As the group grows, Susie decides that Marci needs a little on-the-job training, so she’s next, but who’s the roommate… Jason Krause.  Such a nice boy. How do we explain this to the grandparents. No, they’re not lovers, just good friends, kind of like Marci & Robb. But living in the same room for 17 days…. Oh my God!  But he’s just like a brother! OK

We can always hope for more… lets give it a try.

List of Travelers (in alphabetical order, Scott!) : Kerry & Scott Bader, Janet & Bobby Behringer, Ricki & Connie Butwinick, Lisa & Allan Caplan, Margie & Steve Krause,  Roberta & Howard Liszt,  Susie & Jim Simon, Linda & Jeff Noddle,  Marci Simon & Jason Krause,  Mindy   Wexler &  Kenny Small, and Kathy & Howard Zack

It’s 9:45 and Buster, the limo driver who takes care of Marci, is here .  . Apparently he has shared many of Marci’s drinking experiences as the party limo driver, including vomit stops where Marci brought her own airsick bag. He is tan from visiting his mother in Phoenix, and actually grew up with Scott Bader in the St.Louis Park High School Class of 71.

We are picking up Marci, and heading down 35W towards the airport, and arrive at the prescribed time of 10:45, 2 hours before departure of an international flight. We can’t check our bags at the curb, so we schlep them into the First Class International check-in line, where our group assembles. Bader’s are in-line ahead of us, and the Zacks appear right behind us. Kaplan’s show up 5 minutes later, and Krause’s soon thereafter.

All the bags weigh around 50 lbs, except for Jason’s, but he could put some of his stuff into his parents if he gets harassed about being over weight. Although Jason is not flying 1^st Class, we sneak him through with us saying that he needs to fly with his mommy.  As Susie goes through security, the TSA official grabs her package of liquids and asks whose “Magic Warming K-Y Jelly” is in the zip-lock bag. Susie confesses with a twinge of redness in her face, pretending that she is still a virginal schoolgirl.  Marci is suffering from “T-M-I” (too much information)

After a quick stop at Wolfgang Puk’s restaurant, we head for our gate for our 12:45 departure. The plane is a 747 with a 20-person front 1^st Class section, a larger 30-person middle 1^st Class section, and a 2^nd story 1^st Class section.  After Kerry carefully inspected all sections of the plane, it was decided that our 13 seats in the front 1^st Class section were the ones that were the most desirable. Poor Jason was in the steerage section with four  10 year-olds behind him for 12 hours, although he did have a bulkhead / aisle seat (which actually has no storage room in front of his feet).

Susie was in constant e-mail contact with Mindy, who was enduring a Snownami in New York.  For the third time this season, New York was suffering a snowstorm whose total snowfall exceeded 15 inches. JFK was closed, and Mindy’s flight from LaGuardia to Tokyo was being delayed minute-by-minute. I think it actually took off about four hours late, which insured that Mindy and Kenny’s chance of meeting up with the rest of the group was impossible. Susie was calling her office and requesting that her assistant Patty was making back-up reservations for Mindy to fly out of Tokyo the next day, after laying-over at a “Deluxe” hotel there.(rat-trap)

We actually took off late to begin our adventure, leaving after 1:30 pm Friday. We flew for 13 hours, arriving in Tokyo at 2:30 am Minneapolis time Saturday morning, but because of the 14-hour time difference,  it was 4:30 pm Saturday afternoon in Japan.  The route was polar, meaning we flew over Minnesota, North Dakota, then Saskatchewan, Canada to the Northwest Territories of Canada, into Alaska. From there, we crossed over Sarah Palin’s house with a salute to the flag, over Russia, then across the Sea of Japan to Tokyo.

The food was good  in 1st Class, and pill popping galore in sued. Benadryl, Lorazapan, Ambien, I think maybe even Viagra,  although I forget who took that. Actually, there were no Mile-High Club members in our group. Kerry slept most of the way, while the rest of us tried to get our bodies onto a new schedule that involved eating at 3:00pm, then a movie for 2 hours, then as much sleep as you could get.

