Heather's Cruise Part 3- Fortaleza to Salvador, Brazil

December 1, 2010 My Birthday

Fortaleza, Brazil

I woke up at 5:15am and was surprised to see another ship outside my porthole. I knew we must be close to land so I quickly dressed, went up to the top deck, and watched us come into port at Fortaleza, Brazil. 

This was my first view of the"New World". I was a little surprised about the skyscrapers. I knew we were going to a city, but guess I just had something a little more primitive in my mind:)

One thing I found very fascinating was the education on cashews. Each cashew nut is actually the seed of a cashew fruit that grows on a tree like an apple. One fruit = one cashew nut. Now I understand why cashews are one of the more expensive natural snacks. In Brazil they harvest lots of cashews, then use the fruit to make an alcoholic drink.

some pretty flowers

more cool plants

Typical street vendors. They were on every street in downtown Fortaleza shopping area.
We only spent 4 hours touring Fortaleza on the bus. It was OK, but after awhile, a city is just another city.

The beach front

the city park

an old Cathedral

future LDS Temple site. Not much to look at right now, but wait till the Temple is built!

At dinner that night my friends ordered me a Birthday Cake and the whole restaurant sang to me.
I love Birthdays!

Thursday December 2, Recefe'
Today was really fun. We went to an old part of the area called Olinda. It means "an area of great beauty". We had a walking tour of the old city and visited a small area for shopping. It was much more interesting to walk the street and stop and see the different plants and just feel the life on the street. Much better than just riding by on the bus.

This is mom and I in front of  very old baobab tree from Africa.

This is a banana tree. The bananas grow upside down, because the little flowers on the ends of the bananas always try to grow toward the light. The big red thing at the end is called the heart and is suppose to have medicinal properties for your circulatory system.

Our last stop for the day was the Recefe' Temple. We enjoyed performing an endowment session before racing back to the ship. Our tour guide called the ship from the bus to tell them we were on our way. He was the last one up the gangplank and they actually closed the door behind him as he stepped onto the ship.

Friday Dec. 3rd - Maceio

This was suppose to be my only day I had to just sit on the beach. At least that was the original plans. But everyone was so worried about me going off on my own, so I ended up sticking with the group for the boring bus ride around town. They said we were going to the beach, but by the time we finally got there the day was half over. I did get to swim for about 30 minutes, enjoy a Coke on the beach in the beautiful blazing heat, and even do a little shopping. But don't get me started on how frustrated I was about wasting the first half of the day.

Mom quenching her thirst with  fresh coconut water.

a view of the city with our ship in the background

me and Dora Mae

the colorful fishing boats on the beach

a view of the beach from my beach chair.

chair rental 5 reais...
cold coke 3 reais...
temperature- sand hot enough to burn off the soles of your feet...
memory of the sunshine and the Brazilian atmosphere- priceless!
(actually Tracy would probably have a number for that:)

Saturday Dec. 4- Salvador
This was one of the best days of the trip! How can I describe this day in it's full glory.
We started out at 8am. Our bus guide was amazing. He spoke very fluent English and was a teacher by profession. He was very knowledgeable about his Brazilian heritage and shared his views of all the mixed races and the history of the Brazilian/African/Portuguese cultures. Everything he said was very fascinating to me. I really like the new perspective I am gaining as I learn about other people. So here goes my photo journal of the day's activities.

At every port we are met by local ambassadors of the city that greet us with music or dancing. This is mom with a Bahia woman. She is dressed in the traditional costume handing out prayer ribbons.

we first took a quick bus tour around the city. This is the public elevator from the harbor (poor slave area in historic times) to the upper city (or rich Portuguese area).

a small view of the waterfront with guys selling sugar cane

The view looking down to the harbor from the upper city.
The little island was a prison.
The white building in the left hand side was the slave trading house, and the large brown building on the right side (now a market) was the tax house where you paid for the slaves after purchase.

friends getting their picture taken at the tourist attraction.

