The Amazon (Again), Caribbean and Return to Miami

 We awoke in the mouth of the Amazon. Heavy cloud cover and rain. However that cleared by midday and the sun, warmth and humidity returned. The Amazon looks much the same at this stage as the previous trip, very wide, brown and fringed by the jungle.

People onboard are surprised to hear that we had already sailed the Amazon this year (refer earlier blogs on our trip on the Seabourn Venture). So to explain, the trip is not to explore the Amazon again. The time on the Venture gave us a far better experience than will occur on the Mariner. We were able to get further past Manaus and see much more via the zodiacs getting much deeper into the rain forest/jungle. The Mariner will stay largely in the middle of the river and guests will most likely see around the major towns and go on excursions. We chose this cruise to spend Xmas and New Year at sea (did that many years ago on Seabourn Legend and had a ball). We also wanted to compare Regent and Silversea to Seabourn to give us future options.

So here we are sailing the Amazon 😊

We crossed the Equator, but due to the weather, there was no visit by King Neptune.  Apparently that may happen on the return. The weather remains hot and humid so the pool will be very popular.

Wifi coverage is very poor.

The river levels are down significantly (about 8 metres) from earlier in the year due to the drought when the river up to the edge of the rain forest, now there is grass

The first port of call along the river was Santarem. It is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Para, headquarters of the Santarém Geographic Region and the third most populous in the state, behind only the capital of Pará, being the main urban, financial, commercial and cultural in the west of the state. It has a population of 306000.

Due to the drop in water level we moored out in the river and were shuttled ashore by tenders. We chose to do a river tour of the river and Eco Lake. This took about 3.5 hours and consisted of a boat trip along the river then up a tributary to do a bit of piranha fishing 😏

Julie caught a monster which required my help to haul it in. We decided to throw it back. Which really means the poor little critter will probably be caught several more times on the same day by other passengers, but at least he will stay alive and hopefully get to swallow some bait.

Others had better luck (all fish were returned safely to the water).

Naturally there was fish on the menu that day.

Next day we stopped at a local village along the river called Boca Da Valeria. Its a small settlement of fewer than 100 people. It was supposed to be an authentic glimpse of simple river life that the inhabitants have followed for centuries. We stayed onboard as we had seen better examples on our previous cruise. The feedback from those who went wasn't that marvellous. 100 people being swamped by 100's from the ship.

We docked early the next day (Christmas Eve) in Manaus. It was very hot and humid. Far too hot to traipse around. We had a tour to see the 'meeting of the waters', something we had seen previously, stayed onboard and utilised the fact that the ship was virtually deserted. Our choice of lounges around the pool. 😀 Kept cool with a mango daiquiri. Dinner that night was special (goose) followed by carols in the theatre. Don't recommend goose.

Christmas Day we remained onboard as Manaus was virtually closed. It was also drizzling. Staff got around in their Santa outfits, Christmas carols being played over the sound system and eggnog in the late afternoon to prepare for Christmas dinner. 

Dinner was a bit of a disaster for us. We wanted to have it in the main dining room (turkey) however it seemed that it was also the intention of most other guests. Hoped to sit down around 7.30 in time for the Christmas show at 9.30. We arrived to be seated just after 7.00. A long queue awaited us. At 8.30 we were still waiting 😖. Eventually they offered a table in the steak restaurant which we accepted. Gave us about 45 min to eat our meal. Then rushed to the theatre (fighting back indigestion) just in time for the show which was entertaining.

We sailed that night, heading back down river and stopped at Parintins, the main attraction (actually the only tour) being the Bumba Meu Boi dancing. So around 400 of the guests went ashore (very hot and humid). We saw it last trip and, although being very impressive, stayed onboard. As a reminder for those who read the previous blog from the Venture:

The next stop was Alto do Chao. It is a small town not too far from Santarem. It is very popular for the local tourists due to its tranquil sand beaches and fresh water swimming. It was founded in 1676. In early 20th century it was a transportation hub for latex from the rubber trees but now relies on tourism. Once again we elected to stay onboard around the pool.

Life onboard was still the same. The days spent lounging around the pool, more trips to the jacuzzi, occasional visit to the gym, afternoon trivia (still going well - a smart team and then me) and evenings deciding which restaurant to go to for the evening meal. We typically join people and have a great time chatting away. The food is repetitive but still tasty (most of the time). The shows have been mixed without any new acts coming onboard. We have been  dancing occasionally late in the evening.

We head back towards the Atlantic and on to the Caribbean. The ship tours of the Amazon for the Mariner have been somewhat restricted especially when compared to our earlier cruise on the Seabourn Venture (an expedition ship that is able to get further into the Amazon). If people choose to cruise this itinerary on a ship of this size and expect to get up close with nature then it may prove to be a disappointment. There are no small boat ventures deep into the River and its tributaries.  There were walks but they proved to be hard work in the heat and humidity. This type of Amazon cruise would not suit those looking for adventure and being up close to the wildlife.

Back into the Atlantic and heading north. Good day at sea. Sunny and warm.

Tonight preparing for the transition back to regular life, decided on room service and watched a movie (at least no Bold and Beautiful 😁). The major difference being, someone else did the cooking, set the table, provided the wine, delivered 3-5 courses and cleaned up afterwards. Maybe it will take some time time adapt to life back home. 😕

A couple of sea days before arriving into Bridgetown Barbados. 