We had a 2-hour layover in Tokyo shortened by our late arrival to 1 hour and 30 minutes. We did not have to go through Customs, but the security line took us about 30 minutes. We did stop in the Delta World Club in Tokyo for about 30 minutes,  then headed for the 3.5 hour flight to Beijing, China, arriving there at  10:00pm  Saturday night (which would be 8:00am in Minneapolis).  Very confusing!

We met Michael (real name = Nan) at the airport. He was our guide from Abercrombie & Kent (A&K). We collected our luggage (30 pieces for 12 people) and headed for our bus ride (50 person motor coach)to our hotel. At the Peninsula Hotel we met Bobbie & Janet Behringer, who had flown American Airlines from Dallas to Tokyo, then on to Beijing.

Just a note about Beijing. It is the capital of China, with 23 million people living there. Not the largest city in China, Shanghi has 45 million. Prior to 1949 it was called Peking, then the Communists took over under Mao, and changed the name. The city is larger and more organized than we thought. Probably a result of the 2008 Summer Olympics held recently. Gasoline is $4 per gallon  to hinder the growth of private cars, leading to 10 million bicycles being registered in the city. Public transportation is abundant, with buses, subways, and trains readily available. Capitalism was introduced to China in 1978, after Dong Ju Pin took over after Mao’s death. Capitalism and Communism works together, although the new upper class is mostly relatives of government officials who now own large private companies selling gas, oil, telephone services, and the media including Television stations.  Mercedes and Audis are everywhere. They actually have factories in China so their customers can avoid taxes charged on foreign-made goods.

Why isn’t America that smart?

We all  got to our rooms around 11:00 pm Saturday night, unpacked, and crashed from 20 hours of travel mixed in with 14 hours of time change.

Meet at the bus at 8:30, which means “Breakfast included” at 7:30. Jason & Allen work out at 6:00am. Many people have trouble sleeping, waking up at about 3:00am. The beds are firm and great. The hotel is beautiful, with all the high-end designer shops in the lobby… such as Prada, Bvlgari, Salvatore Ferragamo,  etc.  Fortunately it is Sunday, which means the stores are closed.

We start in Tianemen Square. It is soo cold. Most of the group starts out buying earmuffs, and then expand the purchases to Chinese Army hats and gloves.   Street vendors are everywhere, selling watches, post cards, anything. $30…$25…$20…$15…$10…$5.

The square is big, but the historical significance is over-shadowed by the bitter cold.  No Rebellions today,  just freezing Jews.  I bought a Panda hat, and used it for the group leader to see the end of our group, which spread out as different people  took a variety of pictures. I always brought up the rear, and kept count of our group.

The “Forbidden City” is really the winter palace of the emperors.  The middle stairway was for emperors only…  be-heading was the penalty for offenders.  The complex is about 2 miles square, with housing for 10,000 inside the walls, which included 3000 concubines… It’s GOOD to be the king (Emperor)  Classic Chinese architecture, with hand-carved wood designs under a clay-tiled high-angled roof.  We spent 30 minutes in a 5-star restroom, while Jason learned that Chinese bathrooms, even 5-star restrooms, do not provide toilet paper.  Thank God Steve was in earshot.

Let’s talk briefly about regular Chinese bathrooms. A hole in the ground… not so bad for guys, but a real challenge for the girls, which involves squatting while trying not to pee on their shoes. Can you imagine peeing on Lubatans? Good thing no fancy girls on this trip.

Yellow is the color for Emperors, and means “Power”,  Blue means Long-life. Red Means something or another. We learned about evil spirits, dragons, turtles, tigers, elephants, and all kinds of weird Chinese things.  “Right-Right”

Next was the Olympic village. Interesting,  but a tremendous waste according to Michael. The Olympic Stadium for the opening ceremonies is called the “Birdcage”  because of its original design. But after the Olympics, they don’t have any use for it, besides a park.$200,000,000 for a park.

Next stop….chotkass (Yiddish for junk)  Michael took us to a shopping center where we believed he was getting paid a finders fee for bringing stupid  Americans to buy pearls… but 4^th floor only…not the fake stuff on floors 1-2-3.

