Wednesday, November 30, 2016

1st port day: Amber Cove, DR

First port stop: Amber Cove,  Dominican Republic

I’m behind a day, I was so exhausted after a long day that I fell into bed and slept through ‘Batman vs Superman’.

The alarm clock had rung at 6am (yes, me, 6am) and we rushed out to see the docking. Oh my, this is going to be a this and that with not much interesting post. We saw the ship pull into port then grabbed breakfast at the buffet. We couldn’t dilly dally as we had to be at the exursion meeting spot at 8:10. As it turns out, we should have gotten there earlier as we were near the back of the bus, which required much waiting to get in and out at every stop.

The guide was informative, giving all sorts of information about the DR, but unfortunately I don’t remember a thing. Oh, the bus had wifi which is why I was able to do a quick post on FB and to touch base with Pat.

The first stop was the rum factory… two tastings later and we were on the bus for the next stop. The little shop (probably the guides friends or family) had lots of pretty larimar jewlery and I  got sucked into a necklace. We were treated to some kind of rum, wine and honey brew that was lovely and packed a punch. We were ready for the next spot.

The home of the man who liberated DR from the Spanish was interesting and full of history. I’m afraid I tend to tune out after a while and don’t remember a thing (did the 3 rum drinks have anything to do with this?) There was a tasting of coconut rum at the end of this tour. Please know that they aren’t pouring you a big shot, but only a sip or two!

Unfortunately it started raining when we got to the gardens of some person or other. I didn’t get any photos but there were some amazing orchids. We had a traditional DR lunch here, on the second story underneath some clear panels. It felt like we were in the tree tops and defineatly not at home.

We made it to a the ruins of a fort. We looked around a bit, but unfortunately I wiped out on the stairs going down from a tower and didn’t much feel like looking at anything else. While we were there we picked up another necklace of larimar.

Back at the ship we visited in Jo Ellen and Don’s cabin for a bit then went to the buffet for an early supper. Apparently the buffet has everything that is on the dining room menu, but we get to choose an assortment. Eating in the dining room was nice, but it is more convienient to go when we want.

We went early to the theater so that we could grab some good seats and was entertained by another great show. It is amazing that the dancers can do their thing on the rocking stage. We had a pretty good swell last night so the boat was rocking and rolling. I wondered if I might get nausous but was thankful not to.

And there we have it, a busy day with lots to see and do. The weather was so so: mostly cloudy with some showers. Where is the Caribbean blue sky?

oh, my tablet is not reading the card from my camera so no photos until we get home.

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