| 04/12/15, 05/21/20 |
| 2015 Cruise, Page D, Tortola/Virgin Gorda, NYC, April 3 to April 6, 2015 |
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On April 3rd, we arrived in Tortola's (British Virgin Islands or BVI) harbor after 6 a.m. We could not to dock because the pier and the surrounding area is being upgraded. We took a tour excursion to Virgin Gorda (Fat Virgin). The Gem was only in port for a few hours. We took a ferry from the ship to Virgin Gorda. It was about a 45 minute ride. After about a 5 minute taxi ride, we were at the Baths. The Baths National Park on Virgin Gorda is a must see!! We walked, crawled, climbed, held on to a rope, etc. to get through the "caves". The beach at Devil's Bay was very nice. The photos of April 4th were taken aboard the Gem. It appears I took no photos on April 5th. The photos of April 6th were taken as the Gem returned to Pier 88. |
| Entering the harbor. |
| A rock formation that looks like a skull. This was seen on our way down to the Baths. |
| Devil's Bay |
| Leaving Virgin Gorda. |
| Atrium, Deck 7 |
| Reflection on glass of Deck 14 of Deck 13 . Can you find me and Elton? |
| Jorge |
| Elton |
| Another mural. |
| Grand Pacific Dining Room |
| More towel figures. |
| It was a beautiful full moon. |
| Back to NYC. Brooklyn. Coney Island. |
| Another incredible sunrise! |
| Verrazano Bridge |
| Manhattan skyline. |
| Many of the streaks in the sky were left by planes. |
| Used as cabin key and for all transactions on the Gem. |
SUMMARY We enjoyed the cruise. I had a great time on the Gem and in each port. As always, it was great spending time with Titi Mery while in San Juan! We enjoyed the trip to Coral World and Coki Beach on St. Thomas. Lunch at Gladys' Café on St. Thomas was great. I hadn't eaten Ole Wife fish in a long time. (Sorry, I do not know the scientific name.) We walked to the beach in Philipsburg, enjoyed the beach and then later walked around the town. We found a kiosk on Back Street where we enjoyed great food. The best part of the cruise was Virgin Gorda. The Baths is incredible! The entertainment was great, especially the acrobatic duo (husband and wife). There were comedians, magicians, and singers/dancers. The food in the restaurants we ate was edible but not that great. The buffet in the Garden Café became monotonous after a few days. Keep in mind that my taste buds were affected by whatever it is I had. And then there was "Washy-Washy". A worker stood guard at the entrance of the Garden Café making sure we sanitized (washed) our hands before entering. The worker suggested we "washy-washy" and then sprayed sanitizer into our hands. There were sanitizing equipment all over the ship. Why were unevenly cut pieces of foam tied to my mattress? The bed was comfortable so the foam could have been added for extra support. For most of the trip I did not feel well, but that did not keep me from enjoying myself. What did I have, allergies? Definitely not Norovirus. Elton put up with my bad moods as best he could. I am not the nicest person when I am sick. The ship needs a good paint job and refurbishing. Our balcony was very rusty. The free post card that was once placed in the cabins now costs 85 cents and sold in the gift shop. The once free tour of the galley/bridge/etc now costs $79.00. Automatically added gratuities went from $12.00 per day to $12.95. Since we prepaid the gratuities before leaving NYC we paid the lower rate. How much of this will the staff actually get? Keep in mind that I had not cruised in 4 years! I can see I have to cruise more often to keep up with all the changes! Want to rent a movie? Go to the menu on the TV in your cabin and select a movie. Fee? $9.99 per movie. However, you can still go to the library, select a book and read it for free. Most of the channels on the TV were channels showing information about the ship and news stations (Fox, BBC, MSNBC, and CNBC). But who had time to watch TV? And with the islands so close to each other, why can't the ship stay longer in port? While in port, the ship cannot open their gift shop, casino, etc. So it pays for them to leave early in order to make more money. I had planned to take 10 photos each day. As you can see by the photos on the 4 pages for 2015, I was not successful. As they say on St. Martin, "C'est la vie!" The ship photographers take great photos. However, a 5x8 sold for $12.99 and an 8x10 $19.99. |
| One of the ferries dropping passengers off. |
| Last hours to sunbathe! Eventually it got too cold and windy to be sunbathing! |
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| (c) Jorge L. Rodriguez |