Back to Reality

Monday, 20 December

Whether we want reality back or not, it’s here.  It’s 5:00p and we’re home.  The bags are unpacked and a load of laundry is swishing away in the washing machine.  No “call us the minute you get home” emails from the office; no “got to take care of this now chores” vying for my attention.  Time to wrap up our cruise vacation.

We were up at 6:00a, just as Grand Princess came through the breakwater and into Port Everglades.  It was pitch black outside.  Island Princess, the only ship already docked, was lit up like a Christmas tree.  As we maneuvered into our spot at Terminal 2, other ships started streaming in.  First Seabourn’s Sojourn; then P&O’s Azura (on her maiden visit to Fort Lauderdale); and finally, Silversea’s Silver Spirit.  Each ship carefully completed its docking procedures, securely tying-up to its berth before beginning the process of getting the ship cleared and the luggage unloaded.  In the meantime, semis pulled up with provisions for the next cruise; fuel barges positioned themselves to begin refueling the ships for their impending departures.

Clockwise from top left:
Island Princess, Azura, Sojourn, Silver Spirit and Island Princess;
Azura, Silver Spirit, and Island Princess.

As the hubbub of activity progressed, we headed up to the Horizon Court for one last breakfast.  Alas, it was much too chilly to eat at our usual table on the aft deck.  Making short work of our morning meal, we returned to the cabin to collect our carry on bags.

Although we had provided Princess with updated information on our flight plans, we were still assigned to a later debarkation group.  Since that wasn’t going to work for us, we brazenly snuck off the ship at 8:15a.  Even though we had a short wait while the longshoremen finished organizing the luggage into color groups and cleared out the forklifts, the time we saved by not waiting for our group paid off later at the airport.

The airport is very close to Port Everglades, and taxis are plentiful and the fare is reasonable.  There was a relatively long line of passengers waiting for cabs by the time we breezed through Customs.  So, rather than wait around, we shared a shuttle van with several other cruisers.  The fare was a few dollars more, but again, it paid off for us when we arrived at the airport ahead of the crowds.

At the JetBlue counter, we were able to switch from our scheduled 3:00p flight to the 11:25a departure.  Listening carefully to the hints dropped by the counter agent, we saved $80 in change fees by opting to go standby rather than formally changing our tickets.  Normally, this is not a risk I would take, but with 28 seats open 90 minutes before departure, I felt the odds were on our side.

“Canyon Blue” is the name of the plane and it is ready to take us home.

The line to go through security moved fast.  Soon we were at our gate, using a free wi-fi hotspot to check in with family.  Flight 310 pushed back at 11:30a and was in the air 15 minutes later.  The puking dog (blech!!!) in the row ahead of us notwithstanding, the two-hour flight was uneventful.  (What burns me about this unpleasant incident — the dog’s owner didn’t apologize to her fellow-passengers; just kept her eyes downcast, never meeting our eyes!  Believe me, apologies were in order!!!)  We were on the ground at Dulles International before our original flight from Ft Lauderdale got off the ground.  Not bad I say.

Though we hastened the end of our vacation by taking an earlier flight, we bought ourselves time to pick up our held mail from the postal facility, buy groceries to restock the fridge, and have an early dinner.  Even better, we arrived home just in time to receive a Christmas gift delivery … thanks Aunt L.

reality takes the form of snow in the driveway, but a Xmas gift lifts our spirits.

We had a great cruise and really enjoyed ourselves.  The ports that were new to us gave us an opportunity to explore; the ports that we’d visited before gave us an opportunity to just relax.  Our aft corner balcony was heavenly and afforded plenty of opportunities for R&R at sea.

Will we go on another cruise?  Absolutely!  Will it be on Princess?  Not sure; we both feel that we’ve outgrown Princess, and besides, we still prefer Celebrity.  We also want to try some of the cruise lines that have smaller ships in their fleets.  Still, were a unique itinerary or an incredible deal come our way, we wouldn’t say no to another Princess cruise.