Remember 4^th floor =good. Not 2^nd floor… = Junk. Sharon’s store…only the good stuff for Kerry, Janet, Lisa.  Jason bought a  “Patek-Phillippe” for $30… what a deal, except it stopped working 3 days later. But Oh well, it looks really nice as a piece of fake jewelry.

Allen did find the deal of the trip. While thinking about packing for the trip, he realized he did not bring a spare set of prescription glasses in case of an emergency. He found a guy  who got the lense correction  by careful measuring, and  made him a custom pair of glasses in 20 minutes for $50.  What a deal!

Arriving back at the Peninsula hotel around 4:30, we all relaxed before dinner at “Made-in-China,” the restaurant at the Grand Hyatt hotel.  The restaurant was 2 miles away, and the group tried to get the Peninsula van to drive us as a group since it was snowing. The hotel wanted to charge us $250 for the trip. Marci got pissed , and yelled at the manager on duty, who after consulting with the general manager, declined our request. Susie started talking about moving the November group to a different hotel because of this lack of consideration . The taxi  ride cost each family $1.50, and took two minutes.  After this realization, everyone calmed down. All’s Well that ends well.

Sunday night was the last night of the Chinese New Year, which is comparable to Christmas.  Fireworks, a Chinese tradition, went on constantly for over 2 hours. Our Sunday ended with a bang!.  kind of…….

We are scheduled to go see the Great Wall after lunch. “Breakfast is included”  is at 7:30am. On the bus at 8:30 for a trip to the countryside to see the “Tombs of the Ming Dynasty”.

Nice 500 acre park with a shrine to each Ming Emperor. The site is out of the city about an hour away. The countryside looks like Minnesota… kind of, with farmland and snow. It is snowing today, overcast and foggy. We are on narrow 2-lane roads, and cars are sliding off into ditches. Beijing is surrounded by mountains, and it reminds me of the foothills of the Rockies near Denver.

There is a long walk to someplace protected by 10’ high stone sculptures of elephants, camels, lions, dragons….oh my.  Something about evil spirits again…who knows?

Next the bus stopped at the jade factory. Every trip I have been on contains a small part where the tour guide steers the group into a sales meeting with some kind of dog and pony show to get Americans to buy local junk….Some story about a jade ball hand-carved by a little old china-man which brings good luck to families. I think the real good luck is created by dollars changing hands. After a hour stay, we are on the road again.

The Great Wall is approximately 3000 miles long, about 25 feet high, with a 20’wide path that horses could ride on, built of brick, and took over 1 million labors over 1000 years to build.  Each emperor from each dynasty (example: Ming & Ching Dynasty) added to the wall for more protection against enemies, like the “Huns” from Hungary, (not  Hunger) and the Mongolians who made it a habit to take over China for about 1000 years. Genghis Kahn’s son Kubbla Kahn, (no relation to the Kahn’s in St.Louis Park) kept invading.

When we arrived at the Wall, it was snowing and cold.  There was at least 1” of new snow on the wall, and it made it very slippery to walk since the wall followed the mountain terrain, mostly up hill.

10 people in the group only lasted for about 20 minutes of walking. Only Steve & Jason, and Mindy and Kenny went for longer. Walking up hill was easy….coming back down was treacherous. Grabbing on to hand railing was mandatory. The fog was so thick that pictures from our cameras weren’t showing any background  sites. Steve told us he made it all the way to the end of the wall before he turned around. 3000 miles each way in 40 minutes. I wonder if he was lying?

Got back to the hotel around 5:00pm.  Dinner somewhere… I think we had Chinese… I am not sure. Another fun day in the People’s Republic….

For that matter no extra charges for overweight passengers either. Bid fond farewell to Michael…..’Right..Right”  Overall impressions of Michael are:  Good guide….knowledgeable…believable…good English….good experience,  only one- too- many commissionable event for chotkasses.  Our flight leaves at around 11:00am, so we meet in Cathway’s world club for an hour before boarding.

