Last Update: 19-JAN-2019
All photos were taken with a Canon EOS-70D 20.2mp camera or a Go Pro Hero4 Silver or a Moto-X 2013
For a detailed description of the Canon EOS-70D 20.2mp camera setup I am using, visit my Camera Page
Any video was from all three cameras and converted with AWS Video Converter 8
Part 1 ------------------------------------- DEC 6 S Fly to Ft. Lauderdale DEC 7 M Cruise - Ft. Lauderdale DEC 8 T Cruise - At sea DEC 9 W Cruise - At sea DEC 10 T Cruise - St. Martin DEC 11 F Cruise - St. Lucia DEC 12 S Cruise - Bridgetown, Barbados Part 2 ------------------------------------- DEC 13 S Cruise - Fort-de-France, Martinique DEC 14 M Cruise - St. Kitts DEC 15 T Cruise - St. Thomas DEC 16 W Cruise - At sea DEC 17 T Cruise - Half Moon Cay, Bahamas DEC 18 F Cruise - Ft. Lauderdale, Florida - FLY HOME
Sunday - DEC 13 2015 -- Fort-de-France, Martinique
We have been here before and we are not impressed. Also, since its a Sunday everything is closed.
We took a ship sponsored tour - Snorkel Martinique - 3 Hrs. - Description: Cross the bay before arriving to the beach of Anse-Dufour, your first snorkeling site. Your second stop will take place at the Bat Cave. On the return journey, enjoy a well-deserved rum punch. Cost was $79.95 a person.
Mary has her vest on
We travel light
First stop at the bat cave
Happy Mary
Various underwater shots
We survived. Back on the ship for lunch. View of the historic Fort Saint Louis in Fort-de-France
Looking towards the interior of the island past the downtown area of Fort-de-France.
Looking up the coast of Fort-de-France
Looking back at the Oosterdam
We walked around Fort-de-France. This is a spooky place. Run down, high crime and nothing open.
Walked thru the park - Place de la Savane
Headless Statue of Empress Josephine of France at La Savane Park, Martinique
Cool historic building - Heures D'Ouverture De La Bibliotheque Au Public
All alone
This is always good for tourism
Everything is under construction
We walked down by the historic Fort Saint Louis in Fort-de-France
Looking back at the Oosterdam as we were the only cruise ship in this part of the port today.
Crabs
Working on the wall at the fort - Various Fort views
The flag of France
Carnival ship in. Good they were far away from us.
Magnificent frigate bird flying over us
EDF Pointe des Carrieres power station
Cool light house
Mt Pelee - The stratovolcano is famous for its eruption in 1902 and the complete destruction that resulted, dubbed the worst volcanic disaster of the early 20th century. The eruption killed about 30,000 people. Most deaths were caused by pyroclastic flows which destroyed the city of Saint-Pierre (at that time, the largest city on the island, within minutes of the eruption.
Sunset
Playing with the camera timer on a windy evening with Mt Pelee in the background
Now you tell us its Sunday
Tonight's critter
Looks tasty
Monday - DEC 14 2015 -- St. Kitts
We have been to St. Kitts many times and usually just go to a couple of different beaches when we come here. On this trip, we took the Shore Excursion - Discover Nevis.
The description is - 6 hours - A 45 minute water taxi brings you to Charlestown, Nevis. A city and plantation tour end at your lunch venue on Pinney's Beach. Admire the idyllic view and relax. This is paradise! It was $99.95 a person and well worth it.
Sunrise over Nevis
We took the 45 minute water taxi over to Nevis.
Drove by St. Paul's Anglican Church
Nevis is blessed with an abundance of geothermal energy and for centuries visitors to the island have enjoyed the hot springs at Bath Village. You can still enjoy the therapeutic benefits of the springs today. Nearby is the site of Bath Hotel, the first luxury hotel in the West Indies built in 1778.
We stopped and explored the hot (warm) springs (This was located at 17.132899N -62.626509W)
The site of the Bath Hotel. The roof patio gave us an excellent place took across to St. Kitts and to the higher areas of Nevis
Looking at Nevis Peak is a potentially active volcano which is located in the center of the island of Nevis of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the West Indies. The stratovolcano rises to a height of 985 meters (3,232 ft.) and is the highest point on the island. There have been no eruptions since prehistory, but there are active fumaroles and hot springs on the coastal slopes of the island, and these represent low-level volcanic activity.
You could see Brimstone Hill Fort & National Park (20 miles) and Sint Eustatius (32 miles) in the distance.
You can see our ship (over the blue roof) Appx. 12 miles away.
Ken & Mary
Quick look at St. Johns Figtree Anglican Church - One of the oldest churches in the Caribbean, the small stone St John's Figtree Anglican Church was built in 1680. Surrounding the building are the church grounds, which have long doubled as a cemetery. You can explore the property and examine the gravestones, some of which date back more than 300 years.
We stopped at the Hermitage Plantation Inn - Built around the oldest existing wooden house in the Caribbean, ca. 1670 The ground were impressive to explore.
You best watch were you walk. I assume goats ?
The last stop on our tour to Nevis was to stop at Pinneys Beach just north of the village of Charlestown
Lunch, beach chairs / umbrella were part of the tour. Looking on google I really can't tell which place we went to, but I am guessing it was Turtle Time Bar & Grill.
Looking back to our ship which is 11.3 miles away. Notice the curvature of the earth removing the bottom of the ship from our view.
You could see Brimstone Hill Fort & National Park (Left 19 miles) and Sint Eustatius (right 31 miles) in the distance.
Mary out enjoying the water
Ken's classic adult beverage & feet, beach shot.
