It’s happening tonight!!!…We’re crossing back over the International Date Line..We’ll have two May 1sts!

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Image result for international date line map
Map of the world illustrating how the International Date Line affects each side of the line.

Tonight at midnight, we’ll conceptually turn our clocks back 24 hours as we cross the International Date Line.  Here in this part of the world, it’s May 1st today, May Day for many people worldwide who celebrate, and tomorrow it will be May Day, May 1st, once again. Also, we’ll experience two Mondays in a row.

As for May Day itself, it’s described as follows for those who celebrate aboard the ship.  How unusual they’ll celebrate two days in a row:

“May Day is a public holiday usually celebrated on May 1. It is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival. It is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures. Dances, singing, and cake are usually part of the celebrations that the day includes.
In the late 19th century, May Day was chosen as the date for International Workers’ Day by the Socialists and Communists of the Second International to commemorate the Haymarket affair in Chicago. Thus, international Workers’ Day may also be referred to as “May Day,” but it is a different celebration from the traditional May Day.”
As we cross the International Date Line tonight, we’re reminded of when we crossed into this part of the world so long ago.  On June 4, 2015, we went to bed on the ship one night, awakening the next morning having missed an entire day/date.  That was peculiar to us. So now we’ll do the opposite.
We officially arrived in the South Pacific on May 30, 2015, and are leaving as we enter the Pacific Ocean after crossing the equator on May 3, 2017, a few days from now. Nevertheless, we’ve spent considerable time in the South Pacific, as indicated below from the app we use to calculate between two dates:

“From and including Monday, May 25, 2015
To, but not including Monday, May 1, 2017

Result: 707 days

It is 707 days from the start date to the end date, but not including the end date.
Or 1 year, 11 months, 6 days excluding the end date.”

Illustration image
The International Date Line on another map.
How intriguing that we’ll finally be in the same date range and day of the week of our friends and family members in our home country, the USA.

Going forward, as we “go back,” we’ll have to redo our thinking when we communicate with family and friends when mentioning the day or date.  Not only have we had to consider the date and day of the week, but we’ll experience many times changes as this cruise continues to North America.

Wondering why and how the International Date Line came to be, after some research, we found the following at this site:

“The International Date Line, established in 1884, passes through the mid-Pacific Ocean and roughly follows a 180 degrees longitude north-south line on the Earth. It is located halfway around the world from the prime meridian—the zero degrees longitude established in Greenwich, England, in 1852.
The International Date Line functions as a “line of demarcation” separating two consecutive calendar dates. When you cross the dateline, you become a time traveler of sorts! Cross to the west, and it’s one day later; cross back, and you’ve “gone back in time.”
Despite its name, the International Date Line has no legal international status, and countries are free to choose the dates they observe. While the dateline generally runs north to south from pole to pole, it zigzags around political borders such as eastern Russia and Alaska’s, the Aleutian Islands.”
By perusing the map as shown in today’s main photo, one can better understand how this line cuts the globe in half. Thus, when we prepare tomorrow’s post about cannibalism in the South Pacific over the ages, we’ll be back on May 1st. 
Funny, eh?

Photo from one year ago today, May 1, 2016:

Had we not been traveling the highway in Bali at such a clip, we’d have been able to take dozens of photos such as this of famous Balinese gods, kings, and queens. For more details, please click here.

Using Skype with its many facets…Time difference charts…

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Tom’s mother, shown in front row center, wrote a book, “Memories of Muggs,” of the family’s history. On the date of the “book signing,” the family got together to celebrate the special occasion. This family photo was taken in 1997 with Tom, his mother, Mary, and his siblings. From left to right front, seated: Rita, Mary, Jerome; middle row: Mary Ellen, Margie, Patty and Sister Beth. The back row includes Colleen, Tom, and Jim. The book is listed at the Minnesota Historical Society.

This morning, Tom called his brother Jerome, the eldest in the family to wish him a happy 87th birthday. His birthday is today in the US, although it’s a day later on this side of the International Dateline.