Cathway Airlines very interesting in respect to cabin layout.  All 1^st Class seats are individual cabins on diagonal axis.  Susie meets a banker from Hong Kong who explains this plane is designed for “Long-Haul” flights, like non-stop to America, where the passengers can sleep privately for 12 hours. 3.5 hour flight un-eventful, unless you consider that a) the food served in 1^st Class was vile (coming from Jim who will eat anything), or b) the main movie that most of our group watched was the Coen brothers film “A Simple Man”, filmed in Minneapolis one year ago,  with many recognizable Minneapolitans in key extra roles, which had to be one of the worst movies ever made in the history of modern cinema.

Hong Kong is amazing. A British Colony from 1842 until 1997,  it is like a combination of New York and Las Vegas, only cleaner and newer.  7 million people live here, primarily in high-rise apartments along the waterfront. Most of the buildings are less than 50 years old, and many have been built since 1997 when Hong Kong went back under Chinese control….kind of.  They have their own money, different from mainland China, and a separate government.  Hong Kong is one of the leading cities in the world for fashion and finance.  Every major designer has stores here, and every major hotel is here. On par with London, New York, Paris. Very impressive.

At the airport , our next tour guide from A&K is Ben, who was formerly a cruise Director on Crystal.  He has been leading tours in Hong Kong for the last 25 years. He lives in the city with a wife, 2 daughters, a dog, a Mercedes, and a Phillipino nanny. 4 girls and him in a small 700 square foot apartment. He begins throwing around of bunch of facts that we eventually begin to questions, like Wisconsin’s main product is ….what?

The drive to the city takes an hour, past the world’s largest container shipyard. With over 40 giant skyhorse cranes, they can load the largest (3000 containers the size of a semi-trailer) ships in less than 24 hours.  Half the world’s cargo goes through this harbor. Everything is made in Hong Kong.

When we arrive at the Inter-Continental Hotel, the view is breath-taking. Located right on the harbor between the Island of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, I have never seen such a beautiful setting. After a quick check-in, we got to our rooms located on the 10^th floor. We had decided to unpack quickly, so that we could take a short tour of the city on our bus. 95% of the population in Hong Kong live on a 10 mile stretch along both sides of the harbor.

First we stopped at the flower markets…..beautiful.  Then we went to the bird markets…GROSS.

Next we went to the markets along Nathan street, named after the first Jewish Governor of Hong Kong who held office around 1901. We got back to the hotel around 5:30. We had a reservation at a fancy restaurant across the street from our hotel at  Aqua, but everyone decided that we were too tired to go.

So after we watched the harbor light show from our lobby, we went to NOBU in our hotel.. Oh Boy….  Sushi….raw fish…..octopus….etc.  Dinner was actually fun.  All the girls sat at one table, got drunk, and talked about girl things amidst much laughter (like sex,  pooping, and shoes) but not necessarily in that order.

After dinner we all retired to our rooms, so that we could get a good night sleep.

The bus took us to Hong Kong Island, a half-hour ride through a tunnel under the harbor. It was really nice, clean, and big,  probably because the tunnel is privately owned by an investment company. The other side of the harbor is interesting. More big building including the “Batman’” building, where scenes from the latest Batman movie were filmed…. Something about jumping out of a 80 story building and being pulled into a airplane….I don’t know if I have even seen the movie.

First we visited some local small food markets, where we learned about the variety of strange ingredients used in Chinese soups……like deer penis’s, or penii or however you say the plural of weenies.

Next we went to a Chinese Temple,  Man Mo, full of incense smoke..   So smoky that I couldn’t even go in.. Most of the group stayed in there for 20 minutes. I don’t know if they were getting high, or banging on ritual drums, or what they were doing ?

We jumped on the bus and headed for the south side of Hong Kong Island to an area called “Stanley Market”, a bunch of small shops close together under a canopy. Marci bought some art work, nothing too exotic, and we all met for lunch at a Oceanside café around the corner from the market that reminded us of Italy. Someone actually had to pay for food, although I didn’t eat… I’m on a diet you know!