Heading back to the bus with rain coming down from Nevis Peak
We passed the St. Kitts / Nevis ferry on the way back to St. Kitts
Passing our ship at the port
Smoke Stack from a old sugar mill
Go pro ready to time elapse our departure
The St. Kitts to Nevis passenger ferry
Saying goodbye to St. Kitts. It was a fun day
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Fire near a nice house
Interesting as we see some high end homes are being built on the hills. Would be a cool place to live
You can see Saba (Caribbean Netherlands) Left, Sint Eustatius (center) Brimstone Hill Fort & National Park (Right) in the distance.
Sunset
Wow. The place is packed. Nevis behind us now and St. Kits to the left (east).
Getting closer to Sint Eustatius
Brimstone Hill Fort & National Park - UNESCO World Heritage Site We were at this fort back in 2010
The moon
Sunset. Did not think it would be that good but it was
Tonight's towel critter
Tuesday - DEC 15 2015 -- St. Thomas
We docked at Austin "Babe" Monsanto Marine Facility and this was the only time we have been at this port in all our visits to St. Thomas.
Again, we have been here many times so we took a taxi over to Lindbergh Bay. We rented an umbrella and two chairs at the Best Western Emerald Beach (West Charlotte Amalie). It was easy, close and cheap. Ken had fun people watching and we both got a kick out of the amount of drugs that were being sold in the open on the beach.
Sunrise
Mary snorkeled out by the rocks but it really was not that good.
Two ships in today us and Oasis of the Seas
Many Iguanas were in the rocks at the port. We were feeding them apple slices.
Floating bar. Interesting idea.
WSTA AM 1340 Did not tune in.
Looking over to the Havensight cruise ship terminal
Impressive cellular infrastructure. Since St. Thomas (USVI) is in the USA you are on the US cell system
Looks like these are parked a bit close. I am sure they would make a rather large mess if they went in the water
Giant Voice emergency alert system.
Interesting communications on this facility
More communications
So, In Puerto Rico the USCG will escort the cruise ships in / out of port we saw that they do it here in St. Thomas. Its a tremendous waste of resources as the threat here is very low and if they are capable of inflicting damage on a large cruise ship this chubby guy on the little semi-inflatable boat would be very easy to take out. What bugs me the most, is that this idiot looking tough would float around with his hand on a machine gun aimed up at the cruise ship full of people. Sure, this up-to-safe-position works when you are patrolling around other low profile ships. In this situation you are exposing the entire ship to fire.
I bet someone got fired for this
The governor's mansion
Even more communications
Where we spent the day - Lindbergh Bay Emerald Beach
Leaving St. Thomas
You could see Culebra, Puerto Rico which is a small, sparsely populated island and surrounding group of cays off the east coast of Puerto Rico.
Sunset time over Culebra
Hard to figure out what you are seeing here. Could be three distinct areas. Culebra, Vieques' and the higher mountains of eastern Puerto Rico
Pre-dinner pasta and dessert
The evening critter
Wednesday - DEC 16 2015 -- At sea
Our last full at sea day as we go from the US Virgin Islands to the Half Moon Cay.
Sunrise
We watched a group of brown-and-white boobys following the ship
This handsome brown-and-white booby is common in tropical waters throughout the world, occurring in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans and the Caribbean Sea. Its
breeding range overlaps considerably with that of the Masked (Sula dactylatra) and Red-footed boobies (S. sula); all 3 may be found nesting and feeding together along with
frigatebirds (Fregata spp.) and other tropical seabirds.
The Brown Booby feeds mainly on flying fish that it catches in often spectacular plunge dives from varying heights in the air; it may not feed as far from land as other
boobies, but there are few data. Individuals are often seen soaring, banking, and turning without flapping, as they follow air currents. When flapping, wing beats are steady
and may alternate with gliding or soaring.
The rear of the ship on the last full day at sea
Rain
The mid pool area on the last full day at sea
Beautiful day
Strange. We think it was a funeral at the rear of the ship
Sunset time
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Lobster night
Oh no its Wednesday
Tonight's towel critter
Thursday - DEC 17 2015 -- Half Moon Cay, Bahamas
Again, we have been here many times and Ken is always worried that it will be too cold to swim here. But, it's such a perfect beach it's hard not to go in. It's not a snorkeling beach as the sand is very fine and reduces visibility. Holland America has a picnic style lunch with a very good variety of items for your main course (chicken, fish, burgers, steaks, dogs) with all the sides and deserts. We have never been disappointed with the lunch and the beach.
ALL PHOTOS TAKEN WITH THE GO-PRO SO NOT AS CLEAR
Little San Salvador Island, also called Half Moon Cay, is a tiny private island in the Bahamas. Accessible by cruise ship, it's known for the long, crescent-shaped Half Moon Beach. Luxury cabanas dot the beachfront, which gives way to trail-lined country rich in birdlife. Half Moon Lagoon Aqua Park has water slides and playgrounds. Stingray Cove, a lagoon enclosure, is home to tame stingrays.
The location is: 24.577029N -75.9536345W So we are about as far north as Key West, Florida
We were the only ship here today
It can't be more than a few miles...
Mary out too
Hardly anyone on the beach. Another nice thing about this beach / island its very secure so its safe for both of us to swim at the same time and leave our stuff on the beach.
Amazing beach - we have to watch out here as we have messed up our feet by walking miles on the beach. On some cruises this is our first stop and our feet are not use to the sand yet.
Back on the tender to the ship
Last sunset
Friday - DEC 18 2015 -- Ft. Lauderdale, Florida then back to Baltimore, Maryland
Back in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Watching container ship traffic in the canal next to the ship. Port Everglades is a very busy port.
Here comes another one.
I am always amazed how close the Bahamas are to Florida. Passing over the Grand Bahama islands heading back to Baltimore
Back over Maryland - Chalk Point Generating Station 2,647 megawatts. Maryland's largest power plant located along the Patuxent River.
