The Worldies!
Shot taken on the pool deck of Insignia
on our final sail away!
Welcome greetings when we arrived home from our wonderful neighbors in Leopard Creek!
Indeed! We so love our friends and neighbors,
at home and around the world.
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World and our
life here in LWR continues to amaze!!
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Home Sweet Home – almost!
Our Trip of a Lifetime – Around the World in 180 Days is just a night’s sleep from concluding. We arrive in Miami tomorrow morning and disembark Insignia at 8:00AM.
8008 aboard the beautiful Insignia has been our home for 6 months.
Tomorrow, we arrive at our landlocked home in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.
We are beyond words to describe our journey of over 46,000 Nautical Miles Around the World but are surely delighted that you were with us all the way.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcomed your company and sincerely appreciated your blog comments, questions and kind wishes throughout the past six months.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
“The Path Between the Seas”
“A finer body of men has never been gathered by any nation than the men who have done the work of building the Panama Canal.” Theodore Roosevelt
Insignia at the Culebra Cut
Even today, Day 179 of 180, our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze!!
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Amazing, we’re down to our final week aboard Insignia on our ATW (Around The World) adventure. Please enjoy some photos and commentary from four visits in the Americas.
Since our five day Pacific crossing from Hawaii, we have visited Los Angeles, San Diego, Cabo San Lucas, and Acapulco , as well as Guatemala, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Don’t worry, this posting will be a quick and easy sampling of a few of these destinations.
Stemming from several visits to the West Coast, San Diego has become been one of our fav cities to visit. This time we observed a family of gulls from our stateroom balcony, admired the USS Midway and the Salute to Bob Hope’s contributions to our military and wandered around Little Italy.
But the hightlight of our visit to SD was meeting up with Mona Lisa Della Volpe Parker. Mona Lisa is married to Robin’s cousin Diane’s son David! However, we are still in active discussion regarding whether Mona Lisa is Chic’s cousin or Robin’s cousin!
Cabo San Lucas is a beautiful resort city located at the tip of the Baja California Sur Peninsula where the Pacific Ocean meets the sparkling turquoise waters of the Sea of Cortez.
Guatemala is a small country (the size of Ohio) in the Central America. It borders Mexico, Belize, Honduras and El Salvador.
Our guide, Caterina, was outstanding.
We purchased some beautiful woven Guatemalan belts, (Chic’s favorite!)
an embroidered tapestry with over 60 birds,
and, of course, as we have found, around the world, beautiful people.
Although the largest country in Central America, Nicaragua is striving to overcome the after-effects of dictatorship, civil war and natural calamities, which have left it one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.
Besides introducing us to Nicaragua, Julio, our guide, shared his harrowing life story involving the Sandinistas, Somoza, the Contras, Oliver North, Ronald Reagan and torture. A heart wrenching experience for us!
What visit would be complete without a visit to the market? Here we have the meat lady in the purple shirt and the chicken/plantain lady cooking.
Smoking volcanos,
Boiling mud pots,
School kids, and
Beautiful people rounded out our visit to Nicaragua.
COSTA RICA
Costa Rica, another country located in Central America, is bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west, the Caribbean Sea to the east and is ranked as one of the most visited international destinations. As a democratic and peaceful country, Costa Rica has not had an army since 1949.
About 25% of Costa Rica’s land mass is National Parks and other protected areas. Over 840 species of birds have been identified in Costa Rica. During our amazing day with Gio Tours, we observed (clockwise from top left) the Yellow-headed Caracara, Roseate Spoonbill, Great Egret and Tiger Heron, Woodstorks, Toucan and Scarlet Macaws.
Costa Rica is a center of biological diversity for reptiles and amphibians. Our guide gently captured a Green and Black Poison Dart Frog which he then permitted to climb up and down his arms. We were surprised to learn that these frogs have numerous poison glands on the surface of their body that emit toxic secretions when threatened. Local people have long made use of the frogs to supply poisons for their blowgun darts. The White-Faced Capuchin monkeys were dancing about in the trees eating fruit while the American Crocodiles were in the river waiting for……… (Better stay in the boat!)
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Our Hawaii FOUR- O adventure included visits to “The Big Island”, Oahu, Maui, and Kauai.
Our visit to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park exposed us to huge calderas and craters and jagged lava landscapes.
Sulphur banks, lava tubes and life returning to the bleak desert areas were all part of this adventure.
Hawaii’s State Bird, the Nēnē, life returning to the bleak lava formed desert areas and beautiful colors from the center of the earth all added to this stunning day at Volcanoes National Park.
Without question, the emotional highlight of our visit Honolulu was the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor.
While in town, we also visited the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific and attended a gala event aboard the battleship USS Missouri.
The “Mighty Mo!”
On a beautiful Hawaiian evening, all of the ATW guests from Insignia were invited to a private gala with hors d’oeuvre, cocktails and live music and dancing on the deck of the the USS Missouri, the “Mighty Mo.” Amazing evening!
