Silver Wind

We Spend 16 Nights Aboard Silversea's Newly Renovated Silver Wind

Just the name “Africa” conjures up all sorts of images. Dense jungles, vast open savannahs, native tribes and wild animals. Movies like African Queen and Tarzan have shaped a generation’s perception of Africa as a mysterious, even scary place. Africa is a vast continent, over 7,500 miles from tip to tip! And, it takes more than ten hours to fly from the farthest point on the east coast to the farthest on the west. One thing is certain, any trip to Africa is an adventure.

Twenty hours of flying is no desireable way to begin an adventure, at least not in my book. However, if you are going to Africa, it is just one of the things you have to endure. We arrive in Cape Town nearly two days after leaving Dallas. After clearing South Africa Customs and collecting our luggage, we exit the baggage claim area where we are greeted by Buz Beck, our Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) representative for a 2-day pre-cruise stay in Cape Town.

For more information about Abercrombie & Kent, click here

Pre-Cruise: 2-Nights In Cape Town, South Africa

Buz Beck, our A&K guide pictured here on Table Mountain, gave us an incredible 2-day tour of the Cape Town area After Buz loads our bags into the Mercedes mini-van, we set off on a one-hour drive to our first hotel, La Residence. Along the route, Buz takes the time to point out the townships lining the highway near the airport. These shanty towns are where the poorest of the poor in South Africa live. The housing is little more than corrugated metal boxes that are stacked in no particular order. This is poverty on a scale that nobody in America can even begin to imagine. People who live in “poverty” in the USA would be considered wealthy in this part of the world.

Once past the sprawl of the townships, we head north toward the small town of Franschhoek, located about 45 minutes from Cape Town and right in the heart of the South African wine region. Along the way, we can see that South Africa is much more beautiful than we imagined. The landscape is a feast for the eyes. Jagged mountains, green rolling hills, pastures and vineyards seem to be everywhere you look. We even spotted a few zebra and kudu along the side of the road! We now wish we had scheduled more time here so we could rent a motorcycle and ride through the countryside.

The views from La Residence are breathtaking We arrive at La Residence around 7:30 am, our sanctuary for our first day in South Africa. We are greeted in the reception area by Stuart McFarlane, Deputy General Manager of La Residence. We are offered a welcome glass of orange juice and a short tour of the property. We say goodbye to Buz who arranges to meet us the next morning for our day of touring.

For a complete review of La Residence, click here.

The next morning, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast outside on the hotel's patio and met Buz for our first day of touring. Buz Beck is a native of Cape Town and a retired teacher. Buz not only possesses the depth of knowledge of the area, but the unique ability to share his passion for his home country. Undoubtedly, his years of teaching helped to shape his communication skills. Buz is never at a loss for a story. He loves words and loves to share interesting stories about their origin.

Our day begins with a stop in the small, picturesque town of Franschhoek. Buz points out the Dutch and French influence on the town’s architecture and culture. We stop for a brief stroll down the street to buy some postcards. We visited a local Belgian chocolate shop where we sampled and purchased some delicious handmade chocolates. From Franschhoek we drove to Anura Vineyards in the Paarl Valley for a wine and cheese tasting set up by A&K. This small boutique winery produces some excellent Chardonnay and some very nice reds, as well. Interestingly, Anura also produces their own excellent selection of cheeses.

Cape Point, the southernmost tip of Africa After a brief drive through the town of Stollenbosch, it was time for lunch at 96 Winery Road. The address is also the name of this rustic trendy restaurant. While Rickee played it safe with a pasta dish, Buz and I opted for a more interesting meal opting to share Kudu and Gemsbock, two local antelope species. We also enjoyed an appetizer selection of scallops, pork belly and fried calamari, all of which were excellent.

