Dubai tomorrow

April 26 2010


Ed was out of bed before I was and he went to the gym while I watched some animal planet shows trying to build up my energy. I went to the library and dropped off some books.
Computer audits
I was about to give up on a new student showing up for “Beyond Photoshop Basics” but a lady rushed in and so I was able to audit this class once more. I learn or master something better each time so I’m not sorry about the time. There wasn’t much of interest going on this morning anyway. This afternoon, Chuck (one of our trivia team) and I came to audit another of the computer classes we had taken but again no newbie showed up, so it wasn’t possible to audit.
Trivia
Since no one showed up for the 11 am class, there was no opportunity to audit so I whizzed over and joined my trivia group. We were no threat to the winners. Some of the answers were clearly wrong but folks are getting mildly better about not becoming ballistic when the person calling trivia has an incorrect answer. This afternoon there were only 5 of us and we started off on a roll with all of the first 10 correct. We could hear the folks grading our answer sheet cluck clucking about how well we were doing. However, it ain’t over til the fat lady sings and in the end we were no threat to the winners.
Lunch
We joined some folks we’ve lunched with before, the lady with her 90+ y/o, sharp as a tack, father. Another couple was farther down the table and so it was a loose series of discussions. One woman has macular degeneration and so I listened as that was discussed. They’ve been travelling pretty steady since she was first diagnosed. She has some vision but it’s compromised increasingly and I can certainly identify with that. Her husband is hard of hearing so there were chuckles about them. The other lady plans trips for her sorority and so we discussed trips she’s taken and those planned for the future.
Taj trip feedback
We’ve been hearing various versions of this trip but the stories include the fact that Princess is refunding $200 USD because of problems. Specifically, the India air plane they were to use had problems and so they sat for 2 hrs in the airport lobby until there was a proper plane. The temperature was in the 90s and the humidity was high as well. They had an hour at the Taj itself. There was supposed to be a stop at the Red Fort which was downgraded to a photo stop. It turns out only one bus truly did stop for photos there. So all in all, we are glad we decided not to go.
Bucket list
This was a lecture with the port talker and he covered 50 must see places in the world. This was part of what we were discussing at lunch speculating on what would be in each person’s top 50. We have seen all but 16 on his list and one of those, Petra, is on our schedule for this trip.
Show us what you bought
At one point today, while I was doing other things, I was in the Casino Lounge and there was this program going on. It’s astonishing what, and how much, many of these folks have purchased. And these aren’t folks for whom this is their first world cruise. I’m wide eyed at some of the things that folks believe they got at a good bargain. But if they’re happy… I can still see the smile on the face of the vendors who sold them the items. Some of these folks, mostly women, spend all of their time in port shopping. My Lord, how much can one buy? Well actually we all know the answer to that.
Dinner
All present tonite. One lady had purchased a 7 strand ruby necklace in the terminal shop and she was showing it off tonite. I’m glad she likes it and that’s enough said. The book written by the other lady was passed to me this evening and so I’ve started it. You can tell it’s her “voice” as I read. The font isn’t super large, but in good light, it’s OK for my reading. My “cheaters” seem to be working pretty well for me and I think my contacts are in the correct eyes now and that whatever was going on has stabilized for the time being. I’ll be curious to see what my tests show when I return.
David Copperfield
This is an older British (Scottish but without a heavy brogue) man who is “not the illusionist but the “unusualist” the original all around entertainer from across the pond.” We had a lot of belly laughs with this guy who involved folks all over the audience. He poked fun by doing some of the magic tricks we’ve all grown super tired of by making them unexpected and hilarious. He also did several songs in crazy ways and he has a good voice. It’s impossible to describe adequately his show, but the time passed very quickly. We sat next to our luncheon tablemates and the father had on a bright red blazer that was impossible to miss. He looks so adorable. She is also very sweet and fun to talk with.
Technology Hurrahs
Ed has often been able to speak with various family members via VOIP (Voice over internet protocol) using his iPhone. (I’m afraid to turn mine on given the $300 charges the Marine carrier tried to charge me in Dec. because I couldn’t figure out how to use the iPhone without incurring those charges!) I can’t understand, given his enthusiasm for that, why he won’t let me put Skype on here (the computer does have a built in camera) so we can use that. I have seen some people using it on board though not many. And despite the fact that the ship won’t support these technologies, it doesn’t mean you can’t successfully use them all other things being equal.
So at least we don’t feel totally and completely shut off from the world while we are, as the Captain frequently says, “in the middle of nowhere.”