TAKORADI, GHANA

The Silver Wind spent the day tied up at the wharf in Takoradi, Ghana.  This was the ship's first visit, perhaps any cruise ship's first visit, to this obscure city on the African coast just north of the equator.  Takoradi is definitely not a cruise destination.  My guess is that Silverseas chose the port because it was a good place to refuel before heading north to more scenic and famous places.  Takoradi is about 200 miles west of Accra, the capital of Ghana.  The Ghanaian government built Takoradi some years ago as Ghana's only deep-water port.  It is small.  It can handle only a few ships at a time.  There were oil and gas rigs in the bay just outside the port. We docked carefully between two freighters.  There were no passenger facilities at all.

Silverseas hired some buses and tour guides to come from Accra for the day to show us tourists the sights, such as they were.  The ship-sponsored tours were simple and hideously expensive.  There was one to a city an hour and a half away to visit some historic castles or forts used centuries ago in the African slave trade.  The tour required three hours of riding a bus and featured an hour and a half lunch and "folkloric show." This meant that the seven-hour tour spent maybe an hour or so at the historic sites at a cost of over $300 per person.  The other tour consisted of a bus ride through the city, a visit to a small park called "Monkey Hill" where there are rumored to be monkeys occasionally, a stop at a fishing village to "interact" with the fishermen, and a stop at a somewhat distant luxury beach hotel for refreshment and the inevitable "folkloric show."  This tour, only three and a half hours in length, cost over $200 per person.

Michael and I chose, instead, to take the Silverseas provided shuttle bus to the central market in Takoradi.  We spent about half an hour walking around the market circle.  Nothing we could have done during a short daylong visit could give us more than a glimpse of Ghanaian life.  The market visit in all probability gave us as much flavor of Ghana as a tour would have.

The people appear well fed and well clothed.  The market stalls were shallow storefronts or in many instances mere areas of sidewalk.  All manner of things were for sale.  We saw one man washing canvas shoes and setting them on a low table.  Strange and familiar foodstuffs were available.  New and used clothing, housewares, cell phones and kiosks selling phone cards and groceries were all crowded together.  Shopkeepers and customers all appeared to have cell phones.  Ghanaian women, and some men, carried huge bundles of merchandise on their heads. The buildings were mostly of cement block.  A number had unfinished upper stories; most had peeling paint. It makes me wonder if in Ghana, people don't pay taxes on a building until it is completed thus resulting in a general unfinished look to the city.

There were paved streets and sidewalks most in poor repair.  There were sewers along most streets, mostly covered but smelly.  Considering the heat there was relatively little odor and almost no trash lying around.  The people were cheerful and friendly.  Clearly, this huge market was local people selling to each other.  Guests from our ship were the only white faces in the crowd.  We felt reasonably safe and unthreatened. Tourism has not yet taken hold in Takoradi.  Only a small, improvised market at the edge of the pier was selling tourist-type craft items. I wonder what it will look like in a few years as more cruise ships visit.

Michael and I returned to the Silver Wind well before noon.  We spent a pleasant afternoon reading, writing and in the ship's pool enjoying the perfect temperature of the water.  Later we watched the busy port activity.  A small crane on wheels spent hours moving shipping crates from one place to another seemingly at random.  A group of workers from a trash disposal company (environmentally friendly according to their logo) managed to drop a discarded tabletop into the water as they unloaded it from the Silver Wind.  This required the advice of many sidewalk superintendents as they struggled to fish the round wooden object from the water. Please see Micheal's blog  http://cbu-africa1202.blogspot.com for a humorous look at these and other incidents on shipboard.

Ghanaians are not  punctual.  The two pilots required to point the way out of the harbor were late as were the line handlers. Additionally, the line handlers had great difficulty removing the mooring lines.  They got them tangled, in fact.  The captain was in no good mood when the Silver Wind finally pulled away from the pier.  Ghana tourism is clearly not ready for "prime time."

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639

CROSSING THE EQUATOR

We crossed the equator mid morning on Monday, February 20. I took a screen shot of the TV monitor in our suite close to the actual crossing time.  We almost crossed at "zero, zero".  That is zero degrees latitude and zero degrees longitude, the place where Google Earth goes when it doesn't know where you are.  All I could see at the prime meridian and the equator was a lot of water.  The weather did get appropriately hot and humid.

