http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/feetwet/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from feetwet en-us Sat, 26 Dec 2009 19:09:16 +0000 Sat, 26 Dec 2009 19:09:16 +0000 PP5th May 2009 Having left Jakarta finally at about 2 AM on the 4th May we had an uneventful cruise northwards through the Java Sea between Sumatra and Borneo clipped the South China Sea and to Jurong Port in Singapore from the east this time in. Again the Captain for fine weather scored well the only rain was at night. Smooth conditions all the way. We arrived at the dock at 1430 hrs s http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/Queensland/Brisbane/Bulimba/blog-397597.html PP3rd May 2009 From entering the Sunda Straits between Sumatra and Java we entered into a security area again for piracy but not the hijacking kind. Here they sneak aboard to steal what they can then depart hastily Irsquom told. So I canrsquot do any deck circuits until after we leave Jakarta. Once we arrived at the dock area we had to wait outside at anchor until our space became http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Indonesia/Java/Jakarta/blog-396726.html PP24th April 2009 Nothing much to see yesterday or the day before apart from when we passed through the strait between Yemen and Djibouti. We could see both sides but fairly barren. Then we entered the Gulf of Aden and ship security was upgraded. From there until past the island of Socatra off the ldquohornrdquo of Somalia we are not allowed outside on deck no lights showing outside at http://www.travelblog.org/Oceans-and-Seas/Indian/blog-396720.html PP20th April Well we didnrsquot really see any sewers it actually seemed quite clean. The second half of the canal run was quite interesting and fairly close to the Bitter Lake there was an airfield that looked very military long runways no aircraft movements but plenty of sand covered mounds bunkers and hangars with big doors onto taxyways. There was then a very interesting visual phe http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Suez/blog-396709.html PP16th April 2009 As most of our friends will know by now CS reluctantly jumped ship in Italy in order to return to work commitments back home so I have been a lonesome traveller for this leg. At least it meant the pirates were spared the risk of running into CS in a bad mood............There was some tricky loading of extra large gas tanks onto the deck before departure today and we managed a http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Suez/blog-395770.html PPTuesday 14th AprilArrived in Livorno yesterday morning as the sun was rising through haze and mist beautiful sunrise. The port area is quite tidy and clean and it is quite busy but not as big as some we've been to. We were a bit slow starting to explore because the new Chief Mate Michael was a bit offhand about letting us know when er were cleared by immigration. I chased the Captain and http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/Livorno/blog-390931.html CSSunday 12 April We continued to enjoy good weather throughout the afternoon and had a wonderful view of the Spanish coastline all the way from Almeria to Cartagena and beyond. We were called over the loudspeaker to attend the party at 5.30. I presented the picture of cranes which I had completed to the Captain it is dedicated with a label lsquoSHIP SHAPES at SUNSETrsquoEverything inter http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/Livorno/blog-390569.html CSSaturday 11th April darktime We had expected to make the Strait of Gibraltar about 8pm so see it in daylight since it has been light till after 9pm in our area lately. However things changed during the day because we are ahead of schedule and with Easter on there is no advantage in getting to Livorno on 13th so the Captain wants to kill about 12 hours. He stopped the ship about 10am but we w http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/Livorno/blog-390566.html CSTues 7 April Shore leave finished at 10am expecting to leave this afternoon. We got underway about 2pm we had a wonderful view of the docks the river and Hamburg as we sailed into the Elbe and out to sea. It seems Craigrsquos jinx which operated to ensure that everything interesting happens in the dark has indeed been allayed. The weather was still bright so we could see clearly the cit http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/Livorno/blog-390565.html CSSat 4 April Heavy fog outside all around the ship visibility is likely to remain poor we are in the North Sea I found a German FM radio station playing easy listening music which maintained reception for a while. Irsquove actually had very little joy from the short wave facility. The passage from Antwerp to the river mouth was short but completely hidden behind the grey fog and steely sea http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Germany/District-of-Hamburg/Hamburg/blog-390562.html