After lunch, we took a boat ride through  a part of the harbor area that lasted for about 30 minutes. Mixed in with Chinese junks were 10 million dollar yachts. Quite a dichotomy.

Next the bus took us to a Jewish Temple in the heart of the city on Kowloon island.

The temple was formed in the 1880’s, and their building was built in 1902. The temple was financed by some rich Iranian  merchants who had a trading company in Bombay, and had started a new branch in Hong Kong. Jacob Sassoon and his brothers had the building built on land that they owned.

The building can house approximately 500 Orthodox jews during the High Holidays, which requires them to operate in shifts, like most congregations. We were met by the temple administrator’s wife, a British girl who has been in Hong Kong for about 1 year. They have one rabbi, who has announced he is moving, so they are looking for a new rabbi. We opened their Ark, and saw 22 torahs. One torah was purchased by a Temple member when he discovered it for sale at a Chinese antique shop, probably someone’s loot from World War II.

The family sold off some excess property adjoining the temple to a developer who built a 70 story apartment building in 1998, and the temple used the bottom 5 stories for a Jewish Community  Center, which includes a sanctuary for a Reform Congregation, a Sunday School, a athletic center, and a swimming pool. Presently there are 3000 Jewish families in Hong Kong, or approximately 10,000  to 12,000  Jews.  There are other various Temples in other Chinese cities, like Shanghi.

Jews are readily accepted by the Chinese. They are looked at as another 5800 year old tribe with strong family values, and a written history similar to the Chinese.

On the bus, Ben tried to give us a lesson in Chinese writing. The Chinese language has a symbol for each word, approximately 1200. The English dictionary ,made up of 26 letters, has approximately 2300 words. No one paid much attention to the lesson….kind of like Hebrew school.

The plan for dinner Wednesday was a ferry ride across the harbor to Hong Kong island, then a 15 minute walk to “The China Club” a fancy private dinner club that A&K arranged for us. Allen was meet by his cousin, Les,  and Kerry & Scott stayed back at our hotel.  Donna Miller’s daughter  Matty, and her boyfriend met our group at the restaurant, which is known for its Cantonese food.   Because of the size of our group, we split into two tables.

After a slow start at the restaurant, the food was great and the atmosphere was comfortable.  After dinner, we all took cabs back and went to bed.

Addition by Kathy:

Earlier in the day, we took a tram to the top of Victoria’s Peak, which is a major tourist attraction due to its spectacular views of the city and the harbor.  The tram is used by both tourists and locals as a means of transportation.

It’s pearls for Susie, Kathy, Kerry, and Lisa  and Jason got watches.  Marci checked out the Four Seasons Hotel across the bay and said it may be the most beautiful hotel she has ever seen, but the location of our hotel was better.

IT’S a BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Marci just got an e-mail from Josh & Rae. We are so excited. Rae is still the queen of her castle.  They actually sent us a video that included pictured of a baby with a penis. What will they name it?  Irwin,  Ira, Issy, Irgy, Issac, Ian, we don’t care.  They’re all OK with us. Lot’s of planning going on. No pink clothes. Drew already ordered “AirForce One” sneakers for his nephew. He is so Excited! Thoughts of football come to mind. Susie is telling her friends that we have a new Viking fan joining us. And now what kind of bris?  In the hospital or at home?  Lots of fun things to think about.

After shopping, everyone is getting ready to board the ship.  Meet in the lobby at 1:45 pm with your luggage for a short cab ride to the pier. We where told not to show up until 3 pm, but no one listens to rules. Scott and Kerry board by 1:30, and call us to say how smoothly boarding was.

SILVER SEAS WHISPER:

We are greeted by a butler with champagne. The rooms are great. Luggage arrives within 15 minutes.  After a start at unpacking, the girls decided to hit the shops one last time before the ship sails at 6:00 pm, so it’s off to the very fancy shopping center near the pier for the last 90 minutes in Hong Kong.