One of the most amazing things I witnessed was the unexpected surprise of the "Festival of Santa Barbara". We were walking through a courtyard area when I noticed all these people up ahead coming towards us. They were dressed in red and white and you could hear a commotion coming from down the street. Then you could see the procession coming, like a parade down the street towards us. I jumped up on a bench so I could get a really good view and not get lost in the crowd. Mom on the other hand thought it would be neat to have a front row seat and walked out to the curb.

If you look carefully you will see a little lady in a white hat  just next to the light pole. That is my mom.
So anyway the procession was amazing!! I think it was the cheerful energy engulfing me as they walked by singing and carrying flowers. You could just feel the happiness in the air. I thought it was amazing and I was blessed to be a part of it.

After the procession we continued down the street to the Gold Church. Along the way we saw this parrot outside a store.

this is the courtyard at the Gold Church. It is decorated in elaborate tile art describing man's purpose on earth and how we can get to heaven.(at least in the belief of the original builders of the church)
I can't describe the whole story, but it was interesting to get the perspective of why they felt they needed to build so many churches and make them so decorated. The basic idea was the more you paid the church, the greater your reward in heaven, or something like that.

This was our tour guide. I love this picture because it reminds me of the passion he had about sharing the histories of the past. He was showing a picture of a slave woman nursing a rich Portuguese child. He talked about the clashes of the inequality and confused belief that the slaves were not human, but yet they were made to feed the rich ladies babies. Very similar to the stories of the US slave trade. I found it all very fascinating and educational.

This is the artist that made this painting that now hangs in my living room. It is a painting of the Gold Church.

The Gold Church gets it's name from the fact that everything in it is covered with 800 kg of gold leaf. I actually don't remember its real name. I just found this amazing blog from someone else that visited the church. It has amazing video if you would like to follow the link http://www.360cities.net/image/panoful#325.58,8.95,70.0

After the church we made our way back to the ship, stopping along the way at the market to do a little shopping. This was the only day we actually had free time in a city after the group tour. I wanted to go walking around really bad, but everyone was worried about me going out on my own. I managed to talk my new friend Larry into coming along. After we got off the ship he confided that he really wanted to go exploring too, but it makes his wife nervous when he takes off on his own, so he told her he needed to go with me so I wouldn't be alone. So it was a win-win situation for both of us:)
We had an amazing afternoon and found a few real gems all on our own.

This is the old slave trading house that is now the Naval headquarters. Larry wanted to go for a closer look, but as soon as he stepped over the heavy chain next to the sidewalk, a machine gun toting guard gave him a look that spoke volumes and needed no translation.

The best part of the afternoon was stumbling upon the Museum of Modern Art. Our first view was just of this nice garden area next to the highway with yard art in it. We made our way down to the little beach and found a few other locals there swimming and enjoying the sunshine. The sign said "no swimming", but the guards at the top of the hill didn't seem to mind, so we kicked off our shoes for a dip.

It was perfect! It was like our own little oasis.

While soaking in the sun and pinching myself that I was really in Brazil having the perfect day, some young guys came by to enjoy the cove too. They jumped out of their boat and swam around. It was fun watching them enjoy life and just being teenage boys. The big white building in the background was our next point of exploration. It turned out to be an old Trading house that is now a museum.

 A view as we entered the old trading house. Apparently slaves came in and sugar went out.

Here is Larry standing next to some type of shallow, tile lined pools.

Looking at the pools from the other angle. I have no idea what they were really for.

This is just me in the courtyard in front of a really cool old tree:)

On the other side from the beach was this large docking area.

A view accross the docking area to an old building that was part of the compound. I think it is just a nice picture. The tree in the front had mangos.

As you keep looking to the left, the next view is the stark reallity of poverty. The big city buildings up on the hill, and the little houses stacked upon each other under the highway. It humbles you and makes you take stock of your blessings.