The cruise director scheduled an equator crossing ceremony at 11 a.m, shortly after the actual event.  These ceremonies date back to the time of Columbus and, I'm told, have changed little over the centuries.  King Neptune, the ruler of the seas, must be placated before he will allow the ship safe passage. This usually involves various indignities performed on passengers and crew who have never crossed the equator before.  In this case a ship's entertainer and two brave guest volunteers suffered having gooey stuff  dumped on them or simple embarrassment.  The entertainers and Colin, our Scottish accented cruise director, played King Neptune and his minions. One of the traditional highlights is the kissing of a fish.   A great time was had by all.  The pictures tell the story. 

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639

NAMIBIA: There is Sand Here

The Silver Wind set sail (actually, motored) toward Namibia Monday evening.  We were at sea all day Tuesday and arrived shortly after noon on Wednesday.  The seas remained calm.  The weather was cool even though we were at latitudes between 30 and 20 degrees south.  A strong Antarctic current off the west coast of the continent of Africa keeps the shore cool and frequently overcast although it rarely rains.

I attended some lectures on Africa, wrote some and caught up on reading a book I had started more than a week ago.  Michael and I were invited to the Captain's table at the traditional formal dinner on the first sea day.  We had an enjoyable time.  There were only six of us and we were all able to converse with Captain Palmieri who is most sociable and tells wonderful stories and jokes about the international collection of guests.

The ship-sponsored tours at Walvis Bay, our port in Namibia, were expensive and featured mostly dune buggy rides or boat rides to view the wildlife in the small bay. Michael worked very hard to arrange a private taxi that we shared with another couple.  We wanted to see nearby Swakopmund, a town that time forgot.  See Michael's blog http://cbu-africa1202.blogger.com for a satirical description of our visit.  Our friends Bruce and Susan with whom we shared the taxi, are also interested in trains so we had our driver take us to all the old and new railroad stations along the way as well as the usual tourist stops. The original old 1900's train station has been converted into a beautiful hotel.  The best I can say about the new station is that it is utilitarian.

The road to Swakopmund lies along the shore where the dunes of the Namib Desert come right to the water.  This area has become a prize vacation destination for outdoor enthusiasts.  Dune buggy rides, parasailing and strenuous hiking in the sand are popular.  I thought that just looking at the spectacular landforms was most interesting.  Except for seme green bumps on some of the dunes, all the trees are planted and irrigated. Foreign investors have been buying up beachfront and several partially constructed resort communities are going up in the desert at the edge of the sea.  The areas are outlined in palm trees complete with drip irrigation lines and all have one giant "palm tree" that is really a disguised cell tower. Why go to the effort? It's obviously a cell tower.  There are no tall palms here.  Especially ones with trunks that look like tall poles. All the locals were eager to point out the compound where Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt came to have their baby. I guess that was the biggest news story since independence in 1993.

Thursday, February 16^th was our first anniversary.  We took a long walk through Walvis Bay in the morning.  We walked through the expensive neighborhoods where all the houses had concrete fences topped by wire or electric fencing.  Most had "beware of the dog" signs too although most of the dogs were tiny but barked a lot.  We sailed out at one p.m. Fishing and mineral transport are the main activities in Walvis Bay.  There is not much town.  We saw what there was of it in a few hours. Later in the evening we had a celebratory dinner aboard ship with a couple we had dined with at the Captain's table a few days before.  Lots of travel stories were exchanged. I wore my African caftan, purchased in CApe Town.  I cannot think of many occasions for which it will be appropriate.

Yesterday and today are sea days as are the next two days.  Michael and I attended a reception on the bridge yesterday.  All twenty or so of the guests on board for the last cruise from Cape Town to Cape Town continuing on this cruise, from Cape Town to Las Palmas were invited.  Captain Palmieri volunteered me to ring the ship's bell at precisely noon. I thought I conducted myself with aplomb.

I plan to read, attend some more lectures and walk laps on the upper deck.  Maybe I'll use the swimming pool for the first time.  I know I will have more fabulous meals that will have to be walked off.  Days at sea are for relaxing and pampering oneself.  It's a tough life but someone has to do it.

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639

CAPE TOWN AGAIN: The Beginning of a New Cruise

Another sea day followed our departure from East London.  The sea remained rough and few passengers and crew were to be seen in the public areas of the ship.  The crew even drained the pool and hot tubs to prevent water from sloshing all over the deck.  I spent some time selecting pictures and writing this blog.