At 5:00 pm all passengers must stop what they are doing, and put on their life jackets and head to the “Muster Stations” for a “Drill”

At 6:00 pm, amidst fanfare, the ship pulls out. All the passengers meet on the upper outside decks to view  our departure,  with more champagne for most, and for me,  kabobs…. Beef, chicken, and shrimp. I ate at least 15 in the 45 minutes we stood outside. Most of our group just drank. Some took pictures, I ate. Just a quick nosh before dinner, because you know, I am watching my weight on this trip.

Dinner is at 8:00 pm in the main dinning room, where I taught the boys how to order anything and everything they wanted from the menu or even  stuff  that wasn’t on the menu. Howard called me his hero. You can have steak, (filet or sirloin), chicken, or salmon , or all three in my case, every night in addition to the specials that are on the menu. Conversation was great… a good time had by all.

Rockin & Rollin!!!!!!

The ship is really bouncing. Everyone walks like they are drunk, weaving all over. The day at sea consists of “Breakfast Included”  A nice breakfast around 9:00 am in the lounge at the back of the ship. You can sit inside or out. Selection and quality are fine. No one goes hungry.

After breakfast, the tanning begins. A day at the pool.  Drinking, schmoozing.  A nosh around the pool. Pizza, veggie burgers, possibly the best  cheese burger Linda Noodle has every had, with fries… just like home.

Let the Games begin:  “Rotten”  Most people retire to the observation deck lounge to learn the game called Rotten. Susie, Marci, and Mindy try Bingo. Massages and other Spa treatments start. Generally a relaxing day for all.

Tonight is a formal night in the main dining room, which means that our group will not be attending do to the reluctance of some to put on a necktie.  The separate Italian restaurant  is our destination, with the special Lobster Dinner available to us along with the typical pastas, etc.  Susie and Roberta are sea-sick and don’t make it to dinner, instead spending the night rockin & rollin in bed…..alone.

The bus is scheduled to pick us up at 8:30, so “Breakfast Included” starts at 7:30. Susie has recovered from her sea-sickness, and she spends 15 minutes packing up food and candy for today’s journey. We got licorice, juju beans, granola bars, nuts and raisins, and a variety of other goodies.

ROBB  BADER’s ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On the way to the bus we learn the GOOD NEWS from Kerry and Scott. He proposed at the St. Paul Hotel amongst roses on bended knee.  Everyone on this trip is genuinely happy for the Bader’s because we all knew last time that he picked the wrong girl,  but this time everyone knows Melissa is perfect for Robb.  The right family, the right situation, a beautiful girl who understands Robb for what he is and accepts him unconditionally. We are all so happy…… tears of JOY from Kerry are welcomed.

“LIFE HAPPENS”  I just need to comment here that LIFE  HAPPENS, whether you are ready or not. Now, Kerry would rather be home to celebrate this simca, but LIFE HAPPENS. Just like Josh yesterday. The GOOD, the BAD…. LIFE… you can’t stop it!

The bus tour begins with a magnificent ride  from the small port through the mountains on a two-lane road with a cliff on one side that drops off over 100 feet. Our new guide from A&K is ____ ____ ____.

The people who live in the countryside live in small concrete houses that measure 15 feet by 15 feet which totals around 225 square feet, probably with no electricity.  The whole country just got electric power in 1991.

We are headed to the city of Hoi An, hereinafter referred to as “The Lantern City”  I don’t remember why……just that there are lanterns hanging everywhere.

First stop in a museum of Vietnamese Art. Not very memorable, but upon exiting, there was a fabulous art store with prints. Nearly everyone found something to their liking.

Then a drive through a part of the city called “Marble Something” to a high-end  sculpture store. Everyone bought something. Small multi-colored apples  were a hit. Buddha’s….etc.  Bobbie & Janet bought the most beautiful 6 foot tall beige marble contemporary sculptures of women in various poses for their pool area in the new house.

Then a drive through a part of the city called “Marble Something” to a high-end  sculpture store. Everyone bought something. Small multi-colored apples  were a hit. Buddha’s….etc.  Bobbie & Janet bought the most beautiful 6 foot tall beige marble contemporary sculptures of women in various poses for their pool area in the new house.

