Tuk

A great lunch

Great guys - Mark and Nigel

Buying a bottle of water at the market

New Years 2-17 – Day 12

Our second India port was the city of Goa and we arrived at the port at 10:00am.  We had a tour arranged and we met the driver and guide at 11:00am.  We could not book a private tour; however, there was only one other couple with us and they proved to be fun to spend the day with. 

This was basically a tour of the city of Goa and a couple of other cities in the area as well as, of course, driving through the country side.

This area of India has a strong Portugal influence as the Portuguese did not give up this part of India until the early 60’s, after Britain had already left the country. 

In addition, the Catholic Church has a large influence in this area because of the Catholics from Portugal.

We drove about an hour and came to two very large Catholic churches and we visited both of them.

After those two churches we visited a Buddhist Temple closer to the capital of Goa and it was neat to see and they are very plain compared to the Catholic churches.

We then drove to the capital and ate in a very local restraurant and the food was great – sorry I didn’t take any food pictures as we were talking so much that I forgot.  After eating we visited a local market.  In the picture inside the market, there are two people sleeping right on the piles of fruit – can you find them?

Our last stop was a local beach which was very nice, but just a typical beach.

Then we drove back to the ship and were let out a 5:00pm.  A nice day but the tour wasn’t really that much; however, there really wasn’t much to see here.

When we arrived back at the ship it was too late for snacks so we took showers and went to the show.  The show tonight was a sax/flute player and he was very good. 

In the morning, Ed had run into a couple from Bloomington and invited them to have dinner with us as the London couple had another commitment.  We met them after the show and had a delightful dinner and were amazed at the number of people who we all knew.  It was just a fun dinner.

After dinner we went to the casino where Barb won and Ed lost.  The good news is that we are still ahead for the trip.

Tomorrow we are in the third of four port days in India – New Mangalore.

Night

The Bishops Church

A stall in the market

New Years 2-17 – Day 11

Finally a day in port. 

We are now in Mumbai, formerly Bombay, India. 

The first thing we had to do is wait to be called to the lounge as everyone was made to go to a face-to-face meeting with the India immigration officials before we would be let off the ship. 

Once finally off the ship, we took a shuttle to the main terminal gate, walked a little bit and met our guide.

 To start with, this tour by Reality Tours with Sunny as our guide was absolutely the best tour that we have ever taken.  Everything they promised they delivered and more so. 

We had been told that the traffic would be horrendous and that was an understatement.  Horns and horns so loud and so many you could hardy hear when you were walking.  There are no lanes in either direction on a street, you just fill the gap and keep driving.  Somehow everyone makes it but we saw a lot of cars with a lot of scratches.

They have 5,000 busses on 400 routes and 60,000 cabs and all with very loud horns and they seemed to be all on the same street.

We started out with a short trip to the sea area where the massive arch that is the gateway to India stands.  Right behind it is the hotel where many people were assassinated in 2008 in a terrorist attack.  Then we stopped and had some street food before going to the main railroad station.

This station handles 2.5 million people a day and it is massive.  We went onto the main train platform and the sea of humanity coming off the trains was amazing and almost freighting as they pressed toward us.  They were on the roof of the trains and hanging onto the sides of the trains they are so crowded!  Apparently 8 people a week are killed riding the trains into the city.  Our guide rides the train every day 1 ½ hours each way and a lot of the time he starts his trip to the city by hanging on the outside until a space opens up inside. The train has compartments and he told us that in the space of a small SUV, 24 people are standing, very tightly!

We also found out that most of the marriages are arranged marriages; however, he said it is not too bad as the families first exchange pictures and you can say no.  Then they meet and soon afterwards they marry.  Our guide has a girlfriend; however, he doesn’t feel he will ever marry her as her father does not approve of him.  So, he is waiting for his Mother to provide him with a wife, probably soon.  There is also virtually no divorce in India.

Next we stopped at the house in Mumbai where Gandhi lived for a lot of his later years.  It was very interesting as they had his life and sayings posted throughout the house.

The city is extremely dirty and there are thousands of people who are living on the streets, just on blankets, under tarps and just shacks built right along the road.  This is the dirtiest city with the most poverty that we have ever seen.

The average working class family earns $350.00 a month.

Contrasting the poverty, we then saw the 2^nd most expensive private residence in the world.  The 1^st is Buckingham Palace in London.  This house is a very modern house that is 27 stories tall and holds a family of only 6 people and cost 2.5 billion dollars.  The garage on the lower levels holds 168 of the family’s cars.  There is also a helipad on the roof.  In addition, they have 600 people working for them in the house.  Every month their electrical bill is $10,000.

We then stopped overlooking the Dhobi Ghat which is the largest of many outdoor washing areas in Mumbai.  They have over 5,000 people working in this cleaning business in 282 stalls and they wash, dry and fold over 200,000 pieces of laundry every day from the hospitals and hotels and other businesses in the area.    When we are in Singapore I will post a video of these cleaners. 

Then we went to lunch.  We had asked the guide to take us to a non-tourist place where we could eat local food and we also invited the guide and drive to join us so they could explain what we were eating.

The picture only show part of the vast amount of food we had for a wonderful lunch, including an amazing desert and the total cost converted into US dollars was only $16.38.

Mumbai also has a company called Lunch Box Systems and they pick up lunches from your mother at their home and delivery it to you at your place of work.  When you are finished, they pick up the lunch box and take it back to your home while also taking any food that was not eaten to the poor.  They transport over 250,000 lunches a day.  The lunch boxes are picked up and taken to staging areas in massive interchange systems all over the city.  They make 1 mistake per 6 million lunches.  It cost $15 a month for this service.  It is a FedEx system for lunches only they are using scooters.

