Hello from the West Coast!

This morning we are cruising south from San Francisco towards LA. The first part of our voyage is coming to a close but we have Mexico and the Panama Canal ahead of us.

Unfortunately, almost all of our South Pacific friends will leave the ship today or tomorrow. Last night we felt a tinge of sadness as we gathered in Frank and Wendy’s (Cairns, Australia) suite to share some champagne and canapés and reminisce about the last 24 days. Larry and Judy (from Camarillo, CA) brought along their laptop and we relived each port as we laughed and talked about their photos.

Digital cameras and laptops make travel photography so easy and the results are instant. Remember when you used to come home form vacation and have to mortgage the house to get the film developed? Thank goodness those days are gone.

Jens and Gunhild (Vancouver Island) also joined in our celebration and we continued on to the dining room. We’ve had the pleasure of dinner in this group of eight several times. Inevitably we are one of the last tables to finish. I’m sure there are some nights when the wait staff wishes they could whisk the table cloth right out from under our elbow to move us along!

One of our favorite wine stewards Yavuhs (I’m sure I didn’t spell that right! He’s from Turkey) know all of us so well; he arrives with several different wines to satisfy all tastes. Wendy is allergic to sulfites so they have a special wine for her. Tom wants Sauvignon Blanc do his choice arrive, I like the Coppola Merlot, another bottle appears, before you know it our table is crowded with bottles and Gunhild decides to try them all! You can imagine the laughter we shared.

On Monday, when the next group of passengers arrives, we will be very lucky if we meet others that are as gracious and friendly as this special group of cruisers that we now think of as friends.

But enough…don’t want to get misty eyed and foul up the keyboard. Let me tell you about my day in San Francisco!

Yesterday dawned bright and clear. After 3 days of mist and rain it was like magic, everything was brilliant…but a little cool. Burrrrr! Many of us gathered on deck 12 to view our passage under the Golden Gate Bridge. We were all bundled up to our ears with any warm clothing we had the foresight to bring along. There was a buzz of excitement, land ho...after four rough and sometimes rainy days at sea. And for most of us, the sight of what we call home, the USA.

The pilot arrived onboard and the coast guard cruised alongside as we entered San Francisco Harbor. Open your golden gate….here we come!

Soon many of us were headed for some shoreside touring and shopping. After so many trips to SF, I finally visited Fisherman’s Wharf. It was fun to just poke around in the shops. I found some small Christmas gifts. Next I wandered down to the bakery to have some sourdough, yummy, couldn’t miss that.

My digital camera batteries have been fading fast during the trip so I set out to find a shop that sold the right kind of replacement. While on that mission I passed an “In ‘n Out” burger store. After so many comments by California friends, I had to stop and try just one double-double...double Yum- Yum! So now I had a few calories to walk off!

I also wanted to ride the cable cars. Yep, never done that before either, so today was my day to be a real tourist. The drivers are almost as good as the ride. They each have their own driving “stick” and by the end of the line you’re a part of the act! When I arrived in Union Square I needed to walk around a bit and consider some shopping. Tom was lucky, the crowds and the time kept me from doing any serious damage. So I boarded another cable car and took a different route back to the wharf. All too soon it was time to set sail again.

So here I am. checking email from home and wishing all of you were here to enjoy the Navigator with me. Maybe someday!