Does anyone know what these stars represent?
Super fun day with with Tom and Rona on Maui. Robin taught music with Rona at Lafayette School in Chatham, NJ.
They watched Insignia enter the harbor from their beautiful home on the mountain where they have sweeping views of three islands and the Pacific! (If you look carefully at the center window, you can see Insignia in the distance.
Together we Face Timed our mutual friends from Texas, Dotty & Joel Kuhn. Great reunion.
Tom and Rona, Robin and Chic
Green and lush Kauai is known as the garden island. We toured with a professional photographer who helped us capture some beautiful shots at stunning locations.
Today, as we continue our way across the Pacific Ocean enroute to Los Angeles, our calendar reminds us that today is Day 165 of our ATW adventure. Soon, we will be visiting Cabo, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Panama Canal, Columbia, Key West before arriving in Miami on July 1.
Our Trip of a Lifetime, Around the World, continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Adventures in Paradise!
Our visit to French Polynesia included Raiatea, Bora Bora, Pepeete Tahiti, Huahine, Rangiroa and Nuku Hiva(Marquesas Islands)
As a kid, I remember watching “Adventures in Paradise”, created by James Michener and based on his Pulitzer Prize winning book “Tales of the South Pacific”. The series ran on ABC from 1959 until 1962, (No age comments – please!)
Having our own Adventures in Paradise in French Polynesia, we continue to be awestruck and amazed by these stunningly beautiful islands.
From the air, from land, or from under the sea, this may very well be the most beautiful sights we have ever seen.
These islands of dramatic volcanic rock mountains are covered with lush green forests. The pristine white sand beaches bleed into turquoise waters teeming with an amazing array of brightly colored fish, clams, rays, sharks and eels and beautiful underwater coral formations. Add the famous black pearls with their shades of orange and pink, hundreds of tiny islands, called motus and French Polynesia is truly a paradise.
James Michener found himself tongue-tied: “So stunning, there are really no adequate words to describe it.”
With that said, please enjoy as we did – French Polynesia without words.
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
After some rough seas and high winds sailing from Sydney, we arrived in the capital city, Wellington, our first port of call in New Zealand. We enjoyed a full day in Windy Welly that included the National Museum of New Zealan – Te Papa, walked up and down Cuba Street with it’s interesting shops, rode the historic Wellington Cable Car up to the highlight which was the Zealandia Sanctuary!
Zealandia Sanctuary, formerly known as the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary, is a protected natural area in Wellington where the biodiversity of just under a square mile of forest is being restored to its natural and pre-human status.
Most of New Zealand’s ecosystems have been severely modified by the introduction of land mammals that were not endemic to the country. The sanctuary, surrounded by a pest-exclusion fence, is a good example of an ecological “island” within New Zealand which allows the natural ecosystems to thrive.
Sightings included the Kākā, (the large parrot pictured above – no wise cracks, please!)
the tuneful Tūī,
the Pied Shag, similar to a cormorant,
the California Quail,
and the Takahē, a flightless and critically endangered bird. Superb!
Change of Plans!! With a major storm coming to New Zealand, our Picton call was cancelled. With 45 to 50 MPH winds predicted, we sailed on to Napier for our wine tasting tour!
Hawke’s Bay, the oldest wine region in New Zealand, is the countries’ leading producer of full-bodied red wines as well as outstanding Chardonnay. We visited Te Mata Peak (above picture taken there) and 5 superb wineries with 4 wonderful people and our guide, Peter, who drove!
In Rotorua, NZ is the Te Puia center for Māori culture and thermal wonder. Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand who came by canoe some time between 1250 and 1300. They were powerful warriors who intimidated their enemies with their tongues and bulged eyes. Our attempt at this only produced laughter.
The geothermal area surrounded us with mystical bubbling mud, pools of boiling water and powerful geysers. Quite a day.
We enjoyed our walking tour of Auckland and took full advantage of the “pedestrian scramble”, sometimes known as the Barnes Dance which takes its name from traffic engineer, Henry Barnes. This is a pedestrian crossing system that stops all vehicular traffic and allows walkers to cross an intersection in every direction, including diagonally! No cars are moving – no hidden or fast turners to mow you down while crossing the street!
After completing our visit to Australia and New Zealand our impression is that they have some of the kindest and and most welcoming people on earth. We will return!
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
We were a bit dissappointed when the Captain of Insignia announced that we were canceling our call to the port of Newcastle, Australia due to hundreds of people in kayaks blocking the port in their protest of fossil fuels. But when the replacement port was Brisbane, we were delighted!
As a result, we visited the Australia Zoo, home of the Crocodile Hunter. Steve Irwin’s enthusiasm, contribution, spirit and memory are woven into every aspect of the zoo from the Crocoseum to the Wildlife Hospital. We had a marvelous time! We hope the Koala Bears and the Roos also enjoyed our visit!