Bobbie thought the price was 1/6th of the price for a comparable item at home.  When you make large purchases out of the country, you should use an American Express card, because they have insurance.  If the stuff doesn’t show up, you void the charge.

Next stop was a silk-farm. Steve and Scott thought it was going to be a waste of time (like they had more important things to see), but Jason chased them down and convinced them that they should see it because he found it so interesting.

Silk comes from worms, who make cocoons from thread from their bodies, kind of like spiders.. The cocoons are unwound into silk, each 1 inch cocoon producing 300 feet of silk. Workers take the thread using a loom to weave the silk into fabric. This farm then had girls making prints that looked like photographs by hand sewing thousands of stands of silk. Many people in our group bought some prints. There was also a store within the farm that made custom tailored clothes. Kenny bought scarves for his nurses that work in his dentist office. The best part of the clothing store portion of this stop was that this room is air-conditioned. The temperature today is approximately 90 degrees. Everyone (not just me) complains about needing a shower… we were all so smelly.

We left the factory and headed into town for some shopping. Small stores where just about everyone purchased Vietnamese hats for sun protection. The girls  looked so fashionable….. like little Jewish geishas. Susie paid $1 to use a bathroom for pay.

We split into 2 groups of 8 and got on small boats for a 30-minute tour of the harbor, highlighted by seeing 2 water buffalos bathing.

On the bus again for a quick  20 minute ride to China Beach, Vietnam’s Miami Beach.

I think the only historical significance was that US soldiers vacationed here during the war.  Many developers are pouring millions of dollars into building hotels next to this beautiful beach.

On the bus again for the 1.5 hour trip across the country to the Port.  This time we went through a new tunnel built from 2000 to 2005 that runs under the mountains for over 3 miles. This route was less scenic, going through industrial area, which included a steel mill with scrap iron next to it.

We arrived at the ship around 5:00 pm, too late to partake in afternoon tea, sandwiches, or a snack. After Patron in the bar, most people retired to their rooms for room service enjoying a magnificent sunset as the ship set sail.

Dinner tonight is in the main dining room, with couples splitting up into smaller groups. Caplan’s with the cousin. Marci and Jason without old farts by themselves. Mindy & Kenny join the Zacks.  Baders, Behringers, Krauses, and Simons met later. Steve got rejected by the maitre-de and was sent back to his room for a wardrobe malfunction, no coat. Dinner was fine; accept our group took the time to put together a list of suggestions that Susie was going to take to the ships director tomorrow morning. Steak was the primary choice of our group, although the filet was better than the sirloin… I should know… I ordered both, because I am on a diet youknow.

After dinner was the first musical show of the trip, a tribute to Broadway. Actually they did  hit songs from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s.  The boy singers were great, the girl singer was fair. Most guys however did mention that one of the girl dancers was outstanding for some reason or another. The show ended at about 11:15. That was enough for some, who went to bed.

The night owls then went gambling, and I am happy to say that at least several in our group, Kerry & Janet, actually won at Blackjack.  The end of another Great Day.

The days event schedule centered around eating…..breakfast, lunch, and dinner included. I explained to the boys about “Turf & Turf” the concept where you order 2 steaks for dinner, a 8 ounce filet and a 12 ounce sirloin., because I am still on a diet, you know. Chester Taylor got traded to the Bears. No one can believe it!  A game of “Rotten” ( a card game with suits, declarations, and points)  happened to break up the afternoon,  and more spa treatments ensued.

Another thing I should mention is the group from Buenos Aires. There are 16 couples from B/A who are on their 3^rd voyage together. The guys are around our ages, but their wives look a little younger (a lot)  Plastic surgeries abound, with firm breasts everywhere. These people know how to party….drink… dance…eat…and shop.  A very handsome group. They had their own Disco Night which started at 11:00pm, and the ship’s management declared they would have to open it up to everyone (who could stay up and not mind dancing in Spanish)  Mindy & Ken danced for a while, and Caplan’s tried to stay up.