With this journey I have achieved the grand distinction of spending a total of 500+ days on some of the many 'Dam' ships: The Statendam, Zaandam, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Eurodam, Nieuw Amsterdam, and my favourite Prinsendam, the baby of them all.
The Captain draped a 'gold' medal around my neck, shook my hand and thanked me for being such an intrepid 'Mariner'. A glass of champagne and a luncheon later, the whole business was a forgotten thing of the (albeit very pleasant) past.
Kissed good old Neptune Good Bye for a while, and stepped off the ship to face solid ground, not just to explore new horizons, but to LIVE on real earthy dirt again.
Hopped on a water taxi, that let me spend some more time 'afloat' buzzing about the canals, rivers and the Intracoastal to allow a last look at the Nieuw Amsterdam, doing her Sunday 'changing of the guard' in Port Everglades.
Fort Lauderdale - this was NOT where I spent my first night back on shore. No such luck....A 'Day's Inn', which seemed to be suffering post traumatic stress from the last hurricane, was my welcome into the real world.
The unfortunate truth is, that a night in a fixer upper in Fort Lauderdale costs as much as a whole 24 hour period on a cruise ship. Well, as I said, welcome to the real world.
I caught a glimpse of a manatee, grazing placidly in one of the few remaining inlets of the Intracoastal Waterway, where the gentle creatures live amongst the mangrove trees (not too many anymore) to enjoy the warmer winter water or suffer being chopped up by propellers. Speed limits are posted everywhere, no wake directives ditto, however - oblivion rules, and the riders of the lost arcs are churning up the aquatic pastures with a will.
What surprised me most, Fort Lauderdale's finest law enforcers in their powerful motor speed boats (they guard the cruise ships) seem to be the worst offenders. They seem to be either hovering in the water, or racing around in circles kicking up the most impressive wakes...Manatees beware!
Florida Sunsets as seen through the $10,000 a piece private Royal Palms on Millionaires' Row.
A little south from Fort Lauderdale is Hollywood (location of Fort Lauderdale's Airport) a somewhat laid back town covering a narrow strip of land between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal. Seafood restaurants abound. Water taxi side trip to this little spot is included in the $11 day-pass. That, indeed, is a DEAL in Fort Lauderdale!
It took almost ten days to get over the back-to-the-land culture shock. And mundane daily life awaits: house, garden, boat, car, mail, bills, appointments...LAUNDRY. First time I had to do THAT in a month.
Good News: Buenos Aires on the horizon for the next couple of months. Doing laundry in Spanish down there will probably be just like doing it here in English - but, the ADVENTURE!!