This was my last view of Salvador as we pulled out of the harbor at sunset. What an amazing day that I will never forget.

Sunday December 5th, 2010

Day at Sea

This day was spent visiting with new friends and making lasting memories with people that have changed my life in ways they will never know. I don't really understand it all myself, but this Sabath Day was probably the most touching in my life. We had a wonderful Fast and Testimony meeting together, and shared many feelings of joy and happiness with each other that we share because of our membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Here are a few pictures of some of the most amazing people I have ever met. Maybe unassuming on the outside, but their example to me has changed y life.

This is Delgia and Adalton Parrela from Florinopolis, Brazil. I met them in the hotel lobby on my first night in Milano. They are true kindred spirits and I will love them forever. I can't wait for the day, weather in this life or the next, that we meet again.

Lynn and Kay Wallace. They were missionaries in Mozambique, Africa. Their sweet spirits and example of showing pure love to all people were very influential to me. I hope I can follow their footsteps, have their faith, and can serve a mission with my husband someday.

Doug and Arleen Dalton. He was a great story teller. Another example of humble, happy, people doing their best to serve the Lord. Great examples of living your religion, no matter what your situation.

Eric and Claudia Dalton (brother and sister-in-law to Doug and Arlene). They were tag along cruisers like my mom and I.

Dora Mae Blades and Carol Jean Nash. They are true sisters in blood and spirit. What fun loving sweet ladies. We hit it off from the first time me we met. They taught me how to play"7-11" with Skip-bo cards and I could always count on them for a good laugh.  

And here is my mom and I with our waiter.  I don't remember his name now, but he was from Bali and had the nicest smile. He was a genuinly polite and happy guy. He did make our dinner time special. I hope him and has family all the best.

I can't believe this is my only picture of Jan Hilton. I met her and Cleonice (whom I am very sad I don't have a picture of) during our first bus ride from Milano to Savona. A super lady full of life and a great example to just open your mouth and share the gospel with everyone you meet.

And of course there is Alf Gunn, former FBI agent and the guy who made this trip possible. You will never meet a more Christ-like gentleman on this earth.

These were just a few of the people that I will always remember.

Heather's Cruise Part 2- Canary Islands and Cabo Verde

Thanksgiving day 2010
I spent the day enjoying the warm weather at Tenerife on the Canary Islands. The Canary Islands are to Europe as Hawaii is to the U.S.A. Mom and I decided to spend our 6 hours on the island at the European version of Sea World called "Loro Parque." I have lots of pictures of dolphins, seals, and orca whales, along with all the exotic zoo animals. They had the nicest penguin exhibit I have ever seen. We also had the pleasure of sitting in the front row in the "NO-splash zone" during the orca show. It was so exciting to be so close to the whales.

Mom and I really like this sort of stuff and had a really fun day. Our tour guide on the bus was very knowledgeable about the island and told us lots of interesting facts on the drive to the park(in no less than 5 different languages). Such as.. there are no canary birds on the islands. The word canary comes from the word dog (in which language I am not sure). The islands use to have a special type of wild dog on them. Also there are like 13 climate zones on the island due to the height of the volcano. The mountain range in the middle of the ocean stops the humid air and creates a tropical zone where they grow bananas. The banana plantations get their water form the mist that covers the islands daily. They do not have irrigation.The people do not built their houses higher than 3,000 feet elevation because they do not have indoor heating. Just a few little tidbits of information to add to your brain.

This is a shot of the volcano. It has not erupted for 102 years.

So while I was enjoying the tropical climate on Tenerefe, Tracy was at home swearing at me under his breath for not getting the outdoor faucet fixed before winter (like he had asked me a dozen times). He was calling a repairman on Thanksgiving morning to come repair the ruptured water line in the wall. The kids also got out of school all week due to snow and then  the Thanksgiving holiday.

That night we had an incredible sunset with every color of red/orange possible. It is very peaceful to sit out on deck and behold such a sight!