With no answer at Jerome’s home at Minnesota time of 1 pm Sunday, the 18th, Tom left a message wishing Jerry a very happy birthday. We’ve been sending the daily posts to Jerome every day via email almost since the beginning of our travels.  

We drove through the village of Naidi, another smaller sleepy town.

Jerome, a Korean war veteran, has been totally blind for the past 45 years. Several years ago, he learned to use a computer that reads and writes text by use of voice recognition software. This allows him the freedom and ability to “see” what goes on in the world and with loved ones from afar or, even across town via email communication.

Tom edits each daily post, removing all the photos, sending Jerome an email with the verbiage only. Tom never fails to send it to him and Jerome never fails to read it, at times commenting on our topic of the day by email.

While we’re in Fiji, Tom sends the latest post a few minutes after 5 pm each day when it’s midnight in Minnesota. That way, Jerome can determine the correct date of the post to read them in the order they’re written. Once we eventually return to the other side of the International Dateline, he’ll send the post on the same day it is written as he’d done in the past.

It was hard to see through the dense vegetation to the homes of the villagers.

It means so much to both of us that we can share our journey with Jerome and other folks around the world that may have less mobility than others. Although, Jerome, bless his heart, is out and about all the time. 

His lovely wife Lee passed away in December 2013. They were happily married for 61 years. Now he lives alone, totally able to care for his own daily needs. The family provides assistance in many ways including frequently picking him up to attend family gatherings, dining out, overnight and day trips to the casino, and medical appointments.

When Tom called him today using Skype to wish him a happy birthday, there was no answer. We assumed he was out with the family for a birthday brunch or lunch. After Tom left the message, he checked his email to find a response from an email he’d sent last night wishing Jerome a happy birthday.

This house up the hill has ocean views.  Most of the larger homes are owned by foreigners who have built vacation properties for their own use or for rental.

Jerry explained he was going to the Mille Lacs casino for an overnight to celebrate his birthday. Slot machines are the only practical games for him to play without having sight. On occasion, he gets lucky but his stakes are modest, and losses, relatively small.

Having the ability to communicate with family and friends, is part of the magic of the Internet. With hundreds of communication options available online, we’ve stayed with Skype as a familiar and affordable option for communication at will.

The only drawback at this point is the massive time difference (plus a one day difference) as shown in this chart below between Fiji and Minnesota where most of our family members reside:

Minneapolis, Minnesota
time to Fiji time converter
1:00
am CDT in Minneapolis =
6:00 pm in Fiji
4:00
am CDT in Minneapolis =
9:00 pm in Fiji
7:00
am CDT in Minneapolis =
12:00 pm in Fiji
10:00
am CDT in Minneapolis =
3:00 am in Fiji
1:00
pm CDT in Minneapolis =
6:00 am in Fiji
4:00
pm CDT in Minneapolis =
9:00 am in Fiji
7:00
pm CDT in Minneapolis =
12:00 pm in Fiji
10:00
pm CDT in Minneapolis =
3:00 pm in Fiji

For communication with son Richard and sister Susan, who each live in different areas of Las Vegas, communication has been a breeze using Skype. 

At times, Richard and I communicate via his cell phone (service by contract) using his phone and my cell phone, using Skype (with a data card inserted) using our Skype phone number, as we’ve been able to do with other family members. Here’s the time chart from Fiji to Las Vegas which also applies to communication with my sister Julie in Los Angeles:

Las Vegas, Nevada time
to Fiji time converter
1:00
am PDT in Las Vegas =
8:00 pm in Fiji
4:00
am PDT in Las Vegas =
11:00 pm in Fiji
7:00
am PDT in Las Vegas =
2:00 am in Fiji
10:00
am PDT in Las Vegas =
5:00 am in Fiji
1:00
pm PDT in Las Vegas =
8:00 am in Fiji
4:00
pm PDT in Las Vegas =
11:00 am in Fiji
7:00
pm PDT in Las Vegas =
2:00 pm in Fiji
10:00
pm PDT in Las Vegas =
5:00 pm in Fiji

Many travelers outside the US and other countries, use Skype calling (for a fee) and Skype to Skype which incur no fees. When we make or receive calls, not using Skype to Skype, we can use our Skype Nevada phone number for which we pay USD $5, FJD $10.59 per month.

