Wrapping it up

180 days around the world - San Francisco to San Francisco

 

Can you imagine what all is involved in providing 3 meals a day, clean facilities, laundry, personal clothing, enrichment and entertainment for a huge number of people each and every day for 180 days? Me neither. But perhaps you will find some of the following statistics interesting.

Below are a few facts about this particular ship. Keep in mind that the Insignia is considered a small ship by cruise ship standards. We have docked near ships that were 3 times its size! The average cruise ship these days carries around 3,000 guests. I just learned that Royal Caribbean's Oasis can accommodate as many as 7,084 guests along with 2,204 crew members. So yes, Insignia is small compared to many cruise ships today.

And with all this leisure time, what do we do? We eat! Here's a rundown of the WEEKLY food consumption on this ship. How would you like for your grocery list to look like this one?

FOOD:

• 738 lbs. lobster
• 3,895 lbs. beef
• 8982 eggs
• 713 lbs. butter
• 2,196 lbs. flour
• 1810 liters milk
• 6,773 lbs. veggies
• 1,200 pieces of chocolate left on pillows
  

BEVERAGES (excluding tea, water, lemonade, etc) are consumed in a single week:

• 822 bottles of wine
• 240 bottles of champagne
• 347 bottles of spirits
• 2,992 bottles of beer
• 182 cases of sodas
  

One thing we like about Oceania is that one has the option of whether or not to purchase a drink package. In other words, we teetotalers don't have to pay for others drinks (meaning drinks are not automatically included in overall price).

BREAD AND PASTRIES:

61 members of the Galley team work in 5 galleys with 13 ovens and 11 stoves. The 4 bakers work around the clock to produce a variety of fresh bread, Danish pastries, croissant and muffins. One baker begins at midnight and two at 1 a.m. to bake fresh for the morning. The shifts are then “split” with another baker working a day shift to ensure fresh baked products throughout the day. Of course it's always served with real butter (no substitutes).

And how do they satisfy so many different tastes? Well, they have to come up with lots of different ways of preparing different foods. On this ship, they have:

• 37 different ways to prepare shrimp
• 28 methods of cooking potatoes
• 35 recipes for chicken
• 5 ways to serve escargot
• 18 recipes for pasta
• 14 types of foie gras
• 19 types of vinegar
• 16 types of olive oil
• 8 types of specialty oiled (walnut, hazelnut, etc)
• 48 types of cheese
• 21 types of chocolate
• 20 types of flour
• 61 different spices
• 10 different yogurts
• 11 types of milk
• 15 different cereals
• 13 types of rice

BUSTED! The ship also keeps records of how much china and glass is broken every month.

• 300 plates
• 90 coffee cups
• 20 buffet china
• 24 egg cups
• 250 water glasses
• 200 hi ball glasses
• 150 juice glasses
• 200 wine glasses

Additionally, 600 napkins and 50 tablecloths get ruined each month.

While some of the ship staff are cooking meals and doing dishes every day, others are working to keep you clean. EVERY DAY there are 1,400 towels, 800 linens and 3,000 pounds of guest and crew clothing - that's 21 tons of laundry each week!!

All in all, it's safe to say that it takes a lot of hard work by a lot of people to keep even the smallest cruise ship up and running. Overall, I think Oceania does an excellent job of it. 

GASOLINE - Fuel tanks hold 280,000 gallons. At 18 knots with 4 engines running, they burn 12 gallons a mile per engine. That's 48 gallons a mile! Aren't we glad we don't have to fill up that tank each week!? 

If any of this has interested you, try to watch this fascinating documentary we saw awhile back. Here's the synopsis: A floating city on the sea, the MSC Seaside is one of the biggest cruise ships in the world. With privileged access to every part of the cruise’s operation, this 90 minute special uncovers the army of people, amazing technology and complex systems that keep this extraordinary ship at the top of its game. Full of surprising facts and engaging characters, this captivating program reveals life on board in a way that the viewer has never seen before.

https://www.brinkworth.tv/shows/secret-life-of-the-cruise/

 

 

 

 

We did it!

On January 14, we traveled from College Station to Houston to San Francisco. We spent one night there before boarding Oceania's Insignia the following day. As we pulled out of port that evening in San Francisco, it was raining and I could not get a good photo of the Golden Gate Bridge as we sailed under it to begin our 180 Day Around the World adventure. 

 

leaving San Francisco - January 15, 2023

Fast forward 6 months. Early this morning we sailed back into San Francisco as the fog was beginning to lift. Ronnie took some photos from the top deck as we sailed under the bridge; I took a few from our balcony. It's common to see sea gulls around cruise ports, but I've never seen so many in one place as are here in San Francisco! And the racket!!

 

Golden Gate Bridge - straight ahead

good clearance?

 

foggy morning - San Francisco Bay

"city by the Bay" coming into view

entering Port of San Francisco

noisy gulls in sea and sky

balcony view of San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge

It has been a great adventure, although we only saw the smallest "snippet" of each place we visited. Some places we would enjoy going back to; others not so much. But we're glad for the adventure we've had and for the opportunity to share many of our experiences over these last 6 months. No matter how long one is away - whether days, weeks or even months - the best part is always returning home.

Sleeping in one's own bed is a wonderful thing! We both have a lot of "catch up" to do with overdue doctor's visits, blood work, dentists, dermatologist, hair cuts (desperately needed!) and more. I've missed taking care of our little bird family, so I will be driving to Madisonville and Houston to collect them from their respective breeders who have graciously cared for them these past 6 months. Unfortunately, one of our beautiful little Lady Gouldian finches (Rocky ll) died while we were away. 