After a short drive we arrived at the largest “Slum” in Mumbai.  Mumbai is a city of 33 million people and right in the center of the city is the biggest slum.  In .8 of a square mile live 1.2 million people – yes those are correct numbers.  A total of 9 million people live in a slum in this city.  This one is a city within a city as they also produce an amazing amount of goods there, mostly recycling as every bit of garbage in the city is delivered there and hand recycled.  The meld down the metals, chop up the plastic and do everything by hand.  They produce 655 million dollars worth of goods in a year out of this area.  It is dirty, dirty and then dirtier.   That have one bathroom for every 1,200 people.  We spent 2 ½ hours walking in this area, including being on the roof tops.  This is where Slum Dog Millionaire was made and the movie doesn’t show how horrific this area is. 

They are totally self contained with schools, banks, barber shops, stores, and everything they need to barely survive each day.

We were told to wear clothes that we didn’t care about and when we got back from the tour, we put them in a bag and sent them to the laundry.

At 4:30pm we once again had some snacks from the buffet and went back to the room to relax before going out for the show and dinner.

The show tonight was a cast production show called “Land of Make Believer” and it was very good.

Last night at dinner, we had met the couple from London again tonight as we having so much fun and still had tales to tell each other. 

After dinner we went to the casino where Barb didn’t play and Ed lost.

Tomorrow we are in the second of four port days in India - Goa – this is going to continue to be interesting.

Night

A morning snack

And it was about 23 cents

A spring in the city

The Laundry

More of the Laundry

The start of lunch for 4

The 2nd most expensive private home in the world - 2.5 billion

Thousands living on the street in the city






Then we went to the city within a city called Dharavi - the largest slum in the city

Roof Top of the Mumbai Slum called Dharavi
This is where Slum Dog Millionaire was filmed

Houses in the slum.  They typically live in the bottom and rent the top for the equivalent of $30 US dollars a month.
They share bathroom facilities with over 1,200 people for each public bathroom

Just one street in the slums

An inside street - most are not this wide

New Years 2-17 – Day 10

Our third sea day in a row and our plans were the same as yesterday except today the sun was perfect.  Very bright, not to (80 degrees) and a slight breeze.

Ed woke up early and had breakfast and went to the gym to exercise.  After that we went to the deck to get some sun and it was a perfect day to do so.

Lunch was grilled pork medallions in the Aqua Spa Café and then we went to the casino.

Ed played in another session of the blackjack qualifying tournament, but didn’t qualify but we have both qualified for the slot tournament.

After that, we both played a session in the casino and both lost just a little.   .

At 4:00pm we once again had some snacks from the buffet and went back to the room to relax before going out for the show and dinner.

The show tonight was a cast production show called “Land of Make Believer” and it was very good.

Last night at dinner, we had met a couple from London and we met them again tonight as we having so much fun and still had tales to tell each other.

We had so much fun with them that we are going to eat together tomorrow and share more stories.

After dinner we went to the casino where Barb lost and Ed had a good win.

Tomorrow we start the first of four port days in India – this is going to be interesting and we are very excited to be experiencing this country and culture.

Night from the Arabian Sea.

Going out for the afternoon

4:00pm snacks

Time for the evening

New Years 2017 – Day 9

Ed woke up early and had breakfast and went to the gym to exercise.  After that we went to the deck to get some sun, but it really wasn’t out so we only stayed out for a little while.

Basically, we then just walked around looking at the ship, talking to people and doing nothing all morning.

Lunch was grilled salmon in the Aqua Spa Café and then we went to the casino.

There was a 2pm slot tournament and we both qualified for the finals.  Then Ed played in another session of the blackjack qualifying tournament, but didn’t qualify.  There is one more day to qualify.

After that, we both played a session in the casino and both won nicely.   We are ahead nicely; however, this is only for 6 sessions and we have 17 potential sessions to go!!  Wish us luck.

At 4:00pm we had some snacks from the buffet and went back to the room to relax before going out for the show and dinner.

The show was a Joe Crocker type singer from the United Kingdom who while he was good, was also very loud.

Then we had dinner and this time met a delightful couple from London and they are going to join us tomorrow for dinner also.

We had to hurry dinner as there was an invitation only slot tournament and Barb was invited.  It was a free tournament and the winner received $300 in slot credits.  Barb WON!!  So, she received an instant $300.  Ed played blackjack and lost just a little, so it was a positive night.

Tomorrow is the last of the 3 consecutive sea days before we reach India and we are hoping for pure sun shine.

Happy Birthday Ethan.

Night from the Arabian Sea.

Going out in the afternoon

Our afternoon snack

going out for the evening

New Years 2017 – Day 8

We woke up to partly cloudy skies and a wonderful day to be on the ocean.   Ed exercised and then we stayed out on the deck until 12:30pm when we went to lunch in the Aqua Spa Café.  We split a grilled tuna meal. 

At 2:00pm we went to the slot tournament; however, they did not have enough people to play so we played in the casino until 3:00pm when Ed played in the blackjack tournament and he didn’t qualify.  Since this was the first of three days of qualifying, he will try again tomorrow.

Then we played a session in the casino where Barb broke even and Ed had a huge win. 

The show tonight was a Broadway type production by the cast called iBroadway and they were singing songs from Broadway musicals and it was quite good.

As we are eating in the Aqua Spa Restaurant called Blu, we do not have an assigned table.  Tonight we sat at a table next to two guys from England and had a good time talking to them.

Then we went to the casino where Barb won nicely and Ed was up just a little.

Not much to report, just a great day on the sea, good food, new friends and good sessions in the casino.

Tonight we are to set the clocks ahead by 1 ½ hours – We never knew that could ever happen, but it did.

Tomorrow we will still be at sea and hopefully another great day.

Night

Last night

This afternoon

Tonight