Where are we today? Entering the mouth of the Amazon River

-

 Post by David:

Tonight we are entering the mouth of the Amazon river where we have several days and stops.  As we enter the river the ship can only go about 2-4 knots because of the shallowness at the mouth and the currents.  At the first stop we pick up special pilots that have the latest updates on where the deepest part of the river channel is.  We have been asked to conserve water so that the ship does not have to carry as much and thus sit higher in the river and also so we don't have to get water along the way.  As I got up at 3:30am as old men often do I took this picture from our balcony showing the amazing stars.  As usual the picture is not as good as the real thing.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Where are we today? The Salvation Islands, Devil's Island -- French Guiana

-
Image
 What a fascinating place!  Monkeys, huge rodents, peacocks, tropical flowers and jungle, and macabre history -- what more can you ask for.  I wasn't expecting it to be as compelling a place to visit as it is. Although our itinerary says "Devil's Island" (Ile du Diable), we technically explored Île Royale as the Ile du Diable is off limits nowadays.  Royale is one of the three Îles de Salut (Salvation Islands). They were called Salvation because early missionaries sought shelter there when there were plagues on the mainland of French Guiana (Guyane). The prisoners who were sent here when the Îles de Salut were part of a notorious prison colony didn't think this place had anything to do with salvation or health.  French people sentenced to be sent here called Devil's Island the Dry Guillotine; in other words, a certain -- if bloodless -- death sentence. In the Islands' worst years, 75% to 90% of all prisoners perished. Journalist who brought attention to th...
Read more

Where are we today? Nashville!

-
We leave in three weeks and three days! We are getting our first taste of adventure in that we are hanging loose with our itinerary.  As it stands now, we are scheduled to cruise all the way down the Amazon to Manaus and back again.  Of course, there is a massive drought going on there, and the river is at its lowest point in over 100 years.  A ship our cruise vessel's size and make had to turn back from its leg in the Amazon in December. The rainy season is coming soon, but likely won't raise the water level much before we get there.  If we can't do the Amazon, we will go somewhere else, but I feel for the people who make their livelihoods from the river and the rain forests. Also due to low water levels, the Panama Canal authorities are limiting the number of ships that can be on the canal at one time.  So, the line to enter and pass through the locks is longer than normal. The other sketchy stretch includes ports in the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, around Yeme...
Read more

Where are we today? The East China Sea, Bejing memories

-
Image
 Yesterday, we awakened at 4:30 to meet for our trip to Beijing at 5:30.  Beijing is about 2 1/2 hours inland from the Tianjin port.  Our first stop was Tiananmen Square, where so much related to Chinese history and government has happened.   I don’t have a picture of the exact building, but one of the modern buildings around the square is Mao’s Mausoleum. Though Chairman Mao wanted to be cremated, his body was embalmed and is kept in a specially cooled room.  Our tour didn’t include a visit, for which I am thankful. All around the Square is modern China.  When we passed through the Tiananmen Gate (The Gate of Heaven Sent Peace), we passed into China of the 1400’s.  Since the Cultural Revolution of 1966 to 1976 destroyed a lot of China’s traditional beauty, this massive complex of buildings from the Middle Ages is a treasure. I didn’t know before going was that The Forbidden City was just part of the old Imperial City, which must have been huge for tha...
Read more