We awake to a beautiful morning. Forecasted high for today is 27°C and mostly sunny. The locals we talk to are ecstatic, as the entire summer has been unusually cold and rainy. I had a hunch that there would be a weather bounce-back, and it looks like we timed it perfectly. There are two cruise boats moored outside our window this morning. One is a smaller ship called the Silver Sea and the other a large Holland America ship, the Eurodam. (As seasoned cruisers know, all the Holland America vessels are "dam" ships.) According to the master plan, this is our final day to wring St. John's dry. After breakfast in our room courtesy of Sobey's, we start off (somewhat later than planned) by visiting the Terry Fox memorial at the extreme north end of the ... read more

Off a Newfoundland adventure. We have booked flights to St. John's and back, have a rental car waiting at the airport, and have booked our first night's accommodations. The rest is to be made up as we go along. Smooth, uneventful flight direct from Ottawa to St. John's. On the plane, Vi and I end up sitting with two men–one in his mid thirties and the other probably a decade older–who are heading back to Newfoundland after a stint working in Fort McMurray. They have already been traveling 9 hours and are on their final leg. The younger fellow, sitting beside Vi, has a few tips and suggestions for us. The older fellow, though friendly, is frankly hard to understand in the noisy environment of a plane. At the St. John's airport, we confirm our car ... read more

Blissful sleep-in morning. Today the plan is to hook up with Vi's cousin Mike, who lives in San Diego. Mike and his wife (whom we have never met before) pick us up around 11 and whisk us to brunch at a really interesting restaurant called the 94th Aero Squadron. The restaurant sits alongside an old airfield that is still used by smaller single-engine planes and vintage aircraft. The restaurant picks up this theme and features decor and memorabilia from the air forces of the first and second world war. The spread is fantastic, especially the seafood, which includes about three different types of salmon, numerous shellfish, Alaska king crab and much more. Bottomless champagne flutes ensure that everyone is happy. We eat outside on a patio, where we have front-row seats to planes and helicopters landing ... read more

The ship seems to be getting smaller. Did not expect to spend 10 of the 14 days of this cruise stuck on this boat. A gilded cage is still a cage. But this is our last full day on board. We pack, review our bill, and do little else. Another beautiful day on the ocean, although quite a bit cooler (~20°C). The ship is following the coast of the Baja Peninsula and we are often in sight of land. We attend a presentation in the afternoon on the attractions of San Diego. We did not realize the city offers so much, and we are pleased that we elected to spend a few extra days there. Entertainment tonight is a "Dance with the Stars" take-off. A number of passengers have been practising dance routines with the ship's ... read more

Really bad news this morning. The captain announces that there is a mechanical problem with one of the ship's generators that prevents us from traveling fast enough to make Cabo San Lucas and arrive in San Diego on time. So Cabo is being dropped. That's the second port of call to be dropped from this cruise. There'll be some kind of compensation, of course, but it's extremely disappointing. Many passengers are angry. So now we're stuck on board until San Diego. But it's a beautiful prison. I've given up trying to post my blog. It's simply an exercise in frustration because the connection is so bad. I'll catch up once we reach San Diego. Entertainment tonight is a rehash of guitarist Fabio and comedian Kevin. My previous comments apply to both. After the show, we head ... read more