Until next time …

One Last Day at Sea

Sunday, 19 December

The noon announcement had the Grand Princess 300 nautical miles (673 miles/1083 km) from Fort Lauderdale. That means we’ve covered a little more than half the distance from Grand Turk to our debarkation port. Captain Herriott seems to have put pedal to the metal. In fact, we just left another cruise ship eating our wake. I’d like to phone up to the bridge and tell the Captain to slow down, but I doubt I’ll make much of an impression. He has a schedule to keep and new passengers to embark.

A quiet day at sea to bring our cruise to an end.

It was cooler today, with a forecasted high of 73F (23C) — I’ve a feeling we’re not in the Caribbean anymore, Toto! But it’s all relative and we’re not complaining. The high in DC today is 30F (-1C) and, if CNN is to be believed, London’s Heathrow Airport is closed to flights until the middle of next week. No, we definitely have nothing to complain about.

It was a quiet day at sea for us. We were up around 6:30a, intent on putting in a few miles on the Promenade Deck. The strong wind that wrenched the door out of my hands had us postponing that plan. Instead, we went up to the Horizon Court to have our usual light breakfast on the aft deck. Since the sun had broken through the thick cloud deck to bathe the veranda in bright sunshine, we used the early morning to pack our bags. A few more things to put away after dinner and the luggage will be ready to be picked up and taken to the bowels of the ship in preparation for disembarkation tomorrow.

Quit hamming it up, Mui. You packed it once, you can pack it again!

Despite the cloud cover, the sun was intent on turning the veranda into an oven. So, we once again sought refuge in Skywalkers. It was quiet up there, with just a few people napping, reading, or listening to their iPods. When we returned to the cabin around 11:00a, the veranda was still bathed in sunshine. What to do? Easy; we went to the shops to burn our remaining OBC (on board credit ) and later relaxed on the Promenade Deck for a while.

This time Mui's shopping for me.

The Promenade Deck is the next best place to the veranda.

After a light lunch, Mui returned to the cabin to work on videos. I donned my walking shoes and went for a 2-mile (3.6 km) walk on the Promenade Deck. The wind around the clamshell bow was manageable, however, my usual 15-minute-mile was slower because I was fighting headwinds.

Can you guess why this area is referred to as a clamshell?

By the time I returned to the cabin around 1:30p, the veranda was finally in the shade and I could sit down, relax, and do a bit of reading and blogging. In the late afternoon, getting a slice of pizza to share, we enjoyed the last of our wine and beer, raising a toast to a great cruise vacation.

here’s to another cruise under our belt.

It’s now time for one last meal on the ship. We’ve already said our farewells to Rotchana and John as we’re not having dinner in the Da Vinci Dining Room tonight. Nor are we going to repeat our 18-course meal at Sabatini’s — once was enough, thank you very much. Instead, we have reservations at the other specialty restaurant aboard the Grand Princess … I’ll fill you in later.

… Later

That was a mighty good meal that we had at the Sterling Steakhouse. This dining venue originally offered Mexican fare. It was named Painted Desert back then. Though the concept and the name have changed, the murals on the wall still carry a decidedly southwestern theme.

The steakhouse features premium, cooked-to-order aged beef, along with other steakhouse favorites. The server comes by the table with a presentation tray, describes the available cuts, and guests make their selection. For those who are not red meat eaters — like me — the menu features a couple of seafood choices as well.

Bon Appétit!

Service was excellent — neither too slow, nor too rushed. We both started out with the black tiger prawn and papaya appetizer served with “Anna” potato salad. I then enjoyed an excellent Black and Blue Onion Soup flavored with a dash of Jack Daniels; Mui opted for the mesclun greens with roasted bell peppers and slices of Hass avocado.

My main course was the pan-roasted wild black striped bass with leeks and mushroom ragout; Mui ordered the 8-oz Princess cut filet mignon. Side dishes were plated separately. Our server suggested that we order a potato dish and a vegetable dish each. We followed his advice — garlic & herb French fries and red skin mashed potatoes; creamed spinach and sautéed wild mushrooms. He must have thought that we were going to starve as he brought us some grilled asparagus as well. In hindsight, we should have just ordered one potato and one vegetable side to share.

Having spied the dessert options early on, we made sure to leave just enough room to share a sweet ending to our meal. Our choice proved to be the perfect one — caramel cheesecake parfait served with candied pineapple and a coconut Madeleine. Yummm!