 I attended another cooking demonstration and saw a few minutes of a lecture about the history of South Africa.  The lecturer tossed off so many names and incidents that it was hard to follow his point. I gather that the Dutch, British and various native peoples all fought each other in various combinations for about 200 years with the British ultimately triumphing.

Michael and I watched the silver Wind make circles outside Cape Town harbor ten days previously.  This time there was no difficulty.  We arrived a bit early if anything.  The port authorities in Cape Town have finally implemented the changes to where cruise ships may dock.  We docked at the Duncan Dock area midway between the Victoria and Alfred Harbor and the far away dry dock area we had left from at the beginning of the cruise segment.  It seemed strange to walk out of the unfamiliar dockside onto a very familiar street.  Cape Town was fair and sunny with little wind.

Michael and I had not taken the cable car to the top of Table Mountain on our previous visit because it had been very windy.  We thought it a good day to try again.  Rather than take a taxi half way up the mountain to the lower end of the tram, we took the red city tour bus a second time.   Our plan was to ride the cable car and then get off at some of the other stops the bus makes.  The narrated tour did mean more to me the second time around. I took lots of picture of city sights including District 6, an empty space from which non-whites had controversially been evicted and the ground cleared toward the end of the Apartheid years. The narrator pointed out city hall where Nelson Mandela spoke calling for unity and freedom on his release from prison.

When we reached the stop for the cable car ride we found that, even though the weather was beautiful, the tram was not running.  We saw the cars occasionally going up and down without passengers. They stopped for long periods. The attendants had no information on when service would resume. My guess is that there was a maintenance problem.  Therefore, we stayed on the bus until the Camps Bay stop where we got out and walked along the beautiful crystal white sand beach. 

We got off the sightseeing bus as it reached the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront shopping district.  I bought a necklace at the craft mart. We attempted to exchange our remaining South African Rands for U.S. dollars but were rebuffed by the bank teller in the nearby bank.  No exchanges without a passport! Why, I have no idea.  Our passports were on board the Silver Wind safely locked in the Purser's office. It seemed like a good idea to return to the ship and watch the provisioning.

Loading the ship's stores ran late.  Our departure was delayed an hour and a half as dockworkers and ship's crew loaded pallets and boxes of produce, wine, toilet paper and other items a ship needs on a long voyage.  Even the ship's officers were involved in passing wine boxes hand to hand up the gangway.  Finally, the fresh seafood and the last pallet of onions were stowed and we were ready to leave.

Michael and I looked at each other and grinned.  We were starting another cruise!

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639

CAPE TOWN AGAIN: The Beginning of a New Cruise

Another sea day followed our departure from East London.  The sea remained rough and few passengers and crew were to be seen in the public areas of the ship.  The crew even drained the pool and hot tubs to prevent water from sloshing all over the deck.  I spent some time selecting pictures and writing this blog.

 I attended another cooking demonstration and saw a few minutes of a lecture about the history of South Africa.  The lecturer tossed off so many names and incidents that it was hard to follow his point. I gather that the Dutch, British and various native peoples all fought each other in various combinations for about 200 years with the British ultimately triumphing.

Michael and I watched the silver Wind make circles outside Cape Town harbor ten days previously.  This time there was no difficulty.  We arrived a bit early if anything.  The port authorities in Cape Town have finally implemented the changes to where cruise ships may dock.  We docked at the Duncan Dock area midway between the Victoria and Alfred Harbor and the far away dry dock area we had left from at the beginning of the cruise segment.  It seemed strange to walk out of the unfamiliar dockside onto a very familiar street.  Cape Town was fair and sunny with little wind.

Michael and I had not taken the cable car to the top of Table Mountain on our previous visit because it had been very windy.  We thought it a good day to try again.  Rather than take a taxi half way up the mountain to the lower end of the tram, we took the red city tour bus a second time.   Our plan was to ride the cable car and then get off at some of the other stops the bus makes.  The narrated tour did mean more to me the second time around. I took lots of picture of city sights including District 6, an empty space from which non-whites had controversially been evicted and the ground cleared toward the end of the Apartheid years. The narrator pointed out city hall where Nelson Mandela spoke calling for unity and freedom on his release from prison.