After our delicious lunch, we drove to Table Mountain, a famous landmark that is one of those “must see” attractions for anyone visiting Cape Town. A unique round cable car rises to the summit at 1060 meters and rotates 360 degrees as it climbs. That way everyone on board gets the full view. Once at the summit, the views of Cape Town and the surrounding area are spectacular. We were very fortunate to be there on a clear sunny day. Some of the views reminded us of those from Christ Mountain in Rio looking down on Sugarloaf. The long but wonderful day of touring ended when Buz dropped us off at the Cape Grace Hotel located on The Waterfront in Cape Town.

The Cape Grace is practically a Cape Town landmark. Located right in the middle of Cape TownÂ’s Waterfront District, Cape Grace's guests are literally within walking distance of dozens of trendy restaurants and shops.

For more information on Cape Grace Hotel, click here

The next morning we enjoyed a lavish breakfast at The Signal restaurant before joining Buz for our final day of touring before boarding Silver Wind. We drove down the South African coastline to the town of Constantia where the South African wine industry got its start. Further down the coast, we arrive at another popular tourist destination, Cape Point. Here we saw baboons crossing the road right in front of us! There are so many baboons in this area that there are signs posted warning visitors against feeding them. A funicular took us to the highest point where we got some amazing views of Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. Cape Point is the southernmost point on the African continent.

After a lunch at The Black Marlin restaurant, Buz drove us to Boulders where we were able to view hundreds of South African penguins in their natural habitat. Who even knew that there were penguins in South Africa? By 2:00 pm it was time to head back to Cape Town to board Silver Wind. On our way back to the ship, the value of a private tour guide became very apparent. We had mentioned to Buz that we liked to collect a t-shirt from the local Harley-Davidson dealership any time we visit a new city. Without our even having to ask, Buz stopped at the Cape Town Harley dealership and waited for us while we went in and bought our souvenir shirt! You wonÂ’t get that kind of service on a group tour. After only two days with Buz, we are sold on the personal tour guide concept and are very pleased with how Abercrombie & Kent arranged everything. We are really looking forward to seeing what they have planned for us in Kenya at the end of our cruise.

EMBARKATION

Silver Wind off the coast of Madagascar By 3:30 pm we arrived pierside next to SilverseaÂ’s Silver Wind. We said goodbye to Buz, exhanged email addresses and boarded Silver Wind. We were greeted at the top of the gangway by Collin Brown, one of our favorite cruise directors. Unfortunately, Collin was leaving that day for vacation, but it was nice that we had an opportunity to say hello. Silversea has really streamlined the check-in process. We simply surrendered our passports and yellow-fever vaccine cards (a requirement for visiting Kenya), had our photos taken and we were issued our room keys to suite 531, a Midship Verandah Suite. With our welcome aboard glass of champagne in hand, we walked to our suite and were in our room within ten minutes of boarding. Corika, our stewardess who happens to be from South Africa, stopped by to introduce herself and point out the features of our suite. One thing about sailing with Silversea that never ceases to amaze us is that all the crew know each passengerÂ’s name and always greet each passenger by name. As a matter of fact, when we boarded the ship in Cape Town, our cabin stewardess greeted us by name and we had just boarded! How do they do that? It adds a special touch that enhances what is already excellent service.
[AD-SILVERSEA]


Silver Wind Gets A Facelift 

Rickee spots land from the new Observation Lounge It has been a few years since we last sailed on Silver Wind. However, we did sail on her sister, Silver Cloud, just a year ago. The two ships are virtually identical. Silver Wind just completed a major, multi-million dollar refurbishment at the shipyard in Italy. Here are a few of the obvious changes:

Observation Lounge – The Observation Lounge is back! Located on Deck 8 forward, the new Observation Lounge is now where the fitness center used to be. The new lounge is a beautiful, quiet location with 180 degree views of the sea. This is the perfect place to watch the ship come into port, or just sit and relax with a good book.

Fitness Center – The fitness center has been moved to the port side of the ship on Deck 8, behind the Observation Lounge. 