This phone number has a 702 Las Vegas area code requiring we log into Skype and select, “CALL PHONES.” In doing so, we are able to call any phone number anywhere in the world. Each country has its own particular per minute rate. For Fiji to the US, it’s USD $.30, FJD $.64 per minute.

However, we have a VPN, a virtual private network, Hotspot Shield for which we pay USD $39, FJD $82.57 per year that provides us with a US web presence, enabling us to Skype through the servers provided by Hotspot Shield. 

Home along the highway.

Using this app we’re able to maintain our entry to various websites through the US, enabling us to stream Amazon video, other streams, and live feeds from the US. In essence, we’re able to bypass blocked sites that prevent access from outside the US. There is a free version of Hotspot Shield for those who’d like to try it but it includes annoying advertising at the top of each web page which isn’t acceptable for our use. Thus, we pay the annual fee for the ad-free version.

In addition Hotspot Shield provides added firewall security above and beyond virus software which we also use along with it.  You can click on the link to the site for more information if this is an app that appeals to your Internet needs, as it does for us.

Back to Skype which we’re attempting to simplify. By using our Skype phone number, for which we add “credit” on occasion, we can easily call phones anywhere in the world with our 702 area code appearing in the receiver’s caller ID. Our cost per minute, in calling any US phone number is a mere USD $.023, FJD $.05 per minute.

A beach is never too far away from any of the villages.

If the receiver of our Skype call is also using Skype, we can call for free from Skype to Skype, instead of calling using our phone number. However, not all family members download Skype on their computers, tablets, and phones. In those cases, we call using our phone number as we’ve done in calling Jerome today to wish him a happy birthday.

We realize this may be confusing. It was for us as we attempted to figure this out many moons ago with the intention of ease of use and affordability. Now for us, it’s a breeze. Feel free to contact us by a “comment” at the end of each post or via email with questions. 

(We’d like to clarify that Skype uses data whether it’s Skype to Skype or, using a phone to phone which incurs the additional per-minute charges, plus the monthly phone number fee of USD $5, FJD $10.59. These costs are considerably less than the monthly fees incurred by most cell phone and landline providers. If we had a cell phone contract in the US, which we don’t, and used the cell phone for calling the US, we’d incur $1000’s in roaming fees each year which attributed to our desire to figure this out long ago).

So, once more, we say Happy Birthday, Jerome! We hope you won at the casino and we hope to speak to you soon, calling your home phone, via our Skype phone number.

Photo from one year ago today, October 19, 2014:

A pristine beach along the road to Kihei, Maui, as Hurricane Ana became a category one hurricane, according to news reports. Later it was downgraded to a tropical storm.  For details, please click here.

Rough seas…Port of call, Isle of Pines, New Caledonia has been cancelled…

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The dance staff is practicing for tonight’s aerial show.

We were looking forward to the Isles of Pines, New Caledonia where we were scheduled to anchor this morning to take the lifeboats, as tenders, to the shore. With rough seas with high winds and 25 foot swells, there was no way the captain would put the passengers at risk.

View from Fiji as we pulled away.

As a result, he made the call not to stop at today’s planned port. Of course, we appreciate his concern for the safety of the passengers and will find ways to keep ourselves busy on the next three days out to sea.

After all, we’re using cruise ships as a means of transportation and we’d rather spend a quiet day at sea than fight the crowd and commotion at an airport any sooner than required. 

Calm seas a few days ago. Not so much today.

On Thursday, (Wednesday for many of our readers on the opposite side of the International Dateline) we will disembark the ship for our flight to Cairns at 1:30 pm, arriving at 4:30 pm.

We were particularly interested in New Caledonia. Who visits that relatively obscure island in the South Pacific.  In reviewing our upcoming four cruises over the next 21 months, we’ve noticed we’ll return to New Caledonia, hoping to see it at the time.

A calm day out by the pool.