A meal to remember at the Sterling Steakhouse.

And so it is that the last day of our cruise is coming to a close. Mui went down to check out Kevin Hughes’ comedy routine. By all accounts, Hughes has been keeping people in stitches. As for me … you know where I am … and here I’ll be staying; at least for a couple more hours.

Next Up … Back to Reality

Video: Grand Turk

18 December

Here’s Mui’s point of view of our half day in Grand Turk … he finally got his conch!

Next Up … One Last Day at Sea

Grand Turk: Beautiful by Nature

Saturday, 18 December

We have one more day at sea and then they’re going to kick us off the ship to take on new passengers while we make our way to the freezing temperatures awaiting us at home. But that’s a story that has yet to unfold.

Grand Turk is one of the islands of Turks and Caicos.
(the top inset shows a closer view of grand Turk, while the lower
inset shows where we played in relation to where the ship docked.
the red line depicts our beach walk.)

With so few days at sea on this cruise, I relished our morning at sea en route to Grand Turk, our last port of call. Maybe that’s why I was up at 5:30a this morning … I didn’t want to miss a moment of my quiet time on the veranda. More likely, I was up early because we gained an hour overnight, returning to Eastern Standard Time for the rest of our cruise. It’s now 11:00a and even as I’m writing this blog entry, the ship is slowing down. That can mean only one thing — we’re about to pick up the pilot who will guide us to the pier at the Grand Turk Cruise Center.

most passengers don’t venture past the Cruise Center, a purpose-built
facility with shops, restaurants and bars, and beach facilities.

Anyway, back to the morning. I read on the veranda until Mui stirred and went downstairs to get himself an iced latte from the coffee bar on the Fiesta Deck (#6), the only bar open in the early morning hours. We joined up at the Horizon Court to eat breakfast at our usual table on the aft deck. Very few people were around, and we enjoyed having the area to ourselves.

When we returned to the cabin, it was to find the sun, which had been hiding behind the clouds, shining bright and baking the veranda. Not good! After helping Mui pack some of our belongings (might as well put non-veranda time to good use), I headed up to Skywalkers, the nightclub located in what Princess aficionados fondly refer to as the “shopping cart handle.” Admittedly, the name is fitting.

Skywalkers is on Deck 17… AKA “the Shopping Cart Handle.”
(upper right photo shows the tube that leads up to the “handle”;
that’s where the moving walkway is located.)

As it was only 8:00a, I had the place to myself. Finding a hidden nook, I blogged for a while, polishing up already written entries. Mui joined me briefly to work on his video footage until he ran out of battery power. When he went off to wander around the ship and get his people-fix, I stayed on. Though a couple of people showed up, my little corner remained private. When he came by later with some snacks to tide us over until lunch, Mui jokingly likened my little spot to the slides of our motor home. Not a bad comparison since the part of the “handle” I was sitting in does jut out over the sea.

hard at work on a morning at sea.

We returned to the cabin around 10:00a to find the veranda in the shade again. No question about what I was going to do … enjoy the last of this morning’s R&R in my favorite spot on the ship.

Mui has brought some light food from the buffet, so I’ll end my writing for now. We’re going to eat our lunch on the veranda while the ship maneuvers up to the pier. By the time the lines are secured, we’ll be ready to go ashore.

The bow-cam shows us on approach to the Cruise Center.
[from the TV in the cabin]

… Later

A short but satisfactory port of call, with the weather much more comfortable than it was the first time we visited the island. If the temperature reached the forecasted high of 81F (27C), it certainly did not feel like it thanks to the constant breeze and the partly cloudy conditions that shielded us from the sun.

Today was our second time visiting Grand Turk, a small island that is part of Turks and Caicos. Since I am always asked about what Turks have to do with this island chain, let me explain. Nothing! The name Turks is derived from the indigenous Turk’s Head “fez” cactus (see picture below). Caicos, the other part of the name, comes from a Lucayan term, “caya hico,” meaning string of islands.