CSSat 28 March we trained to Ghent and walked up the main street following tram tracks into Centrum. The weather was rainy but there were plenty of sunny patches in between and while cold it was not bitter. We found Ghent to be a very interesting and pretty little spot. We stopped at a bistro overlooking the Law Courts building to avoid a downpour and Lily introduced us to locally brewed Belgi http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/Antwerp-Province/Antwerp/blog-387965.html Major Seas all done no offence Mediterranean CSFriday 27th March We worked our way up the English Channel and into the smaller Dutch Westerschelde. We proceeded slowly up the passage which is very shallow in parts and into the river until we got to the lock gates at about 3pm. We had a longish wait to get through the gate into the port area proper because procedure seems to be to fit as many w http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/Antwerp-Province/Antwerp/blog-387962.html CSThurs 19 MarchWe were out of the river and into the Atlantic by about 7am. The weather is sunny cloudless and the sea calm. Captain still wants to outrun bad weather our current speed indicates an ETA in Antwerp of 27 March. The weather turned nasty during the night. The Low has obviously caught us the sea is lumpy and a grim gun metal grey the sky a grey canopy of low clouds and we have s http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/Antwerp-Province/Antwerp/blog-387952.html CSMon 16 March Having read a good deal about that part of American history that deals with the War of Independence and the Civil War prior to our arrival we were looking forward to our next port.At 6am it was still dark as we approached our first mooring the day brought weather that was fairly bright but overcast with showers later and maximum temperate around 60F. We are scheduled to stay http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Pennsylvania/Philadelphia/Center-City/blog-387948.html CSThursday 12th March 2009 We slipped our mooring around 7.30pm on Monday 9th yes darkness again and negotiated the river under two bridges then under a 3rd bridge into Galveston Bay. Next morning we were abeam Louisiana and heading to Florida Keys. The weather is bright and sunny the Gulf of Mexico showing some white caps but generally calm and our motion is steady. The weather continues fin http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Pennsylvania/Philadelphia/Center-City/blog-382674.html CS8th March 2009 We cruised up the river into Huston in the dead of night and woke to the now familiar portside scenes. Having completed formalities elsewhere and because the new lsquored linersquo rules have not been implemented this far south yet we were free to go ashore. We walked through the port area which as usual meant a long way to the gate. However the first of many kind helpful p http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Texas/Houston/blog-380016.html CS5th March 2009 After a bit of lumpy travelling from the Caribbean into the Gulf of Mexico our passage to Galveston was cruisy as usual dare I tempt fate to say. We anchored off when we arrived to await the coast guard. We had a lengthy drill before arriving and also came across the first yacht we have seen in open sea. It was a ketch with its large headsail flying but strangely it looked li http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Texas/Houston/blog-379543.html CS25th February 2009 We went through the channel of the Caribbean between mainland Venezuela and the islands of Netherland Antilles with Curacao well off to our port side. We have come around the tip of the headland and are likely to be at Puerto Cabello later this afternoon travelling at around 17 knots. I tune in to many radio programs on FM from Curacao broadcasting in Dutch. We arrived in http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/Texas/Galveston/blog-379117.html CS Sat 21 FebWe have arrived in the bay adjacent to Balboa. There is a lot to see and many other ships at anchor but not too much activity. Some smaller vessels and ferries come to take advantage of the lovely Saturday conditions in the course of the day. It is quite murky in the distance which is a pity after the clear air we have been enjoying but it is likely to be salt spray and distant rain http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Venezuela/Central/Puerto-Cabello/blog-377052.html CS Tues 3 Feb. We cast off without stress rather more quickly and efficiently than on arrival and headed out of Yokohama. It was unfortunately very smoky but with no wind the blades on the large wind generator on the shore were hardly moving so we had an easy but murky passage out. We were soon well out to sea and it remained calm the North Pacific was indeed pacific so far. We were embarked http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Venezuela/Central/Puerto-Cabello/blog-377044.html