In the interim, we continue to enjoy our cruise mates during meals, and at other times as we visit many areas on the ship. Whether working out, lounging in the Centrum watching afternoon live entertainment, or in the “That’s Entertainment Theatre” watching movies, more live entertainment, or seminars, it’s easy to stay busy.

More practice by the aerial staff. The show is tonight.

Spending little time in the cabin, we aren’t ever bored. Then again, that’s just us. We have no trouble finding ways to be entertained even if we simply resort to a good book on our phones or idle time online. 

The wifi signal is actually very good in the public areas with few interruptions, although the signal is very poor in the cabin. As a result, we seldom attempt to get online in the cabin, getting kicked off every couple of minutes when we actually are able to connect.

The cables are hooked up and ready to go.

Although we’ve encountered a number of passengers with complaints ranging from quality of service, the ship’s design, the lack of refrigerators in some cabins, (we have one, thank goodness, which keeps our ice buckets chilled overnight), the quality of the food and the options. Also, many have complained about the loud “current” music playing in the bars and other venues.

None of these items have been an issue for us. We’d gladly go on another cruise on this ship. We’ve loved the small size of this ship at a maximum of 2076 with only about 1800 on board at present. 

More practice over the Centrum.

A few guests have mentioned that the ship is missing certain amenities that may be available on larger ships, such a ziplines, bowling alleys, ice rinks, bumper cars, and more. 

We wonder based on the demographics of this passenger list, mostly over 60 years old, how many would have actually used such amenities. We like to basics never missing a single amenity as long as we have a balcony cabin with the fridge, storage space for clothing, shoes, and toiletries, reasonably good food and good service, and a movie theatre all of which we’ve had through every nautical mile.

Beautiful sea and mountain view in Fiji.

We’ve never seen one person on the rock climbing wall as many times as we’ve walked past it as we walked the deck. Actually, many ships on which we’ve cruised, have never seen a person on the rock climbing wall. I think many cruise ships add these amenities to attract passengers when in fact many are seldom used once on board.

We’ve yet to try a specialty restaurant with little interest in doing so. At the cost of US $60 a couple and our satisfaction with the food in the dining room we’ve had no interest.

Once we arrive in Australia in three days, we’ll begin to post all expenditures in both US (USD) dollars and Australian dollars (AUD) for the benefit of our fast-growing Australian readership which will rapidly grow as we spend more time on the continent.

The bow of the ship on a sunny day.

That’s it for today, folks. We’ll be back with updates on the rough seas as they appear to escalate.

Have a great Sunday, which is Monday to us here on the opposite side of the International Dateline. We’re still in awe of that!

                                                Photo from one year ago today, June 8, 2014:

It was a year ago today we took this photo from our veranda in Madeira, Portugal on a steep stairway in the neighborhood with handrails. For details from that date, please click here.

Crossing the International Dateline…Today is June 3rd…Tomorrow is June 5th…

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A cloud-topped mountain in Bora Bora.

It’s an odd thing for us. Crossing the International Dateline tonight, we’ll awaken tomorrow morning and we’ll have lost an entire day. How does one lose an entire day? Wasn’t this an 18-night cruise?

More of Bora Bora.

Apparently not. Vacationstogo.com listed this cruise as 18 nights. Once on board and checking the itinerary further, we discovered it is only a 17-night cruise. How weird is that?

As we approached Bora Bora there we numerous smaller islands.

Of course, the number of days is predicated by the number of times we go to bed and wake up the next day.  The International Dateline is explained in detail here:

“The International Date Line (IDL) explained:

The International Date Line (IDL) is an imaginary line of longitude on the Earth’s surface located at about 180 degrees east (or west) of the Greenwich Meridian.

 
Illustration image
                                                              Time Zone Map showing IDL
The dateline is shown as an uneven black vertical line in the Time Zone Map above and marks the divide where the date changes by one day. It makes some deviations from the 180-degree meridian to avoid dividing countries in two, especially in the Polynesia region.
The time difference between either side of the International Date Line is not always exactly 24 hours because of local time zone variations.
Interactive Time Zone Map
If you travel around the world, changing standard time by one hour each time you enter a new time zone, then a complete circuit would mean that you adjusted your clock or watch time by 24 hours. This would lead to a difference of one day between the date on your clock and the real calendar date. To avoid this, countries are on either side of the International Date Line which runs down the middle of the Pacific Ocean. If you cross the dateline moving east, you subtract a day, whereas if you are moving west you add a day.