5 New Medallion Suites – There are 4 new Medallion suites on Deck 8 and one on Deck 7. The square footage of the 4 new Medallion suites on Deck 8 is 470 sq. ft. (including large balcony).  The 1 Medallion suite on Deck 7 is bigger at 678 sq. ft. (no balcony). We had an opportunity to tour the suite on Deck 7 and we found it very appealing. This would be our first choice if we were booking a large suite. There is a huge picture window in each of the three separate rooms (in lieu of a balcony). A large living room, with a sofa big enough for 10 people, includes a massive flat screen TV. Next is a separate dining room where private dinners would be a pleasure. The bedroom can be closed off from the dining room for privacy. There are two bathrooms and the master bathroom has one of the largest showers I’ve ever seen on land or sea! The new fabics used in these suites are warm and welcoming.

New Owner’s Suite (737) – A new owner’s sutie was added bringing the total to two.

The new Pool Grill La Terazza – This popular restaurant has undergone a major facelift. A completely new layout for the tables, new banquettes that allow for larger groups to be seated together, updated serving areas, new fabrics and carpet combine to give La Terazza a much more open and airy feeling. The al fresco dining area aft of La Terazza has been updated with a new awning that now covers all the tables and keeps sun and wind from spoiling an otherwise perfect meal.

Pool Bar/Pool Grill – The pool grill has been built-in replacing the portable, roll-around grill setup previously used. This allows for a nice salad bar to be offered.

Pool Elevator/Stairs – The center staircase from Deck 9 down to Deck 8 has been removed and replaced with a circular staircase on the port side of the pool deck. On starboard, there is a new stainless steel elevator that can transport guests between Decks 8 and 9.

Parisian Lounge – The ship’s main entertainment venue has been updated with new fabrics, leather seating areas, carpeting and lighting accents.

Restaurant – The Restaurant has received fresh new carpet and new fabrics throughout.

All suites – Every suite has been updated with new carpeting, new fabrics, new bathroom marble and wooden flooring and new “vessel” sinks and fixtures. Flat screen televisions replace the old tube-style TVs. Although not part of the dry dock refurb, new bedding and linens were introduced not long ago. The fabric colors are combinations of burgandy, golds and olive and really add a feeling of warmth to each suite.

ACCOMMODATIONS

New flat screen TVs have been added to all suites on Silver Wind. The Veranda suites are the most prevalent aboard Silver Wind. The suites are 295 sq. ft. in size and include a 49 sq. ft. balcony. The suites have just recently undergone major refurbishment and feature many upgrades. The most obvious upgrade is in the bathroom. All new dark marble surfaces have been installed on walls and counters. A dark wood floor replaces the old, cold marble flooring. A new vessel sink is impressive looking, but places form before function. Unfortunately, the design is clumsy and causes water to splash everywhere when the sink is used and it takes up much needed counter space . The lack of a stopper in the drain sort of makes the term “vessel” a misnomer. Storage is sparse in the new bathroom with only one narrow set of glass shelves for toiletries. The bathtub/shower combination now has a permanent glass barrier to replace the old shower curtain. This is a much more attractive setup, but it does make it necessary to actually step into the tub to turn on the water.

All suites feature fresh new fabrics and carpet The suites feature all new fabrics and carpeting. The burgandy and gold combination is much nicer than the old powder blue and gold. The entertainment/desk unit is the same except that the cabinet that used to house the old tube-style television is now a large, and needed, shelf storage area. A new flat-screen LCD television now rests in the center top portion of the cabinet, where it belongs. The flat-screen television swivels for viewing from the bedroom, which is good. However, the unit does not tilt forward. Because of the height of the TV, the LCD screen produces a lot of shadows and is hard to see from the bed or even the sofa. Silversea is aware of this problem and a tilt mechanism is going to be installed soon. One evening during the cruise, someone came in to reprogram the TV to add a maritime weather channel so you can now tune in to see the forecast and current conditions of seas and wind. The unit also includes a small refrigerator stocked with your choice of soft drinks, beer and bottled water. There are two US-style electrical outlets on the desk and two European-style. I always carry a couple of European-U.S. adapters when I travel, so I had plenty of places to drain the shipÂ’s electrical supply. The closet in our suite is spacious with lots of wooden hangers, plenty of drawers and a safe.

