Idle thoughts

Well with less than 60 days until I board the Amtrak Cascades and start the journey to Fort Lauderdale here are a few idle thoughts.

1. Booked another excursion - in St Thomas - a short one to St Peters Museum and the mountain top viewpoint - looks more and more like we will dock at Crown Point.

The only remaining ports that I haven`t booked anything are Antigua, San Juan De Sur - actually on a wait list for a private tour, Puntarenas, Costa Rica and Cabo San Lucas - looked at some ship tours but still deciding what to do.

2. Laundry - the great debate about whether there is a stuff bag special is still as clear as mud - some CCèrs say it has been offered on longer cruises yet others say they have never seen it advertised on any cruises. I asked my CC friend Putterdude who has 16 Princess cruises and he says he has never seen it advertised.

This will likely mean packing more of the basics and having to book two or three days for laundry on the trip - some washing could be done in the sink in the bathroom but it is not an area that I have much experience with.

3. Formal night dress up - here again there are mixed responses - while it appears that sans jacket but with tie etc will get you into the MDR on formal night the demographics of this group indicates it is likely to be older and therefore from an era with suits and ties were actually worn in the work place - will make this a last minute decision probably after I have packed and see how much room or weight allowance I will have.

4. Media storage - I had been contemplating buying a low cost portable external DVD writer for my net book and transferring the photos to it from my computer but when I was in Staples the service clerk says a better way to go is using USB or Flash Drive - right now I can get a 32GB flash drive for about the same price as the DVD writer and it will hold a lot more photos than a DVD. Santa did you catch the hint of what I would like in the stocking.

5. Steam or sauna - still don`t have an answer for what is available - also need to get a personal trainer from the Y to make up a fitness workout for the ship.

6. Hearing aid - I got one when I was working but in retirement I haven`t had much need for it but will need to take it in and get it re-calibrated.

More later.

Cheers!