Our previous visit to the island was in 2008, aboard Caribbean Princess. On that occasion, we hopped into a cab and went to Pillory Beach. I sat in the shade and took frequent dips in the ocean. There was no breeze and the water provided the only relief on a HOT-HOT-HOT day. Mui went snorkeling at a nearby reef. Then, not satisfied with that, he joined an off-boat snorkeling trip that took him out to an area known as The Wall (better for scuba diving, he later reported).

Grand Turk 2008

By the way, though Grand Turk doesn’t claim to have any of Christopher Columbus’ remains, there is a “Columbus Landfall National Park” here that commemorates the first landing. The claim is not without dispute. No surprise there; Columbus himself was not sure where exactly he made landfall. His logbook apparently describes a bean-shaped island with several other islands nearby. The description fits Grand Turk, so that’s the end of that story!

We were off the Grand as soon as the ship was cleared, joining the throngs heading to shore. Once through the duty free shop (the only way out), we hung a right towards the Point, made our way down to the beach, and left the crowds behind. Our destination was the stretch of sand known locally as the Conch Graveyard.

Welcome to Grand Turk.
(the bottom center photo shows the point and the conch graveyard.

Removing conch shells from the ocean is illegal in many places, but not here. That’s because these shells are on the beach and they have already been “vacated by their occupants!” There were shells of all sizes. Some were broken and eroded by the waves crashing ashore. Others were embedded in the rocks along the shoreline. (Water shoes are a good idea in this area.) Though most of the shells had become calcified over time, there were plenty that were in good shape.

The “Conch Graveyard” is aptly named.

Mui soon had a nice collection from which to select a shell to take home. We ended up with two … a nice big one for Mui’s office; a smaller one for mine. We anticipate that this cruise will be our last one to the Caribbean for a while — we need to dedicate our limited vacation until retirement to travels with our motor home, or as we like to say, to our “condo on wheels.” Hence, these shells will be a nice reminder of our cruise vacations.

Mui’s on a treasure hunt … for conch shells.

With the shells washed and cleaned in the ocean, and stored safely in Mui’s backpack, we strolled to the tip of the point before turning back towards the Cruise Center. Walking under the pier and past the hundreds of passengers sunning and playing in the water at the beach fronting Margaritaville, we continued to the far end of the strip of white sand.

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!
Jack’s shack is at the far end (#1); and local village is in the center (#2).
[click the image to see the numbering]

First, we went to Jack’s Shack. We had one purpose for going there — to use the wi-fi to check in with family. As we sipped some local beer, Turk’s Head, we took turns making our calls (free connection inside the gift shop). Then, we strolled back to a quiet spot halfway between the crowds at Margaritaville and Jack’s Shack.

Jack's Shack

There were just a few people at the Local Village Bar and Restaurant, which was perfect as far as we were concerned. Picking our spot, we made ourselves comfortable with a couple of chaise lounges and an umbrella that were free for the price of a drink … in our case another Turk’s Head beer and a fresh coconut for $3.50 a piece. (Cheaper than the $5/beer at Jack’s.) After joining Mui in a dip in the ocean, I read in the shade while he went snorkeling. Though the actual reef is a little ways offshore and accessible by small boat excursions, he saw enough fish close to shore to keep him in the water for most of our time on the beach.

Local Village Bar & Restaurant

How's that coconut, Mui?

Around 4:30p, as the sun dipped low on the horizon, we left our spot on the beach and strolled back to the ship. By the time Grand Princess sounded the all aboard an hour later, we were cleaned up and sitting on the veranda. As the ship swung around to begin the last leg of our cruise back to Fort Lauderdale, the wind picked up and the nighttime temperature fell — a sign of things to come. Undaunted, I put on a sweater and read on the veranda until it was time to go down to dinner.

Grand Princess sails into the sunset … next port, Ft Lauderdale.

Tonight’s menu in the Da Vinci Dining Room featured the “Chef’s Dinner.” Finding nothing to whet my appetite, I chose from the ‘always available’ and ‘vegetarian’ options instead. What can I say, I’m a picky eater.

Mui: shrimp cocktail; Boston lettuce tossed in a shallot dressing; orange roughy poached in a champagne broth and served with homardine sauce.

Me: shrimp cocktail; Caesar salad; potato gnocchi and roasted portabella mushrooms in an asparagus cream sauce (very good).

