Day 5 - January 7, 2025 - Tuesday - Another Sea Day

Today promises to be a better day weatherwise!  Having set our clocks back an hour last night (we are now 4 hours behind Atlanta), we woke up early.  Before 6AM Kay headed to the gym and I headed to find some coffee.  We were both successful.  After my coffee, I also wander off to the gym for a short workout since we have been unable to walk the decks for two days.  

Following breakfast, we attended another lecture in the Star Theater.  This one was titled "The Natural History of the Hawaiian Islands presented by Captain Tom Anderson.  Anderson is a long term resident of the islands.  This was especially enjoyable for Kay and I because he had photos of so many out of the way places we have hiked in our visits to the Islands.  I look forward to his additional presentations.

Many friends as well as others who read my travel blogs often wonder how we manage so many sea days without becoming bored.  Below I have photographed the Viking Daily, the publication left in our cabin each night when we return from dinner and entertainment.  This is left along with a turned down bed, fresh linens and a restocked mini-frig.  I thought you might be interested in just how much is available to do on a typical day at sea.

For any of you who haven't already discovered, you can click on an image to enlarge it as well as scroll through the images.

The front cover always features something about the ship or our journey.  Todays was about the Bayeux Tapestry.  This large tapestry is almost 20 inches tall and 230 FEET in length  and depicts the Norman conquest of England in 1066.    What you ask does this have to do with a world cruise or a Norwegian  Ship?  The Viking Ocean Line prides themselves on displaying and promoting art.  In the stairwell on each level of the ship a huge reproduction of a section of the tapestry is displayed, see one below.

Our next "event" was another educational presentation.  This one was titled "Faith of Our Fathers" presented by Patrick Goodness (yes, that's his real name).  He discussed the many faiths which originated from the American experience (over 40 different Christian denominations alone).  

Patrick spent 8 years in seminary, training to be a Catholic Priest.  As he said, "as you can see it didn't take".  Patrick is recognized for his contributions to the study of ancient cultural anthropology, global mythology and comparative world religions. 

Between lectures, I made a few rounds on the promenade deck.  It was nice to finally have some good weather and a decent temperature.  The cooler weather should pretty much be behind us now.

After lunch I enjoyed time on our veranda.  It enjoyed absorbing some sun in only shorts!  Afterward, I spent some time working on this blog. 

We decided to get ready for dinner and then go attend ANOTHER lecture.  This one was  " The History of Navigation"  by Dr. Bryan Babcock.  It examined the scientific developments and tools of navigation through history.  I was looking forward to this lecture, Kay not so much.  After the lecture she admitted it was very much enjoyed.  Dr Babcock was a very good presenter.  He is another I look forward to hearing more presentations from.

After the lecture we went to enjoy the ships pianist for about 30 minutes until time for dinner.  It was during this time we learned of the fires today in the Malibu area of California.  This is the very area we were in only two days ago.  I understand that the Getty Villa, which we visited, had vegetation destroyed right up to the villa.  Fortunately, no artifacts were damaged.  They apparently have special fire protection including double walls, special ventilation and external water irrigation to help protect the collection.  

Following dinner we took in a show featuring singer Rachel Tyler.  She has performed on Broadway, in Vegas and all over Europe.  

So, what did I do on a sea day?  Well, I attended 2.25 hours of lectures, approximately 45 minutes exercising, one hour at a show, an hour sunning on the veranda and since we had all of our meals in the main dinning room (which takes longer, but we enjoy the attention) about 4.25 hours eating!  Yes, I said 4.25 hours.  45 minutes for breakfast, 1.5 hours for lunch and 2 hours for dinner.  The remainder of the time was spent reading, working on this blog and just wasted!  

The good thing about sea days are they are a luxurious leisure.  When we start reaching ports, the pace will pick up considerably.

Until tomorrow...

Day 3 & 4 - January 5th & 6th, 2025 - Touring Malibu & Boarding the Sky

A large part of today (Sunday) was hurry up and wait.  We went for breakfast at 7:00 AM and then had to wait until 9:30 for our departure for a drive up the Pacific Coastal Highway to The Getty Villa.

The short drive to Malibu was scenic, the beaches were fantastic, but looking at the back of a $40 million dollar homes crammed so close together, sometime there wasn't even room to walk between them, didn't inspire me to move there any time soon; like I could anyway :).

When we reached "The Getty", we were given 2.25 hours to explore on our own.  This was just barely enough time to view most of the exhibits.

J. Paul Getty constructed the "Villa" based on the Villa dei Papiri which he had visited near Pompeii and Herculaneum.  He felt he needed a fitting location to display his extensive collection of ancient Greek and Roman Artifacts.  The the Villa opened in 1974 and displays thousands of artifacts ranging from tiny pieces of gold jewelry to larger than life stone statuary. 