At noon today, we enjoyed meeting Ronnie's cousin Laverta, her son Lanny and grandson Kyle at Fog City Diner near the cruise terminal. Ronnie and his cousin had not seen each other since childhood!

Tomorrow morning our alarms will go off at 3 a.m. in order to get breakfast, finish packing and be off the ship with our bags by 4:30 a.m. Lord willing, we will be back in College Station around dinner time. Ronnie woke with a head cold or allergies this morning, so he will be extra glad to get home!

Thank you for following along with us. It has helped us so much to stay in touch with friends and family!

Much love,

Jan & Ronnie

Sail Away!

As I write today's post, we're on our way to San Francisco where this adventure began 6 months ago. What an experience it has been! Thank you so much for following along with us. Knowing that there are a few of you who were truly interested in keeping up with us gave me the extra push to keep it going!

Last week, all who have been on this 180 day Around the World adventure assembled on the deck for a group photo. We were told to wear our Oceania jackets. I think there were maybe 3 or 4 rebels that didn't comply - not bad!

 

2023 Around the World travelers - aboard Oceania's Insignia

Our final "Sail Away" party was yesterday evening as we were leaving Port Astoria. The Insignia show band played music and singers and dancers entertained us. Unlike our "Sail Away" party in San Francisco, many folks were happily mingling, chatting and even dancing with folks they didn't know just 6 months ago. The weather was absolutely fantastic and the deck party was the perfect ending to an unforgettable experience.

Each department - from the captains down to the laundry staff - was recognized as they circled the top deck to loud music and lots of claps and cheers. Hopefully they each felt how appreciated they are to all onboard!

 

Sail Away party on deck

 

recognition and appreciation of crew members by department

 

Rince Lnu from India (our butler)

 

400+ staff and crew members recognized

I'm sharing some 30 second videos of two of the ship dancers - sorry I have to chop them up but the ship internet just doesn't want to handle anything longer. But as you can see from the short clips below, the ship has some very talented entertainers! I might add that they also help to bring the median age of ship passengers onboard down some. ha!

 

Those below aren't "entertainment quality" dancers but they were enjoying celebrating and having a fun time. Apparently at the end of the Around the World Sail Away party, it's tradition for many of the staff and ship guests to jump into the pool. Some couldn't be coaxed but others dived right in, clothes, shoes and all!

cutting some rugs

some staff and guests taking the plunge

 

Today we are packing and bidding farewell to the new friends we've made along the way. And we're thinking about how to lose some of the weight we've gained with all the wonderful foods we've indulged in over these past 6 months! 

We are very thankful that we've been able to enjoy this extraordinary experience but we are ready to get home, hug some necks and sleep in our own bed! Your following along and keeping in touch has meant so much to us.

I hope to make one final post with a map and some fun facts tomorrow. Thanks again!

Jan (& Ronnie)

Back in the USA! Astoria, Oregon

The Insignia arrived in Astoria, Oregon shortly after breakfast this morning. It was a great feeling to be back in the USA! Before disembarking, we had to go through immigration in order to prove that we are US citizens. That consisted of waiting in a long line to have our passports checked and our pictures taken. Afterwards, we took the shuttle bus into town so that we could mail a package to Henry. It turns out that others from the ship were going to the post office too, mostly mailing stuff they couldn’t fit into their luggage. Several folks bought extra suitcases to get their excess stuff home. We haven’t packed yet so we don’t know if our luggage will go over the allotted weight but I packed a duffel bag, just in case.

 

view from ship - Port of Astoria

post from old docks emerge at low tide

 

We made it back from town in time for our tour bus to pick us up to take us to some small coastal towns along the Oregon coast. It was out first time to visit Oregon. It is a really beautiful state! I don’t think I would enjoy so much mist and rain; however they do wonders for flowers! Everything was so lush and green; flowers of all colors grow and bloom like crazy! Our first stop was a little town called Seaside. 

 

bus window view on way to Seaside

 

a life size postcard

Seaside caters mainly to tourists with souvenir-type shops and activities directed at families with children. We only had 45 minutes to look around and most of our time was spent walking around looking for something to eat. That wasn’t enough time for a sit down restaurant so we didn’t really find anything. From there, continued up the coast, stopping for a quick photo op at Haystack Rock, a rock formation that has been used in numerous movies including The Goonies and Kindergarten Cop. 

 

Haystack Rock formation

 

We arrived at Cannon City, a really neat little town on the Oregon coast. After visiting both, I wished we could have eliminated our first stop in order to have more time in Cannon City. It was a very cool, beautiful little town. We were starving since we still hadn’t eaten lunch and it was around 2:30 by that time, so we found a pizza restaurant and ordered ourselves a pizza. 

By the time we had finished eating, I had only about 15 minutes before we needed to be back at the bus. So basically I just walked back to the bus and took as many photos as I could on my way back. We rode the 45 minutes back to the port with full tummies, but wishing we could have enjoyed Cannon City a little longer. We sailed shortly after our return to the ship.

 

visitors meander along downtown streets

still dressed up for Fourth

 

As for the photos, the sky was mostly overcast, so they look better than those I shot at Butchart Gardens in the bright sun. I know the names of some but not all so I won't try to caption them. Enjoy!

 

window box outside eatery

climbing roses

every place of business has beds, window boxes or hanging baskets