Palate Cleanser: strawberry and thyme infused lemon sherbet (yummm).

Dessert: blueberry sorbet and Menage á Trois … miniatures of a raspberry panna cotta, gateau opera, and honey-hazelnut semifreddo (both desserts were just OK).

Instead of returning to the cabin after dinner, we checked out the production show that Princess premiered last night … British Invasion. We sat through the show, but later agreed that it was a bit too loud and, for some reason, seemed out of synch. It is a new show, so I imagine it will improve with time and practice.

Scenes from British Invasion, a princess production show.
[collage created from images in the princess flickr album;
click the photo to see more images]

Tomorrow is our last day aboard the ship, and as is par for the course, it’s a sea day. After our marathon of port calls, we’re really looking forward to relaxing aboard the Grand Princess.

Next Up … Video: Grand Turk

Video: Santo Domingo

17 December

Here’s Mui’s point of view of our day exploring Santo Domingo … Ciudad Primada de América …

Next Up … Grand Turk: Beautiful by Nature

Santo Domingo (Part II): Faro a Colón

Friday, December 17

I left off part one of our visit to Santo Domingo with us missing the shuttle back to the port by just a second or two.  So, let’s continue from there.

We could have walked to the port, but that wasn’t our destination.  Not yet anyway.  Rather, we wanted to visit Faro a Colón (Columbus Lighthouse).  Taxis were few and far between at the Puerta de San Diego and the ones that whizzed by already had passengers.  So, what to do?

Map showing the lighthouse in relation to where the ship is docked.

Seeing us trying to flag down a taxi, three members of the Politur (Tourist Police) banded together to help us.  While one made a call on his cell phone, the other two stopped traffic so we could safely cross to the other side of the busy road.  A few minutes later, having negotiated an acceptable rate, we were on our way to the lighthouse.  It turns out that Jose, the cabbie, was a driver by day and a policeman by night.  He even gave us a peek at his badge to show that we were safe with him!

The politur are very helpful.

Having seen Google Earth images of the cross-shaped faro, I knew this was a lighthouse like no other that we’d seen.  In fact, the Columbus Lighthouse is more in the nature of a monument to the man who discovered America.  There is a light inside the building — more accurately, 157 lights — but as our guide, Emilio, later told us, it is lit only on a few special occasions because operating costs are prohibitively expensive.  When the lighthouse is operating, the reflectors create a cross in the sky that is visible from miles away.  I’ve read that it is a sight to behold.

this is The image that whetted our interest in seeing Faro a Colón.

[scanned from postcard]

Faro a Colón was built to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America in 1492.  The design of a British architect was chosen following a world-wide competition.  The 45-foot (13.5 m) high structure is 693 feet (211 m) long on the east-west axis, and 195 feet (58.5 m) long on the north-south axis.  Frankly, the concrete building is nothing much to look at from the outside, but we were there to see what was inside.

Construction began in 1948; the lighthouse was inaugurated in 1992.

Jose escorted us up the long walk to the monument and introduced us to Emilio, one of the official guides.  After we purchased our tickets ($3/person), Emilio walked us to the grand mausoleum that sits prominently in the top half of the cross.  Pointing to the black lead crypt in the middle, he explained that Columbus’s remains were buried in it after they were removed from the Santo Domingo Cathedral.  Hmmm!  Are they really?  There’s quite a bit of controversy surrounding this claim.

The mausoleum that holds Columbus’ remains is the first thing visitors
see upon entering the lighthouse.

History records that Christopher Columbus died in Valladolid, Spain in 1506.  Thirty years later, his remains were transported to Santo Domingo.  The story goes that after Hispaniola became independent, the remains were moved to Havana, Cuba.  Then, when Cuba gained independency in 1898, said remains were returned to Spain and buried in Seville.  Thus the controversy — the Dominican Republic adamantly maintains that the remains of the “Admiral of the Ocean” never left their territory.

[scanned from postcard]

I suppose it’s possible that both Spain and the Dominican Republic are accurate in their claim.  What’s to say that some of his bones were not left behind when they were moved from Spain, to Santo Domingo, to Cuba, and back to Spain.  Now all we need to stir up the controversy even further is to have Cuba claim that they have Columbus’ remains!