When we reached the stop for the cable car ride we found that, even though the weather was beautiful, the tram was not running.  We saw the cars occasionally going up and down without passengers. They stopped for long periods. The attendants had no information on when service would resume. My guess is that there was a maintenance problem.  Therefore, we stayed on the bus until the Camps Bay stop where we got out and walked along the beautiful crystal white sand beach. 

We got off the sightseeing bus as it reached the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront shopping district.  I bought a necklace at the craft mart. We attempted to exchange our remaining South African Rands for U.S. dollars but were rebuffed by the bank teller in the nearby bank.  No exchanges without a passport! Why, I have no idea.  Our passports were on board the Silver Wind safely locked in the Purser's office. It seemed like a good idea to return to the ship and watch the provisioning.

Loading the ship's stores ran late.  Our departure was delayed an hour and a half as dockworkers and ship's crew loaded pallets and boxes of produce, wine, toilet paper and other items a ship needs on a long voyage.  Even the ship's officers were involved in passing wine boxes hand to hand up the gangway.  Finally, the fresh seafood and the last pallet of onions were stowed and we were ready to leave.

Michael and I looked at each other and grinned.  We were starting another cruise!

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639

DURBAN AND PORT ELIZABETH: Large City, Small City

We have left South Africa for the final time this cruise.  We are now off the west coast of South Africa approaching the Namibian border.  We should reach Walvis Bay, Namibia by noon tomorrow.

After we left Richards Bay and the wildlife parks, we sailed overnight to Durban, the third largest city in South Africa.  Michael and I had scheduled no excursions.  We opted, instead, to take the Silver Sea shuttle bus from the ship to a nearby water park and shopping mall.  We walked along a gorgeous beach for more than a mile, then along a main city street for a few blocks until we found an internet café.  We checked our e-mail and Facebook accounts at a cost of 5 Rand for an hour of good Internet connectivity.  5 Rand is about 58 cents.

Durban was the first city we actually walked around since we embarked in Cape Town.  It is a modern, bustling city that could be anywhere in the world where autos drive on the left hand side of the road and nine out of ten faces are dark.  There were a few young men hanging around.  Even though the unemployment rate is very high, most people were going about their everyday business. We returned to the Silver Wind after a few hours in the 90 plus degree heat and near 100% humidity.  Our timing was good as at started to rain as we reached the ship.  Michael spent most of the afternoon watching the port operations while I read a book.

Durban to East London is a relatively short distance that seemed a very long way in seas as rough as I have ever experienced. Much to my surprise as I have a long history of getting air sick, the rough seas did not bother me nearly as much as they did Michael and most of the passengers and crew.  We were sailing off the southern coast of South Africa where the Atlantic currents meet the opposing currents in the Indian Ocean.  There are always swells.  This time there was a storm too.  Lots of up and down and side to side motion.  The captain slowed the ship to minimize our discomfort.

As a result of our slowing down, we were two hours late arriving at the port of East London.  Most of the planned tours were canceled.  Michael and I had not scheduled any tours having little interest in more small game parks or visits to tribal villages that are mostly staged reenactments.  These trips were to have featured tribal dancers, medicine men and women performing "traditional" tasks in primitive straw huts.

We again took a Silver Seas hired shuttle bus.  This time it drove through an interesting small city of wide streets, mixed industries to a shopping center similar to those found anywhere in the developed world.  Michael bought some rechargeable batteries for his camera at a store called Game that was very similar to a Best Buy in the U.S.  We walked around for half an hour and took the bus back to the ship. 

There was evidently a significant auto industry in both Durban and East London.  We saw new cars and trucks lined up for shipping on the piers.  In Durban a car carrier docked next to us was loading Toyotas.  I'm not sure what brand the little white cars on an opposite pier in East London were.

We were again in rough seas as soon as we left the relatively sheltered port of East London.  The port is so small that we required a tugboat to pull us away from the pier and help us turn in a relatively tight space.  Silver Wind is not a large ship so East London is indeed a small port.

I was impressed that East London seemed so prosperous.  This little city on the southern edge of Africa has developed a significant black, mixed-race and Asian middle class.  The shopping center was busy with a Saturday crowd.  The stores were all clones of familiar Western chain stores or small, local boutiques.  Some of the storefronts in the downtown area were run down or empty but the streets were clean and the people well dressed.  The homes in the more affluent suburbs all had fences topped with concertina wire or electric wires but the general impression was one of peace.

 

--
Barbara Borsuk
barbara@mborsuk.com
Boulder, Colorado, USA
303 408-3639