GMT vs. UTCThe Greenwich Meridian is a north-south line selected as the zero-reference line for astronomical observations. The line in Greenwich in London, UK represents the world’s prime meridian – longitude zero degrees. Every place on Earth is measured in terms of its distance east or west from this line.

The United Kingdom observes GMT only in the winter.
The line divides the Earth’s eastern and western hemispheres just as the equator divides the northern and southern hemispheres.
The Earth’s crust moves very slightly on an ongoing basis so the prime meridian’s exact position is also moving very slightly. However, the prime meridian’s original reference remains to be the Airy Transit Circle in the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, even if the exact location of the line may move to either side of the transit circle’s meridian.
The Royal Observatory in Greenwich is the home to the time zone named Greenwich Mean Time – GMT. This time zone was first adopted as the world’s time standard at the Washington Meridian Conference in 1884. However, GMT is now loosely interchanged with UTC to refer to time kept on the Greenwich meridian (longitude zero).”
Another smaller island near Bora Bora.
Well, this is all interesting. Losing a day in the realm of the number of days in the average lifespan should not seem like much of a difference, especially when someday when we travel in the opposite direction, we’ll recover the day. As for our day today, the day we do have, we’re still at sea. We just finished breakfast in the main dining room and are comfortably situated in the Schooner Bar posting for today, content as we could be.
View from our balcony as we approached Bora Bora.
Yesterday, Tom attended another men’s group, “The Shed” for lively guy chatter with such topics as politics, sports, household projects, observations about the cruise, and more. Once he returns to our cabin shortly after 5:00 pm, he shares some of the topics with me and the good time he had with the other, mostly Australian men.
A lovely house along the shore on a small island in Bora Bora, in the Society Islands chain.
Being on this ship has given us an intro to the Australian way of life and its people. Undoubtedly, this 17-day cruise has given us a better perspective of life in Australia, of which we knew little.
At a distance, a small beach area.  Excuse the blur.
While he was gone from 3:00 to 5:00 pm, I lounged at the pool reading a book on food science (my favorite topic) which is very technical but somehow has grabbed my interest, and it’s hard to put down. I never knew at this point in life, I’d be learning so much from reading and from the world and people around us. Tom feels the same way.
Had we stayed put in a condo in a warm climate somewhere in the US we may not have had the opportunity for such varied experiences from our surroundings and people we encounter along the way. Through this learning process, our minds are alert and hungry for more.
A beach house on a small island near Bora Bora.
Providing that we continue to take good care of our physical health, we hope for long and productive years in our old age.  Sure, we may miss out on a few experiences based on our conservative nature in regard to physical challenges and adventures. But, the experiences we choose in its place are rich in content and meaning.
Not as lush and green as some of the other islands we’ve visited, this is a portion of Bora Bora, known for its huts/bungalows over the water.
Wrapping up today, tomorrow’s post will be there. I’ll have to figure out how to change the date of the post when this app automatically reverts to the next date overnight. Thus, you’ll see a new post during the day tomorrow. Oh, by the way, we’ll also be experiencing some hourly time changes in addition to the entire day. Oh, this could be confusing. 
At a distance, we could see the coral reef in its lighter-colored waters.
But, as always, we’ll figure it out and be on our way relishing in the day at hand, whatever day it may be!Tom had a great verbal slip last night. When ordering off the menu, he requested the “Chicken Placenta” as opposed to “Chicken Piccata.” I couldn’t stop laughing. This morning he said, “That’s not so bad of a verbal slip. A chicken placenta is an egg.” More chuckles. Life is good.

Photo from one year ago today, June 3, 2014:

I took this shot while on a walk on the steep road in Madeira, Portugal, one year ago today. For more photos and stories, please click here.