Home Again, Home Again

We returned from our cruise yesterday afternoon. So hard to believe that it is all over with. We had a fabulous time and enjoyed fantastic weather. It was such a treat to be able to visit so many cities, although I must admit I felt a bit rushed in some of the ports of call. We would usually disembark the ship by 9 or 10 and, depending upon our sailing time, would have about six to eight hours to explore. So we really had to be choosy about what we wanted to see and do at each destination. We never got to wander around in any of the cities at nighttime, but truth is we rarely saw the night sky anyhow. The sun rose around 4 a.m. and didn't set till 10 p.m. or later, depending on where we were. I got up one night at 2 a.m. to see the stars and the moon and it was still (or already) light out.

We are both a bit exhausted, hard to understand as the last two days of the cruise we were at sea and did nothing but loll about on the ship. We got up at the crack of dawn yesterday morning and by 7:30 a.m. we were walking down the gangway, having already showered, dressed and breakfasted. It took a little over four hours to drive back to Harrogate. The roads were quite a bit busier than when we came down to Harwich. For one thing it was a Friday and the beginning of a bank holiday weekend. It took nearly all afternoon to unpack our things and sort out the humongous piles of laundry. I still have several loads to go. The cattery opened at 5 p.m. for its evening hours and we were there a few minutes before five to pick Ginger up. He did well while we were away. At first he didn't want to leave (he hates being put in his carrier) but he settled down quickly for the short ride home. And, once we got home, Ginger lvaished us with affection, purring loudly and giving us head butts and rubs as often as possible. So I guess he isn't too mad at us for leaving him for nearly two weeks.

I'll be postdating some entries with details about and photos of the cruise. While we were sailing I had no access to the internet. Well, actually, I could have gotten online on one of the computer terminals on the ship, but the rate was exorbitant (about $1 per minute). The ship's satellite internet connection was down most of the cruise anyhow. And we were so busy and had such little time at each port of call I never bothered to take the time to find an internet cafe. On Brad's suggestion I brought the laptop and nearly every evening I made a journal entry on the day's activities. (Oh, we could have hooked up to the internet in our stateroom for a mere flat rate of $160. Boy, they really know how to gouge you on these cruises!) I also downloaded my photos and recharged my camera batteries every evening. Good thing, as I took a TON of photos. Hope to begin posting them real soon. Stay tuned and don't forget to scroll back to my postdated entries.