Entertainment onboard has been very mixed. Disastrous start with a Juggler followed by the one and only act of the English singer (apparently he was removed from the ship early with no explanation - very mysterious), the tango dancers who were very good (also pleasing to look at), an American singer who catered for the over 50's (vast majority of the passengers), a duo of singer and piano player who were excellent and finally the ship's singers and dancers who were OK. All up, probably a B+. We are expecting a couple of new acts once we get to the Caribbean (fingers crossed). Younger guests, and there are not many, would have been even more disappointed.

We arrived in Bridgetown Barbados, an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. Bridgetown is it's capital. Following it's independence in1966 it became part of the Commonwealth. However in Nov 2021 it became a republic within the Commonwealth.

We started the day watching the fire works for NYE in Sydney as we sail into Barbados. After docking alongside we headed out on our next adventure. Needed a day of rest so it was a beach break on a beautiful strip of sand (along with a whole bunch of other guests).

The water was crystal clear and warm. We stayed for about 3 hrs before getting the bus back to the ship in preparation for the New Years Eve festivities.

That night, after a very nice dinner, we headed to the lounge where the main action was being held. However getting a seat proved to be a big challenge as most of the guests onboard had the same idea. Julie was successful but, unfortunately, I was not. So headed to the bar for a beer which also was a challenge as the crowded bar was 2 deep.

Just before midnight we headed to a smaller party at another bar onboard. Much more comfortable. Seats and drinks were readily available. We saw the New Year in, danced a bit, drank a bit and had a fun time. 

Back in bed about 1.30 a.m. So not bad for a couple of oldies.

Sailing through the night, we awoke in Roseau in Dominica. It is the capital of the small island with a city population of around 17000. We went off on a tour of the island which included river tubing and a swim in an emerald pool in the mountains. It is a very beautiful island and relies heavily on tourism (as does majority of the Caribbean).

The river tubing was terrific. It was about a 45 min trip down a river scattered with rocks and small rapids. Great fun and not too difficult.

We then travelled across the island to an 'Emerald" pool. A bit of a hike to get to it (Julie survived the ordeal) and then a plunge.

A little help from her friends

Back onboard in time for trivia. As a team, we are doing well. However bad news that day as one of our team members took very ill and both she and her husband had to leave the ship for greater medical assistance. The better news is that she did improve sufficiently to get a flight home to US.  That's why travellers need insurance.

Next day and a new port of call. This time it was Philipsburg in the island of St. Maarten. It was a really lovely place to visit. Philipsburg is the Capital city and is one of the Caribbean's busiest ports. It welcomes nearly 2 million cruise passengers a year. It has beautiful beaches, casinos, boutiques (French influence) and a touch of Las Vegas.

We were one of 4 ships docked alongside. Our ship was by far the smallest. At only 40000t we were dwarfed by the 110000t monster next to us. All up there must have been over 11000 passengers from the ships crowded into the small port. The tourist shops on the pier were packed.

Mariner is the small one on the right

We took a tour of the island by boat and bus. It was very interesting and gave us the opportunity to see the place. It wasn't a very large island so the trip didn't take that long (except for the boat ride with the mandatory rhum punch)

Some beautiful properties and boats.

A quiet evening, watching the sunset and enjoying a glass of wine from the balcony as we sail on to the next port

The trip is fast coming to an end. San Juan in Puerto Rico was next on the list. We had earlier visited here on the Silversea leg of the adventure so didn't plan to do much. As it turned out we all were somewhat restricted by the requirement to clear US Customs and Immigration (Puerto Rico being a US territory).This process took a very long time and when finished there were only a couple of hours left before we sailed away. So once we cleared Customs it was straight back onboard and enjoyed a bit of lunch, sunshine and a couple of drinks. Once again our ship was docked next to these gigantic ships. This time it was the Celebrity Celebration. A 183000t vessel with 6500 passengers and 1750 crew. It has water slides, roller coaster and all manner of outdoor activities from what we could see from our deck. A city at sea - not for me.

We had 1 more sea day before our final port of Nassau so we started our packing. The test will be getting the checked baggage under 23 kgs each. 

Nassau is capital and largest city of the Bahamas. It is located on the island of New Providence and has about 70% of the entire population of the Bahamas. We were down to do another snorkelling and catamaran tour but elected to take a walk around the town instead. The city is full of tourist shops all selling the same stuff. Although Julie did check out a jewellery shop for quite some time. Came away empty handed 👍

Back onboard for a bit of lunch, a glass or 2 of wine followed by a rest around the pool. Then off to complete the packing.

Our final day of the trip before flying out tomorrow consisted of the city walk then back onboard for lunch, a final lounge around the pool last game of trivia (then cashing in the points for another baseball hat 😁), dinner with our new found friends, the final pack and a few drinks before bed. We have an early flight out of Miami so off the ship as soon as possible, taxi to the airport and then the looooong flight(s) home. 5.5 hrs to LAX, 9hr layover at LAX then the 15.5 hr flight to Sydney.

So our 2month adventure has come to an end. Been away for 52 sea days plus travel to Barcelona and from Miami to home. Met heaps of lovely people. Ate a mountain of seafood, steaks, bread, cheese, desserts and pastries. Drank enough alcohol to fill a pool. Saw a lot of interesting places and did some exciting (and not so exciting) tours. Watched a lot of entertainment and did some dancing. Laughed a lot. Were very spoilt by having excellent weather, enjoyed the sunshine and warmth. Relaxed around the pool and on the occasional beach while being served cocktails, being massaged in the jacuzzi and visiting the gym and sauna. 

All up - an excellent experience 😀

I hope you enjoyed the read.