Macapa, Brazil
When we awoke today we were anchored in the middle of the Amazon River off of the coast of Macapa.
The Captain gives an update on position and other information everyday at noon. He has absolutely no experience with using a microphone properly and his entire report is unintelligible. His first few words can be heard but then he drifts off and the rest is history. Fellow passengers on the ship have made similar comments and it is obvious when he speaks. No one listens because it cannot be understood. Kimberley follows the Captain with an update and she speaks very clearly. The Broadway training helped. Even the comedian we saw the other night made a joke about this. “This is Kimberly and I am here to tell you what the Captain just said…” This received a ton of laughs.
What I can gather from the Captain and Kim’s interpretation is that the stop at Macapa was for Port Authorities and/or immigration. I also believe we took on some pilots to navigate the Amazon River.
It is very hot and humid. Upper 80s and humidity level very high. At Kimberly’s port talk the other day she gave future forecasts for the area for next week. “We are expecting a high temperature of 59 f next week”. Huh? I had to laugh but our reliance on other people and the technology they use shows that we often don’t use enough common sense. Yes, 59 f is the forecast for Santarem, Portugal. Santarem, Brazil is on the other side of the planet. Kimberly said that this seems to be unusual for the Amazon area but that she would keep us “updated”. Many of the cities in Brazil were named after cities in Portugal. Maybe this is news to some but I’m sure some of the passengers here pulled out their sweaters.
The Amazon River from the rear of the Zuiderdam.
This video was taken shortly after we began to move from Macapa toward Santarem.
A sand bar in the middle of the Amazon. The home is probably an Airbnb.
Team trivia went quite well again. Mary seems to know most of the answers the rest of us get stumped on. We knew where the first highway was created, the number of claws on a cat, and the European country that has experienced the most battles. We missed the IQ number that represents the beginning of genius level (obviously). We had a tiebreaker. “How many earth years does it take to equal a year on Neptune”. We missed it.
Having a balcony or at least a window is very important on cruises, especially long ones. The inside cabin on a Carnival Caribbean cruise is fine. It’s the atmosphere of the many bars on dance clubs that the cruise is about. On this type of cruise, an inside cabin leaves one wondering. What is happening outside? Are we moving? Are we approaching a city? What does it look like? You will be asking yourself these questions anytime you are in the cabin.
We went up to the sports deck to swing a practice driver that we brought. It is a good workout and is supposed to increase your drive distance and accuracy. The latter is what I need.
We heard a group of percussionists out on the Lido. It was a group of instructors teaching the afro-brazilian style of music. I sat in for about 30 mins. They had snare drums, bass drums, tambourines and agogo bells. It was a blast. One of the instructors said that in order to play this style of music, you have to know how Brazilians dance. The puzzled look again on my face. Don’t people dance to the music that is made and not the other way around? Must be a failure in my education.
We enjoyed the rest of the afternoon watching the ship traveling the river off of our balcony.
I have been keeping up with the news and I really have no respect for judges anymore. I lost respect for lawyers a long time ago and I guess a judge is just another lawyer but one that can’t be questioned. I have been to court many, many times with my businesses. Judges can make up law anytime they choose. No lawyer that has to work in the judge’s courtroom will ever question him/her (is it them now? I can’t keep up) . Take to judge to the judicial tenure commission? Not a chance.
Dinner was great as usual. I’m sampling every different dessert on the menu. 4 straight days of creme brûlée has made me somewhat of an expert. The opera cake was fantastic. Cheesecake also a hit. Not sure if there is a dessert I won’t like or try.
Cards to finish the evening under some distant lightning at the rear of the Lido. Few insects. I expected more but I am not disappointed. Terri is up 2 games to one.…