Observations, Part 2: Good afternoon
folks, Good afternoon
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| Pic not taken after THB and DB landed in E-ville |
Book Review: Patriot Number One, American Dreams in Chinatown,
Lauren Hilgers: A current story of a young
Chinese activist and his wife who jump ship in Vegas, make it to Flushing, NY,
and seek asylum. The story is told simply and in a straightforward manner, and
Hilgers had pretty much unlimited access to the couple as they attempt to
bridge two societies in the midst of the shift in American attitudes towards
immigration.
More Observations: The not so big stuff?
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| One of our two wrapped bags; in general, THB and DB packed more into less space than any of the cruisers (no prize awarded in this category) |
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| THB and DB donated our neoprene gloves to the kayak crew |
1. Lots of people had a beer or wine at
lunch. THB couldn’t quite figure it out because it couldn’t be just that beer
and wine were free, could it? Everyone was paying thousands and thousands to
take this trip. On other hand, maybe it was just that simple. It sure wasn’t
the weather, freezing temps never made THB reach for a cool brewski! Maybe it
was the Commonwealth heritage? Yet Americans were imbibing right alongside
everyone else.
2. One couple sat in the very front left at
every debrief and lecture and asked question after question as if they
personally were the only ones in the room (or the only ones insightful enough
to want to know more, more, more on every damn topic). THB had several times
(outside of the lectures) asked the woman to please stop asking questions so we
could get on with events (or be quiet in the non-talking area). Maybe 15-20% of
the non-Chinese and Asian-Aussie tours (who asked zero questions) asked 85-90%
of the questions, a pretty standard ratio.
3. The staff had been trained to start the
follow-up to every question with the phrase: Good question! And then repeat the
question. Drove THB crazy as maybe only 35% of the questions the front-left
couple asked were anywhere close to good questions.
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| It's snowing and pup is nursing |
4. One of the kayakers was a dare-devil.
Normally THB would just be bemused. In the Antarctic it was actually pretty
dangerous. THB did not know if the kayak staff kept a special eye on him or
not. He was also a guy who asked a lot of questions or more often made some wry
observation. Bright and dangerous…bad combo? We subsequently learned that every few years there are fatalities on the one of the excursions (e.g., Zodiac overturns, falling off ridges during hikes).
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| If the mines don't get you the asbestos might |
5. Smoking was allowed on the back of the 3rd
deck, nowhere inside the ship (except for the captain, he smoked on the bridge).
Very few of the cruisers seemed to smoke. On the other hand, ship staff was
making a steady stream by the 3rd floor lounge windows whenever THB
was there for presentations or meetings.
6. There was a question box at the
expedition staff desk on the 3rd floor (near the reception desk for
the ship) where cruisers could submit questions that they were interested in
without embarrassing themselves by asking out loud at the daily briefing and
recap. By far the most interesting question was asked on day 2: can the person
who was jogging on the 4th deck (the only deck that circumnavigated
the ship without interruption) at 5:30am please pick a later time to pound out
round after round. Nate the expedition leader made a strong statement
forbidding exercise at that hour. THB never learned who “asked” the question or
who “did the pounding”. Second best question: how many flavors of ice cream are
available? Marty has been researching this question for days and days, and
finally an answer: 7 or is it 8. At the dinner near the end, the one THB
skipped to lie prone, DB and her two table-mates had new flavors!!
7. The presentations were very professional
(there were a few exceptions). They used two screens so both sides of the
“lounge” could see and the remote had a slick function of being able to blow-up
and highlight the too-small-to-read map portions, they could play videos and
audio clips with quick clicks, and in general moved seamlessly between
different staff members. THB was impressed!
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| Fin whales |
8. Lunch was pretty much always available
outside on the back of deck 5. 20-30 people regularly ate there, even in poor
weather. The main dish was cooked to-order and by the time the end-of-line
folks got their lunch the people first through we’re finishing up. There was
always a buffet with a couple of steam-tray hot items to choose from.
9. One of the kayakers was woman in her
mid-70s and very self-absorbed. It always took her a long time to get in and
out of the kayaks (sometimes she needed her rudder foot control pedals
adjusted). The library had two computers – free – and a sign up to “please
limit your time to 20 minutes if others were waiting”… and, lo and behold, sometimes
she sat on “her” computer for an hour!
10. It never got dark on the cruise, there
was an eternal twilight plus a cloud cover every night. No star gazing for THB. Apparently some cruises get really lucky and have long glorious sunsets. Not this time!
11. Apparently, almost every night the
kitchen staff (servers and those in the back) would come out and serenade
someone celebrating a birthday. It generally happened after THB and DB had
retired to our cabin; we made it up to hear the singing a few times. And, along
with Happy B’day, there were 3 other songs, one of which was “We wish you a
merry Xmas”. Always done with enthusiasm and the entire room singing along.
12. Ben, the ship photographer, made a video
of the pics he took on the trip and we get a copy on a thumb drive. The last
night Ben’s video is played in the lounge. After the viewing, THB feels really
good about his pics: he has many similar photos and far fewer of the expedition
staff. Why Ben, or Polar Latitudes, thought the cruisers wanted a lot of staff
pics instead of more of the animals and landscapes is beyond THB. There are a
few pics that are very professional…for the most part, a pic of sign is a pic
of sign and the same for penguins and elephant seals. Another small way the
expedition team was selling, selling and more selling themselves.
13. Tipping: there is always some discussion
about what should be done and this time there were some proposed guidelines.
THB and DB agreed to use the guidelines for the ship’s crew, around
$12-13/day/pp which totaled around $520. The crew was ever attentive, fast to
carry out any request or repair, always cheerful, and always on time.
THB and DB then decided on a $200 tip
for our kayak crew of 3 and let them figure out how to apportion the money.
Lastly, we decided not to leave any tip money for the expedition staff.
Frankly, the boasting every damn day by Nate the expedition leader of what a
great job they were doing as well as the “camp for adults” attitude really turned
THB off. THB has been on quite a few tours and this was a first for him.
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