Author Archives: Sparky
TN_10 Hop 3: Florence SC to Montclair VA
372 miles via I-95 and VA 234 with one bio break. Auto miles: 381 (extra miles mostly in Florence getting gas and a birthday card for my grandson). Cumulative route miles: 1,031. Cumulative auto miles: 1,065. This was as easy as expected. No tire failures, no accidents, no bad weather. Simple. I like that. Especially … Continue reading
TN_10 Hop 2: Port Canaveral FL to Florence SC
466 miles via I-95 and a bunch of local roads in Brunswick GA. Auto miles: 479 (the extra miles driven in Brunswick GA looking for a tire – see below). Cumulative route miles: 659. Cumulative auto miles: 684. This was supposed to be an easy hop – just a straight shot up I-95. But sometimes … Continue reading
CV2 Day 8: At sea
Our last full day of this very disappointing Carnival Vista cruise. We started with brunch which was nice but not spectacular. We then headed to the other end of the ship (from aft to fore for those of you into ship lingo) to attend the “reunion” – a by-invitation-only get-together for the most dedicated (i.e. … Continue reading
CV2 Day 7: Half Moon Cay Bahamas
Another day, another cay. And another cay that we didn’t see. This time we both put on our swimsuits in anticipation of going ashore. But we got a late start and by the time we finished breakfast some people were coming back on board, saying that “there is nothing there.” Just beach. We decided to … Continue reading
CV2 Day 6: At sea
We tried to do something different in the morning – have brunch instead of the buffet breakfast. But the wait was over an hour so we ended up in the buffet as usual. After breakfast I tried to upload photos to the laptop but failed. I might have to wait until the cruise is over … Continue reading
CV2 Day 5: Freeport Bahamas
We had breakfast, as usual, then left the ship to browse the port area. It was the usual cruise port shops. Nothing interesting. So we started the 5-mile walk into Freeport. We didn’t get very far before Marlene’s shoe broke (the heel came off). So we went back to the ship, got a different pair … Continue reading
CV2 Day 4: Princess Cay Bahamas
We dropped anchor about a quarter of a mile from Princess Cay and water shuttles ran from the ship to shore (and back) all day. I put on my swimsuit in anticipation of a day on the beach. Never happened. After breakfast (which featured the baker presenting her with a dozen of her favorite poppyseed … Continue reading
“Hammerhead Beach Motel” by Tim Dorsey
Copyright 2000 by Tim Dorsey. Published by HarperTorch, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers, New York. If you like crazy you will like Tim Dorsey. I enjoy crazy, but only to a point. Apparently that point is somewhat below Dorsey’s level. There are about 1,000 characters in this book and about 12 intersecting plot lines … Continue reading
CV2 Day 3: Nassau Bahamas
This was supposed to be Aruba. We aren’t big fans of Aruba but it is a better destination than Nassau. There were a lot of not-very-happy ship passengers wandering the streets of Nassau yesterday. We visited Marlene’s favorite dress shop but she found nothing interesting. We had a frozen drink then visited the Straw Market. … Continue reading
CV2 Day 2: At sea
A quiet day at sea, cruising slowly – between 6 and 11 kts (a ship normally travels 17 to 22 kts) due to the engine problem that prevented us from reaching Aruba. But the weather was nice so at least we didn’t have to experience heavy seas in a crippled ship. We (Marlene and I) … Continue reading