MickeyandKimWorldAdventures

  Manila Phillippines Magandang araw and welcome to Manila! This city was considered the most beautiful in Asia until World War II when it became the second most destroyed city of the war. It is a city that seamlessly weaves together its past and present. Thankfully the oldest district in Manila, Intramuros, has been lovingly restored so that sights such as Fort Santiago, Casa Manila, and the amazingly unscathed San Agustin Church can be enjoyed. This “Walled City” area also contains the Manila Cathedral, version 6.0, and we saw all these locales by horse drawn carriage.  We did not have time to visit the Coconut Palace, famous guesthouse built by the infamous Imelda Marcos, which would have been interesting.  We started our day driving along the scenic Roxas Boulevard, which is he heartbeat of the city before we headed ti the Mall of Asia.  It is incredibly huge, makes the Mall of America pale in comparison.  Someone said it is the largest mall in Asia, and I c...

 Subic Bay Phillippines Our next stop is Subic Bay, a purpose-built port of call for a former U.S. naval base and one of the most protected bodies of water in the Philippines. Thanks to that protection it is home to some lovely, calm beaches, several of which have resorts available for day use. The three beaches that were part of the naval base are called Dungaree, Officer’s, and All Hands. The deep waters of the bay have great reefs and shipwrecks that date back to 1898 for scuba divers to explore.  For me, it was a girl's day - off to a local spa for a body scrub, massage, manicure and pedicure.  I was supposed to have a facial also, but the salon overbooked too many cruisers and could not get to the facial.  It was still a great day with the girls, and the massage was totally worth it.  After a successful day of pampering, we hit the Schooner Bar for a celebratory cocktail... Mickey and Shel did a guy's day - they hired a taxi and asked the driver to take the...

Bali Indonesia Beautiful Bali, Land of the Gods and Land of a Thousand Temples. Here are a few facts of Bali: · Bali, population 4.2 million, is part of Indonesia, which is made up of 17,508 islands with only 6,000 inhabited. Indonesia is the 4thmost populated country in the world behind China, India and the United States. · Tourism is their leading source of income. Last year, Bali had over 5.2 million tourists last year, 1 million more tourists than their population! · Most of Bali is mountainous and the highest point is Mount Agung, which is an active volcano and considered the spiritual center of the island · Only has two seasons, dry and wet · Although Indonesians are typically Muslim, Bali was a refuge for Hindus when Islam triumphed over Hinduism in Java (16th century) and is currently over 80% Hindu · In Bali, you will see offerings called Canang Sari, outside every home and they are made daily to thank God in praise and prayer. The offering is made up of a base, us...

 Lombok Indonesia Our first Indonesia stop is the port of Lembar on Lombok Island.  It is surrounded by a number of smaller islands locally called Gili.  Lombok has three main districts with three capital cities: Mataram in the west, Praya in central and Selong in east Lombok. The majority of commerce is in the capital city of Mataram in west Lombok. Population is 3.9 M, and the name Lomboq is the Sasak word for straight, honest.  Islam is the majority religion, but all other religions are practiced freely.  Lombok was colonized by the Dutch and there is still some influence to be seen on the island.  As Muslims are the primary religious group, there are multitudes of mosques throughout the island, right next to the Hindu temples.  These are the most prevalent buildings that we saw.  It is a very poor island, but people were very friendly, and the towns were clean.   We went to Narmada Gardens to view the grounds and temples.  Micke...

  Saint Patrick's Day Had a great day at sea today celebrating the Irish.  We started at the pub (of course) with a group of friends we have met on board.  It was already rocking the Irish as a trivia game was in progress and packed.  A beer tasting event for us featuring 6 different beers - the rest of the group thought we were doing shots!  Since Mickey and I do not drink beer, I became the group photographer (and had my lemon drop).  A great time had by all and the festivities were just beginning.  On to a great show in the theater, and then back to the centrum to watch the Irish shenanigans going on.  A great way to celebrate the Irish...tomorrow another day at sea and then on to Lombok, Indonesia.

  Airlie Beach A gateway to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Airlie Beach is in the beautiful Whitsunday Islands, where the water color is not to be believed!   Having been advised by friends who have been to the reef, there is nothing like seeing it from above, so we started our day with a scenic flight over the Whitsunday Islands heading to the Heart Reef.   Great advice – the views were spectacular. Well worth the money to take this tour.   We were very fortunate that we had a 10 am flight as we were almost the last flight out that day – the winds were pretty high while we were in flight, with the weather taking a turn for the worst.   One more flight got airborne that day before they shut down due to unsafe flying conditions.   Many of the snorkeling and diving excursions got canceled that day, most likely due to the cyclone hovering out in that ocean around us. Headed into town where there is a lovely lagoon pool where you can swim, or you can stroll ...