Our next port of call, Sydney, far surpassed our expectations, especially with our dock location. Insignia was tied up in the shadow of the Sydney Harbor Bridge and a stones throw from the Sydney Opera House(SOH). With our port side cabin facing the harbor, this was our morning wake-up view from our balcony!
Day one in Sydney was climb the bridge day! Exhilarating and hair-raising, we cautiously climbed to the summit of the majestic Sydney Harbor Bridge at 10:15 in the morning. But first, we completed health forms, had our blood alcohol levels checked, and changed into our BridgeSuit. All jewelry, watches, cameras, hair clips and anything that could blow off was left below in a locker.
Everything that we carried on the climb was strapped on to our BridgeSuits including sunglasses, hat, headphones and a radio to hear our group leader who offered instructions and commentary along the climb.
Throughout the climb, we wore a safety harness around our waists that was attached to a thick cable. The three hour round trip journey to the summit (440 feet above the harbor) featured walking on catwalks and ramps as well as climbing stairs and ladders. Our friend Chris, captured this shot of us from the deck of the Insignia docked below us!
Here is an interesting perspective from our Sydney visit (taken by a pilot who is a friend of fellow passenger, Chris Carter)
Day two – Sydney Opera House Backstage tour!
In advance of our arrival in Sydney, Robin was able to book us for an exclusive backstage tour of the Opera House. The two hour tour through the maze-like building began at 7:00AM, well before any rehearsals, and took us to all five performance halls, back stage visits, on stage visits, dressing rooms, the orchestra pit, instrument and set storage areas and concluded with breakfast in the Green Room!
Here we are in the Joan Sutherland Theater, a tribute to the legendary Australian soprano.
And here is Robin warming up the orchestra!
Besides climbing the bridge and touring the opera house, we rode on the top deck of a HoHo bus around the city, visited Chinatown, ate some fish & chips, and walked around the harbor in awe of Sydney’s beauty and charm.
Can you identify the 2 pictures that were created by using a green screen?
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Our sail away from Sydney!
And now, 4 days at sea!
Flag of Australia
Words cannot begin to describe the breathtaking beauty of the world’s largest coral reef, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia! We have snorkeled around the world for the past 4 months and for many years before this journey in other seas and oceans but NOTHING comes close to the astonishing beauty of the GBR. We are in awe!
From the port of Cairns, (Pronounced “cans”) we sailed to the GBR aboard the Seastar snorkeling at two locations beginning with Michaelmas Cay in the morning and then on to Hastings Reef in the afternoon.
This is our group from Insignia.
The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders of the natural world, and pulling away from it, and viewing it from a greater distance, you can understand why. It is larger than the Great Wall of China and the only living thing on earth visible from space.
The remainder of this post is only photos as we can find no words to describe the incredible and remarkable beauty of the Great Barrier Reef. (Be sure to check out the giant clam – it’s about 3 feet across!)
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Our journey Around the World continues with visits to Indonesia and then on to Australia. Indonesia was yet another new country for us and Bali was our first port of call. Bali is an Indonesian island known for its forested volcanic mountains, iconic rice paddies, amazing beaches and coral reefs. Unlike any other island in largely Muslim Indonesia, Bali is a pocket of Hindu religion and culture. Bali is a living postcard, an Indonesian paradise that feels like a fantasy.
We enjoyed some time in the local market and then were pampered by the “spa staff” on Kuta Beach. They were offering some amazing specials including foot massage for $5.00, shoulder massage for $5.00, in fact, all treatments were $5.00 including manicure, pedicure, hair braiding and more! (Please don’t ask what BB was doing behind me with the tweezers!)
The French braids worked great for our snorkeling at our next port in Indonesia.
Komodo island, our second Indonesian port, is quite different from Bali as it is the rugged home of the feared Komodo dragon. Komodo National Park covers the entire region and contains more than 4,000 dragons.
The Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and can reach a length of 10.3 feet, weigh up to 366 pounds and can run up to 13 mph. Dragons rarely kill their prey on the spot.
The dragon’s venomous bite causes its victim to lose blood pressure and go into shock afterwhich it consumes the helpless prey which can include its young or another dragon. Notice the apparently fearless visitor to Komodo Island kneeling behind the almost sleeping dragon!
Leaving Asia, we were excited as we entered a new continent and new country on our personal bucket list – Australia.
Darwin, located midway along the northern coast and named after famous evolutionist Charles Darwin, is the capital of the Northern Territory of Australia.
For our first adventure in Australia, Robin organized an excursion for a bus full of our shipmates to the Territory Wildlife Park.
We enjoyed a number of wildlife presentations by the guides and experienced our first Spitting Archer Fish, a very hungry Barramundi fish, birds of prey and the dog-like Dingos (next picture). Below you can see Chic getting to know a cute, mini kangaroo type creature, a Wallaby. Great first day in Australia.
Our Trip of a Lifetime Around the World continues to amaze.
Thanks so very much for traveling along with us. We welcome your company and truly enjoy your blog comments.
Until the next post, we remain your friends, Robin and Chic
Round the World in 180 Days 
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