(In 2006, an announcement was made that DNA testing has proven that Spain has the right bones.  The Dominican Republic, however, continues to dispute the claim and has refused Spain’s offer to test the bones in their keeping, saying: “… We Christians believe that one does not bother the dead. …”  Click here to read the article.)

Saying that Jose had told him that he would return to pick us up in an hour, Emilio then gave us a whirlwind tour of the rooms lining the length of the monument.  These rooms contain miniature museums from countries around the world on one side, and the Caribbean nations on the other side.  There were lots of interesting things to see, but we had just enough time to skim the surface.  One could easily spend the day at the Columbus Lighthouse.

The rooms on either side of the east-west axis contain items
donated by countries around the world.

After showing us the anchor that is said to have belonged to the Santa María, one of the three ships that Columbus sailed to the new world on his first voyage (Niña and Pinta being the other two), Emilio concluded the tour.  He must have been happy with the tip we gave him as he then took us to another room to show us the vestments Pope John Paul II wore when he celebrated Mass at the lighthouse on the occasion of its inauguration in 1992.

As promised, we found Jose waiting for us outside the monument.  He wasn’t a happy camper and asked us why we’d taken so long.  Our response that Emilio had told us that we had an hour smoothed his ruffled feathers, but I wouldn’t want to be in Emilio’s shoes when those two next meet.

The ride from the lighthouse back to Grand Princess took mere minutes.  By 3:00p we were back on the ship, with plenty of time to get a bite to eat on our veranda while we awaited the 4:00p sailaway.

Scenes from our sailaway from Santo Domingo.

Our day in Santo Domingo was very rewarding, but we merely touched upon a tiny portion of the historic buildings, churches, and homes the Colonial city has to offer.  The Fodor’s guidebook was right on the money in recommending exploring the city over spending the day at the beach.  Santo Domingo is the kind of place we’d like to return to someday for more in depth exploration, and maybe a day or two at a nearby beach resort.  We’ll have to add it to our ever-growing list of places to re-visit.

Though it was a hot day, it wasn’t unbearably so thanks to light breezes and partly cloudy skies.  The temperature probably did reach the forecasted 82F (28C), but it didn’t feel that hot, probably because it wasn’t very humid.  Still, we were drained from having gone walkabout from 9:30a to 3:00p.  It was nice to just sit on the veranda until dinner time.

ohHH, my weary feet!

… Later

Tonight was the last formal night of the cruise.  We’ve long given up on traveling with formal attire on Caribbean voyages.  If what we saw around the ship this evening is anything to go by, so have a majority of the passengers on Grand Princess.  It might be different in the Botticelli Dining Room where traditional seating dinner is served, but certainly in the Da Vinci Dining Room we were in good company attire-wise.

Mui: crab, scallop, and shrimp salad with duo of caviar; Belgian endive, Boston lettuce, and tomato salad; broiled lobster tail and king prawns with grilled asparagus and rice.

Me: roasted tomato soup; Caesar salad; pan-fried fillet of rockfish with creamy potato and leek casserole.

Dessert: mandarin sorbet and Princess Love Boat … to share.

Now that I’ve caught up with the blog, I’m going to try and stay up a bit longer.  We’re gaining an hour in the wee hours of the night, so I want to make the most of that extra time.  However, seeing as how I’m already yawning and my eyes are drooping, I don’t hold out much hope for being awake for more than another half hour or so.

Next Up … Video: Santo Domingo

Santo Domingo: Ciudad Primada de América

Friday, December 17

Our day in the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, was all about Santo Domingo, the city that bills itself as “the first city in America.”  In truth, the first “European settlement in the New World” would be a more accurate description.  But that’s neither here, nor there … and it does not diminish the significance of Santo Domingo, which was founded in 1496 by Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher of the “Discoverer of America” fame.

The Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti.
(the inset shows the colonial city of santo domingo and the
faro a Colón in relation to where we docked.)

We were up around 6:45a, just as the sun was rimming the horizon in shades of red, orange, pink, and purple.  With a 9:00a scheduled arrival into port, we had plenty of time for a leisurely breakfast on the aft deck of the Horizon Court before returning to the cabin for our sail-in.