Below are a few examples and photos of the Villa.  I observed pieces ranging in date from 6000 BC to 200-300 AD.

Statue of Venus AD 100-200 
Discovered in Rome before 1508 AD

Marble female figure circa 4500 - 3500 BCE.  Recovered in present day Turkey

Stone and Clay figures dating 6000-4000 BCE

An interesting stone sarcophagus depicting Cupids in the process of pressing grapes for wine.

Solid gold ram's head drinking cup

After leaving The Getty, we traveled farther up the coast to the Malibu Cliffs.  In the photo below you can see some of the fire damage which occurred last year.  That is Pepperdine University in the background.

View looking in the other direction at the coast

After leaving Malibu, it was about a 1.5 hour drive to the port and our ship.  Upon arriving, the check-in and boarding was quite simple.  We had previously completed boarding information online, down to providing a recent photo which would be used for ID.  It took only a few minutes to be checked in, and room keys issued.

When we arrived at our cabin, our shipped luggage was already waiting for us, and the luggage which came with us was delivered in about 30 minutes.

Below are photos of our living quarters for then next 4 months.  Not huge by any means, but entirely adequate.  Considering that we will not be spending enormous amounts of time there and the room is serviced twice a day (more often if you need something).  Our steward was very accommodating and quickly addressed a few special request we had.

The bag contained gifts from Viking, a very nice jacket, cap, leather bound journal and world map.

We have an in room refrigerator, stocked with soft drinks, candy and mixers of our choice.  We also had a coffee maker, which we asked to be removed, the shelf space is too precious and it is not difficult to get much better coffee at one of the bars.

The bathroom is not large but again, adequate and well furnished and stocked.

Sunset from our veranda

Dinner this evening was delicious and enjoyable, as expected.  After dinner, we were going to a lecture, but decided we were just too tired from the long day.  Instead we spent more time unpacking and getting organized.

Monday - January 6th

I slept well last night, it is good to have the motion of the sea again.  I have missed it.  We met for breakfast in the formal dining room since this was a sea day and we were not in any hurry. 

Following breakfast we attended two lectures.  The first at 9:30 was "North American Time Machine" a presentation about the continent and its inhabitants over 3 million years.  The presenter was Dr Claudia Hackbarth, a geologist and earth science expert.  It was an excellent presentation in my opinion.  She was very realistic in regard to climate change and the natural climate cycles.

The second lecture a 11:00 AM was "California - Land of Condors & Prehistoric Giants".  This was presented by George Sranko, biologist, author and speaker.  His presentation was entertaining but in my opinion did not have as much "meat" as the previous lecture.  He is scheduled for several more, so I'll give him another try.

We had lunch at the World Cafe today (buffet style).  The theme was "Taste of the USA" .  It featured regional dishes such as California swordfish tacos,  Alabama shrimp Po Boy and Carolina Shrimp and Grits.   We enjoyed lunch.  

After lunch we went our separate ways, Kay decided to go to the gym (she is trying to start good habits early).  I am not as ambitious.  The wind was too high to do any walking on the promenade deck (it was closed), so I walked the halls, covering all 7 decks using the stairs.  It was pretty good exercise.  Things were pretty quite this afternoon, as you can see from this photo of one of the atriums.

I am not sure of the final passenger count after the 300+ who boarded in LA, but I am guessing it is under 900.

One other observation, the internet onboard is excellent.  I hope it continues.  We can thank Elon Musk and Starlink for this.  There is no comparison to the slow and spotty connectivity we had on our last world cruise 10 years ago.

Below is one of the innovative ideas we use to make the most of our limited space.  Due to the fact that all the walls are steel, magnets adhere very well.  By using strong hook magnets we are able to create much additional storage.  Using mesh shoe storage bags, many items beside shoes may be stored.  I use mine for belts, playing cards and any other small item you need to get out of the way.  

It was another excellent dinner tonight.  Perhaps I have got my immediate seafood fix, tomorrow I can expand my diet.  Today I had smoked salmon at breakfast, shrimp, halibut and swordfish at lunch and finally for dinner I had scallops, shrimp, marinated octopus and anchovies (in my Caesar salad).  I had not even realized the trend till this evening.  I do enjoy the seafood I don't normally get.

We are about to go to the Captain's Welcome event in the theater.  After that we set our clock back another hour and hopefully get another good night's rest.  

I'll catch you guys later...

Day 2 - January 4, 2025 - A day in Hollywood

 We were exhausted last evening.  After getting up at 4:00 AM, a day of travel and a time change of 3 hours, Kay and I retired around 7:30 local time.  I managed to get about 10 hours of sleep which did me wonders.