Friday November 26, 2010 Day at Sea

Started the morning at 7am and went for a 3 mile jog around the little tiny track on the 13th deck( probably 30 laps or something like that). Then I layed out in the sun for an hour till mom got up and we went to breakfast. Spent the rest of the morning playing Yahtzee with some new friends, then had lunch with 4 Italians. One gentleman spoke fairly good English and helped us all to communicate. He use to work for an aerospace company and had been to the Boeing plant in Seattle several times. We talked about religion and Italy and had a nice conversation.  We have met all kinds of interesting people.

After lunch I went to a fireside by Brother and Sister Wallace about their mission in Mozambique. Although it is in Africa, it was a Portuguese colony at one time, so they speak Portuguese now. So the language Brother Wallace learned a a young man on his mission to Brazil, led him to be called as the first Mission president in Mozambique, Africa. It was very humbling to see their pictures and hear the stories of the people there.  I started getting a little homesick today, but staying busy helps keep the sadness at bay.

Saturday November 27 Cabo Verde Islands

The small city of Mendelo as we come into port.

What a great day!! There is nothing to speak of here in terms of great buildings, or famous places, but the people here were fascinating to me.

We were met by several of the local Elders from the small branch here. They took us to their humble little chapel and then drove us around the island for a quick tour.

This was the only place I was able to go snorkeling during my entire trip. We went to a little cove, away from the city where there was a little beach. I asked the guides if there were any sea creatures I needed to be careful of in the water and he said "No it is very safe.". Then I overheard the other guide telling everyone the government had brought in a bunch of rocks to make a breaker in the mouth of the cove so sharks could not come in.

I just loved these beautiful little boats. The landscape was varying shades of brown, but the people made up for it in the colors they painted everything. This is also where I went swimming.

 While I was snorkeling I kept telling myself "there are NO sharks, there are NO sharks...."

Unfortunately we only had 30 minutes to swim, but I had so much fun in those short 30 minutes!

Here is a typical street in the town.

Guys playing soccer on a dirt field.

I just loved the color of these houses! My living room is actually about that light blue color in the middle:)

Here is a painting of the little island. We started from Mendelo and drove about 20 minutes to Baia das Gatas. It was a very fun afternoon. We went to one little souvenirs shop and got some great little mementos. . It is a very primitive little city, but that is what made it feel so charming.

After leaving Cabo Verde we said goodbye to the coast of Africa, and started across the Atlantic. We had 3 days to relax and play on the ship before we would reach South America. Our first day crossing was Sunday. We were busy going to church and had a fireside and a formal dinner that evening. Here is a picture of my gastronomical seafood delight. 

It was a little creepy to have my dinner looking at me, but it tasted OK if you just didn't think to hard about it. The next day started out great. I woke up early (as usual), jogged a few laps and rode the bike in the gym. By the time I got up on deck to soak up some sun it was 9:20am. We got settled into our deck chairs, and by 9:50 the sky had darkened and it started to rain:( Not just a drizzle, but a downpour, and it remained cool and coudy the rest of the day

I was sooooo disapointed!! I was in the middle of the atlantic Ocean, headed to the equator,

 I WANT TO SOAK UP SOME SUN!

Tuesday November 29, 2010

The day I sailed over the Equator!

Now this was a glorious day of sunshine. I laid on the deck from 7:30 am till 1:30 pm and finally got myself a sunburn:) Around noon got blessed by King Neptune and rode the waterslide a few times. I was misinformed about the Baptism by King Neptune (because I could not understand the Italian party planners) and missed out on being smothered in pudding and pureed "whatever it was", and so I just watch happily as a bunch of other saps jumped into the food sewage in the pool. It was really gross!

Here I am with King Neptune and my friend Larry Stamps. He was much braver(or just more foolish) than I and he did end up jumping into the pool of grosseness. It was the best day of fun at sea the entire trip.