Early birds get to see the sky on fire.

Our portside cabin was an excellent spot from which to watch as the coast slid by and high rise buildings started to appear.  I’m not sure what I was expecting, but the big-city feel of the modern day Santo Domingo certainly wasn’t it.

(By the way, I came back from today’s outing with nearly 300 photos.  I’ll be using quite a few collages in this post, so a reminder … you can click any photograph to see a larger version.)

welcome to Santo Domingo.

Coastal Scenery as we sail into port.

The city dock was occupied by a barge, so Grand Princess docked at Sans Souci, the passenger terminal built by Royal Caribbean on the side of the city separated from the Colonial town by the Ozama River.  Prepared for a hot, humid day with plenty of bottled water in Mui’s backpack, we were first off the ship after it was cleared by the authorities.

The Fortaleza Ozama is one of the landmarks of the city.

Deciding to save our energy for the long day of exploration ahead, we bought tickets for the 9:00a shuttle ($5/person R/T).  Hah!  Word to the wise, the shuttles leave when they are full (or nearly full).  With most of the debarking passengers booked on ship-sponsored excursions, it was closer to 9:30a before we left Sans Souci, and that was only because one passenger raised a stink.  Had we gone with our original plan to walk to the Colonial city, we would have beaten the shuttle to the drop off point.

It turns out that guides trained by the Ministry of Tourism accompany each shuttle load of passengers to offer a $5/person 1-1½ hour tour of the Colonial city.  That’s probably the main reason why they wait for the bus to fill.  Frankly, the tours are not a bad deal.  Had the guide on our bus not grated on our nerves with his loud voice and bad jokes, we might have taken him up on the offer.  Instead, armed with the map and walking tour information I had downloaded from the internet, we went off on our own as soon as the shuttle arrived at Puerta de San Diego.

This Map shows some of the places we toured in the Colonial City,
as well as the Faro a Colón on the opposite bank.

Puerta de San Diego (aka the Gate of Saint James) was once the main entry
through the walls that were built in 1571 to protect the old city.

Our first stop was at Alcazar de Colón (Columbus Palace), built in 1510-1514 on the orders of Diego Columbus, the firstborn son of Christopher Columbus.  Knowing that we had a lot of ground to cover, we had already decided we would not be visiting any museums today.  So, we took a few exterior shots of the building, checked out the Plaza de España (aka Plaza de Armas) with its statue of Nicolás de Ovando, Governor of Hispaniola (1502-1509), and continued our stroll.

scenes from Plaza de España and Alcazar de Colón.

We were briefly distracted from our explorations by the sound of a band playing a funereal sounding march.  Curious, we walked over to a neighboring street to find a parade in progress.  It turns out that they were honoring fallen naval heroes, hence the slow cadence of the march being played by the band at the head of the procession.

Passing the Museo de las Casas Reales (Museum of the Royal Houses) with its quirky, modern statues and circa 1753 sun dial in the plaza out front, we headed next to the Calle de las Damas (Women’s Street).  Built in 1502, the street is said to be the oldest in the western hemisphere.  Back then, it was known as the “Walk of the Ladies” because Diego Columbus’s wife, Maria de Toledo, accompanied by other noble wives, was in the habit of walking down this street on her way to Mass.  The street is lined with old stone “casas” that were once the homes of conquistadors, explorers, and governors.  My only regret about the street is that it wasn’t pedestrian-only; the modern cars parked on the street sort of ruined the old world ambiance.

Scenes from Museo de Las Casas Reales.

Our first stop on Calle de las Damas was the Panteón Nacional (National Pantheon), located in what was once the Convento de San Ignacio de Loyola, a Jesuit convent.  The building, which was constructed in 1747, was later used as a tobacco warehouse and a theater.  In 1955, it was restored as the pantheon where heroes and public figures are buried.

Scenes from inside Panteón Nacional.
(while the center bottom image may not seem like it fits,
remember that the building once served as a theater.)

Further down the street, we came upon Fortaleza Ozama (aka Fortress of Santo Domingo).  Overlooking the confluence of the Ozama River and the Caribbean, the fortress was built on the orders of Governor Ovando in 1503, thus making the fortaleza the oldest military complex in the new world.  (If you haven’t noticed by now, “oldest/first in the new world” is a recurring theme when it comes to Santo Domingo landmarks.)

