Our last port of call. Up at 7 a.m. and breakfast in the 'Jammer of bran muffin, fresh fruit, yogurt, and coffee. Set out for Phillipsburg about 10 a.m. We are the only cruise ship in port today, so streets are open, but we are being accosted more frequently by vendors, especially since we are "marked" with wristbands for the water taxi to and from the ship. Julie and I head straight for "That Yoda Guy" museum on Front Street. It was not open, so Julie and I split and I hung out at a kiosk bar for about an hour drinking three cold Heinekens. Returned to the museum and it was open. The place is run by Nick Maley and his wife, Gloria. Nick has created puppets and figures for approx. 50 movies, but is best known for creating the Yoda figure for Star Wars Episode Five. The place is regularly featured on Tripadvisor among the 10 top things to do in Phillipsburg.
The Internet Movie Database (IMDB) notes that his last movie credit was in 1985, but since that time he has devoted himself to this nonprofit museum, also giving inspirational talks, painting, and running a small "Yoda fantasy" hotel on the island. Both he and Gloria are charming people. And they had time to talk with me because they weren't too busy, owing to only one cruise ship being in port. Gloria made me up a special montage poster, and Nick signed it and put a dedication on it.
This was a special moment for me because I'm a big fan of the original Star Wars trilogy, and to meet someone who was so involved with one of the key characters was a real treat.
Jan. 21 and 22
The two days at sea to travel the 1,200 miles back to Fort Lauderdale provide some down time for reading and some reflection on the trip. I finished "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown, and in all I read five books on this trip, consisting of three paperbacks and two Kindle electronic books. This was certainly a treat since I rarely have time to devote to such reading. The nightly shows during this time were a second production show by the RC Singers and Dancers called "Broadway to the Big Screen." They did numbers from West Side Story, Hairspray, Chicago, and a couple others which I did not recognize. The other show was a comedian who was very funny and talked about the differences in raising children from our generation versus the current generation and their obsession with keeping their kids "safe" and being involved with absolutely every aspect of their lives. Very funny stuff. Flashbacks of childhood and riding in cars with no safety belts and Dad smoking with all the windows rolled up.
Saturday was lobster night in the dining room, and I ate three tails ... delicious. Lobster was even served in the 'Jammer on Sunday (a first, at least in my experience) so got a fourth tail as well. Yummy.
Back in Ft. Lauderdale Monday morning, and we left the ship about 8 a.m., gathered our luggage, went through customs, boarded the shuttle to the Homewood Suites, and Julie and I were on the road to Ft. Myers by about 9:30 a.m.
Reflections.
1. With a few exceptions, all the ports are looking more and more alike to me. Maybe part of that is because Julie and I are not spending the money on shore excursions, and are thus only running the gauntlet of tourist traps and shops that run the shoreline where the cruise ships dock. Beyond that perimeter of prime real estate lies ghetto. Seriously, the streets and sidewalks in such a state of disrepair that you really have to be careful not to twist an ankles, or downright fall, or in some cases get hit by a car or truck when the sidewalk mysteriously disappears and becomes part of the road for a stretch! There are people begging, and many more who appear to be milling about with no purpose, and they look angry.
Of course, those on RC's shore excursions are quickly whisked past of this poverty and degradation to the islands' pristine places, the beaches, the rainforests and waterfalls, the coral reefs, and the ziplines above the jungle canopy.
And thus lies the great paradox of these islands: The very people who inhabit these islands as to be downright dangerous to traverse. Still I am compelled to at least get off can't afford to visit these nice places, despite the fact that (supposedly) the islands' number one source of revenue is tourism. Where are all these tourism dollars going? Because from what I can see, it's not going toward basic infrastructure or to better the lives of the people who live there.
I know ... wa, wa, wa. What is a person to do? Should I stop cruising? Should we all stop cruising? I don't think so. This will only put the islands in deeper shit, both literally and figuratively. So I will keep cruising. And I will continue to get off at the ports, if only to step on dry land for a while and admire the beauty, even if somewhat thinly veiled. In the end, I think it's a case of the old adage, "It's a nice place to visit ..."
2. I am more and more becoming aware that RC (and probably every other cruise line) is adopting the economic model of the movie theaters where they break even on the movie, but it's the popcorn that pays the bills. In RC's case, the "movie" is the cruise, and the "popcorn" is the booze (fueled by all the night-time parties and social events) and the shore excursions. I mean, Julie and I each spent $1,300 on the "basic" cruise and I don't think RC made a whole lot of money on either one of us when you consider the "basic" cruise includes your room (made up every day), 24-hour access to food, pool and beautiful public areas, live music throughout the ship, and live entertainment every night. Julie and I could have easily ... EASILY ... spent another $1,000 apiece on upgrades, but we didn't. So I don't think I'll ever be one those customers that RC personally calls two weeks before the cruise to upgrade me to a suite for $100 extra! And that's OK. I still think cruising is one of the best travel bargains around. The secret (or at least one of them) to cruising is to tune out all the noise before and during the cruise to buy the popcorn, and be content with the movie. And, at least for me, it ain't all that hard to do, folks!
Bruce
Interesting comparison of cruises with movie theaters. As kids, we used to pop popcorn at home, put wax paper in a paper shopping bag to stop the butter from oozing through, and sneak our popcorn in under bulky jackets at Stoughton's Badger Theater.
ReplyDelete