TENDER GRAND CAYMAN

Wednesday, January 25, 2017         Sunny / 73 F

George Town, Grand Cayman (480 miles south of Miami) / ms Oosterdam

Grand Cayman’s population is 37,716 according to HAL literature.

Last night we set our clocks back to EST so our extra hour of sleep was helpful when we heard the room service knock at 7 a.m. with fresh strong coffee. Grand Cayman is very conscious of the environment and its coral reefs, so all cruise ships must tender ashore and the Oosterdam uses its life boats to do so. We were on the first tender at 8 a.m., but we did not realize the sea’s chop and wind conditions meant the tenders were going to take us to Spot Marina instead of George Town. Only two cruise ships were able to tender off George Town and two were at this marina.

After getting off the tender, we had to take a van taxi to George Town with 14 other people, each paying $5 a piece one way. Roundabouts, ambulances, and morning traffic slowed down the process so it took an hour to get to our destination. We observed villas, resorts, gas stations, bougainvillea blossoming, lush vegetation, shortcuts, and windy roads we probably would never have seen.

Our favorite memory of this island is when we went snorkeling with the sting rays at Sting Ray City-an area where sting rays congregate, mostly because tours have been feeding them for years. TK is like a fish and was a rescue diver on the Erie FD, so he is a great swimmer and loves the water. I am not a swimmer and mostly like looking at water, but I can snorkel until I realize what I was doing. I had convinced myself that the sting rays were going to be just like horses as they approached. The tour guide told us to cup the food in our hand and let them approach. Easier said than done. Fortunately, the warm water was only chest high so I did not have to think about that. When I saw the sting rays approaching, most as big as the top of a card table or larger, I started to almost panic. But, my better sense came through, and anything for a photo—I actually gently held the one that approached me. We have two photos, the panic and the model.  Once was enough and I returned to the tour boat, but TK played and played. There is an exhibit of sting rays at the National Aquarium in Baltimore called “Wings on Water.” They are absolutely beautiful as they glide in the sea.

We had no purpose today, just walking around George Town. We especially like the Guy Harvey shop—he is a scientist/artist and his worthy mission is to preserve the oceans and the environment.  All the usual shops are here as well as the colorful souvenir shops. We always take a little tour of Margaritaville which has a swimming pool on the 2^nd floor!!

To return to the ship, TK very wisely hailed a van taxi with air conditioning. Another thing we are particular about is making certain we do not have to sit on fold down seats. Anyone reading this blog knows that TK and I are not tiny people. It did not take long for 16 people to fill the van and off we went.

About 5 minutes down the road, the driver stopped to put air in his tires. The air pump did not work. In my mind I wondered just how deflated the tire was, why was he taking on passengers in such a situation, and would the crowded van be a problem on the side of the road? In another 10 minutes the driver stopped at a brand new gas station/Burger King for air and this one worked. No worries! Thank goodness for air conditioning! Chickens roam all over the islands and Key West, by the way, and a rooster was strutting at the gas station and almost became a casualty while we watched helplessly.

The rooster is a survivor! 

The return to the ship only took about 25 minutes—we had those great burgers and my favorite kind of fries. TK went to the pool and I read on our deck the rest of the afternoon while Grand Cayman watched me. I could see the tenders going back and forth with passengers. We only had 4 ½ hours at this port. I watched the tenders lifted on board with a system of pulleys.

The view from our balcony--Grand Cayman in the background, the ship's llifeboat/tender

Lifeboat #16 is pulled aboard near our balcony

Tonight was another “Gala Dinner” and we enjoyed another evening with Mariyadi and Haris. Since the menu was given to us for a souvenir, I will be specific about our choices tonight. There were six entrée choices, including surf and turf, basil crusted veal rack with morels, Asian-style rotisserie duck, mushroom ravioli, pan-seared sea bass, walnut and cheese –crusted eggplant piccata.

Our choices:

Appetizer:   Papaya with a Rainbow of Fruit, banana liquer, coconut shavings—Janie;

Seafood Cocktail, crab leg, jumbo prawns, scallops, mussel, and shrimp---TK.

Soups and Salads: Apple, Pear, and Cucumber Salad, frisee, dried cherries, bleu cheese, crouton—TK.

Entrée: Surf and Turf, filet mignon, lobster tail, herb garlic butter, porcini basmati rice, sautéed vegetables (carrots and asparagus)—Janie and TK.

Desserts: Almond and Orange Cake, poppy seeds, cream cheese frosting—Janie;

Warm Flourless Chocolate Cake, molten chocolate center, whipped cream, assortment of berries---TK.

The filet mignon and lobster was very good.

After dinner we went to the movie theater to see Central Intelligence starring Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jason Bateman, and Melissa McCarthy. It was funny, but I think it would make a good firehouse movie.

           

What a great surprise in our room tonight!!!

TK’s Takes: Another town with free Wi-Fi almost everywhere. [To be fair, I think Erie has free Wi-Fi downtown-Janie]  The weather has been great. HAL has not said anything about the disembarkation process on Friday. The officers and crew seem pretty laid back, not many announcements—we did not even know that we would not be near downtown George Town today, but in the marina further away. The ship is quiet, more so than any other ship we have been on.