Paying the $2.50/person entrance fee, we explored the grounds, climbing to the top of the Toree del Homenaje (Tower of Homage), which was so named to glorify the Spanish conquistadors who came to colonize the newly discovered lands.  After taking a quick peek inside the small museum, and playing with some of the modern armaments on the grounds (boys and their toys), we continued our exploration of the Colonial city.

Scenes from Fortaleza Ozama.
(in the taino indian language, ozama means navigable waters.)

Cutting through a walled courtyard, we next headed to Catedral Basilica Menor de Santa Maria (aka Catedral de Santo Domingo).  After peeking into the corners of the courtyard behind, we wandered around to the front entrance of the cathedral to check out the interior of the church.  (Proper attire required; no shorts.)

Though the first stone of the cathedral was set in 1514 by Diego Columbus, construction of the oldest church in the Americas was delayed until 1520.  One story says the delay was because the architect left Santo Domingo to build a church in Mexico.  Another story has it that the Spanish workers left to search for gold in Mexico.  The second story sounds more plausible to me … greed at work once again.  Anyway, with financing provided by the Bastidas, a wealthy church family, the building was completed in 1544.  The church, which was once a hut made of royal palms, now takes up an entire block.

scenes from the Catedral Basilica Menor de Santa Maria.

The remains of Christopher Columbus were once housed in the basilica, kept in a white marble and bronze memorial built by Dictator Heureaux in 1898.  Later, the remains were transferred to Faro a Colón (Columbus Lighthouse), located across the Ozama River.  In reality, the wrangling over where Columbus is buried has yet to be settled.  But that’s a story for part two of this post.

We took a short breather in Parque Colón (Columbus Park), which fronts the cathedral.  After checking out the statue of Christopher Columbus, we crossed over to Calle El Conde (Street of the Count), named for the Count of Peñalva, the general who repelled the English in 1655.

The statue of Columbus dates back to 1897.
It shows a native Taino woman reaching up to the “Admiral of the Ocean.”

Buying a cold drink from one of the cafeteria-style eateries that line the street, we strolled to the far end of the … wait for it … oldest commercial street in the city.  Street vendors and shops selling everything from clothing and shoes, to electronics, to canvas prints and tourist knick-knacks were everywhere.  They vied for our attention, but a simple “no, gracias,” did the trick and we were able to continue our stroll without being bothered much.

scenes from Calle El Conde.
(The bust is of bartholomew Columbus, founder of santo domingo.
the building with the interesting half-tower is the palacio consistorial,
Built in the early 1500s as the city hall.)

At the far end of El Conde, we crossed the heavy traffic on Calle Palo Hincado and entered Parque Independencia (Independence Park) through the Puerta El Conde (Gate of the Count), also named for the Count of Peñalva.  We were the only “visitors” here and I got the sense that not many cruise ship passengers venture this far.

Our main purpose in coming to the park was to see the Altar de la Patria (Altar of the Nation; aka Tomb of the Patriarchs of the Country).  This national mausoleum was built in 1976 and contains the remains of the founding fathers of the Dominican Republic.  It is always guarded by a member of the National Guard.  The young man on duty today graciously posed for our pictures and videos.

scenes from parque Independencia and Altar de la Patria.

(By the way, I have no idea who the kid in the center right photo is.  He asked me to take a photo of him in front of the mausoleum.  I obliged; showed him the resulting image on the LCD panel; he smiled, thanked me, and ran off to join his parents.  Nice encounter!)

Taking a side exit from the park, we crossed Calle Palo Hincado again to peek into Cementerio Independencia (Independence Cemetery) before beginning our return trek.  From a small shop on the street, we picked up a couple of piping hot fry breads filled with cheese.  Munching on our snacks, we strolled back down Calle El Conde towards Puerta de San Diego.

A few more scenes as we make our way back to calle El Conde.

Having just missed the shuttle back to the ship, we had no desire to wait for the next one 30 minutes hence.  Thus began the next part of our Santo Domingo adventure …

Next Up … Santo Domingo (Part II): Faro a Colón