We met with the Wellborns for breakfast at 7:30 in the hotel restaurant.  The meal was very good but it should have been.  Eggs, hashbrowns, sausage, toast and coffee was $45 per person (tax and gratuity included).  At least the coffee was French pressed and was excellent. 

As per our plans, we caught the HOHO bus across the street from the hotel.  While waiting for the bus, I saw my first Waymo vehicle, but it would not be the last.  These driverless cars were passing the hotel on a regular basis.

 The first stop we exited was for the La Brea Tar pits. I have wanted to see the tar pits since learning about them in the 5th grade.  Unfortunately I was greatly disappointed.  Perhaps I would not have been at age 10.

At least I can now say that I have seen the Tar Pits.  Reading the history of the La Brea tar pits is actually more interesting than seeing them.

Next to La Brea is the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.  We did not visit the museum, but we did stroll though the Public Art exhibit "Urban Light".

Kay & Janet hiding within the exhibit

And we think we have problems in our neighborhood with trees and sidewalks!

We quite literlly missed our HOHO bus by seconds to board for our next stop.  Fortunately it was only about a 10 minute walk from La Brea to the Original Farmers Market, our next stop.

The clock tower was erected in 1948

The Farmers Market was truly an experience of sights and smells.  The land started out as a dairy farm in 1880 and then became an oil field when oil was discovered while drilling for water in the early 1900's.  Eventually the first farmers market opened in 1934 and has since grown to over a 100 merchants and over 40 restaurants and eateries. 

I found my sweet spot at See's Candies.  See's is my favorite candy and you can't get it in Georgia without having it shipped.  

I stocked up!

After reboarding the bus at the Market, we went "up top" on the open deck to enjoy a sightseeing tour of Beverly Hills and Hollywood.  

Capital Records Building

The Hollywood walk of Fame was another somewhat disappointment for me.  Although it was much longer than I expected, It was somewhat ragged in many areas.  A few random photos follow.

It is not a walk of fame for everyone

Rodeo Drive

This photo was taken from our hotel room window.  It faces Laurel Canyon, home of "movie stars".

After arriving back at the hotel, we got about an hours rest and had dinner at the Corner Bakery Cafe of Beverly Hills.  I had an excellent Chicken Rosa Pasta (and the price was quite reasonable, thank you.)

I am glad to have had the opportunity to visit Beverly Hills and the Hollywood area, but a couple of days is plenty for me.  I certainly could not live here, just not my style.

We start early tomorrow.  Our luggage must be ready at 7:30, which is when we plan to meet for breakfast.  We board our bus at 9:30 to visit the Getty Villa Museum.  Following the museum we will have a costal drive to Long Beach where we will be boarding the Viking Sky to officially begin our adventure.

Day 1 Jan. 3, 2025 - Off We Go

Well, we are off to a good start.  With Christmas behind us, and our wonderful time spent with family in the past, we are ready to start our new adventure.

Alex our Top Hat Limo driver arrived at 5:25 AM.  We drove the 1.5 miles to the Wellborn and departed their house at 5:45.  Traffic was light and we arrived at Atlanta Airport at 6:40.  We had our bags checked and we're through security by 7:00 AM, a record for us.

Loading our luggage.

Alex our driver.  Top Hat Limo is the BEST!

I am writing this post while waiting for our 8:55 flight 

I'll give the next update from Beverly Hills..

 Continuing --

We had an incredibly smooth flight.  Everything was on time and there was no turbulence for the entire trip. Service was excellent and even the food was good.  This trip almost restored my faith in air travel.

Kay relaxing prior to boarding completing.

We arrived at LAX around 11:00 AM and we're met by two Viking representatives.  They escorted the four of us to a Mercedes van which had  us at the Sofitel Beverly Hills at 12:05.  It was only a 12 mile trip, but took 40 minutes. (almost as long as our 45 mile trip to the Atlanta Airport.

The Sofitel Beverly Hills 

Check-in was painless and we all went to our rooms for a little R&R.  We met again at 2 o'clock for a little exploring.

Macy's at the Beverly Center across the street from our hotel. 

 This is just one of several shopping centers within walking distance.  This photo was taken just at dusk from above the hotel's pool.

After a little exploring, we had a delicious burger are Johnny Rockets around the corner from the hotel.  It was only 3:00 PM but our bodies knew it was 6:00.

Just a little reminder why I don't wish to live in California.

It will be early to bed tonight.  I think we are purchasing all day tickets for a Hop On Hope Off bus tomorrow.  That seemed the best way to spend the day viewing the sites 

Please forgive my misspellings and punctuation in this post.  I am doing it on the phone, not the best way.  

Until tomorrow...