Suites on Silversea are always comfortable, and for the most part, quiet. However, suite 531 did have an interesting sound eminating from the ceiling. It sounded like a plumbing drain pipe ran right above the ceiling and water could be heard rushing through the ship’s vaccum system throughout the day. So, a continuous “whooosh” could be heard. We mentioned this to the concierge, and he offered to move us to another suite. If another suite had not been available, we could have easily lived with the sound, but we accepted their offer of a new suite nonetheless. We moved a few doors down to Suite 537 and there was no mechanical noise at all there. 

ACTIVITIES AND ENTERTAINMENT

Good news for Silversea devotees: the production shows are back! Our cruise featured a group of five dancers and two singers. There were four different shows during our cruise, mysteriously, all were presented within the last eight days of the cruise. The first show was a tribute to Broadway featuring, you guessed it, song and dance from popular Broadway hit shows. The choreography was good and the dance execution excellent. The vocals could have been helped with live music instead of the canned variety, or at least a combination of canned and assistance from the band. At some points, the sound volumes seemed very weak, and we were on the front row.

Donnie Ray Evins performs R&B Silversea also features a variety of guest entertainers during the cruise. Our personal favorite was Donny Ray Evins who did an excellent Nat King Cole tribute show and a R&B/Soul performance. We had an opportunity to visit personally with Donny Ray at the pool bar one evening and found his personality to be as pleasing as his performances.

On days at sea, guests are treated to a series of lectures presented by African native, Malcolm Ainscough. This former British Airways General Sales Agent evokes an obvious love for Africa. Mr. AinscoughÂ’s polished delivery entertained and educated guests on a variety of Africa-related topics during the cruise. However, by the end of the cruise, Mr. Ainscough was beginning to look a little overworked. I think that most of us would have preferred at least one other lecturer during a 16-night cruise for a little diversity, especially a cruise with so many sea days.

The cruise staff, assisted by the troupe of singers and dancers, conducts a variety of daytime activities including team trivia, dance lessons, bridge tournaments, golf putting, shuffleboard, table tennis, and wine tastings. In addition to a nice selection of books, the well-stocked library also offers a selection of DVDs for viewing in your suite. During the cruise, movies were shown in the Parisian Lounge on the big screen.

FOOD AND DINING

Silver Wind chefs pull out all the stops for the Galley Brunch Food is an important part of any cruise vacation. Unquestionably, Silversea has an excellent reputation for fine dining at sea. The menus have been redesigned to offer a wide variety of choices to cater to a sophisticated palate. Executive Chef, Laurent Austrui, oversees a galley staff that delivers dishes which are expertly prepared and beautifully presented.

Coffee drinkers will be pleased to learn that Silversea has improved the quality of coffee served throughout the ship. This was one of my biggest pet peeves since I rely on at least four cups of the ‘dark master’ every day.

La Terazza remains the venue for buffet breakfast and breakfast is also available with menu service in the Restaurant. Room service is a popular option for breakfast, especially on port days when guests are scheduled for morning excursions. Similarly, lunch follows the same pattern. The buffet luncheon in La Terazza offers a lavish display of salads, appetizers, breads, cheeses, hot dishes, pizza and wok dishes that change every day. In the evenings, La Terazza transforms into an Italian Bistro with several menus that rotate throughout the cruise. Each menu highlights dishes from a different region of Italy. Evening menus in The Restaurant are the most sophisticated you will find at sea. Service in all venues is polished and friendly, just as we have come to expect from Silversea.

The recently expanded Pool Grill offers lunch daily consisting of burgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken sandwiches, a salad bar and other munchies. Three separate visits to the Pool Grill revealed that the quality of the food here has been maintained. A new, and delicious, Bruschetta has been added to the Pool Grill menu.

Afternoon Tea is a daily temptation Afternoon Tea service is offered at 4 pm each afternoon in the Panorama Lounge. A new en suite tea service menu now allows guests to enjoy afternoon tea through room service. Guests are treated to a delectible selection of expertly prepared finger sandwiches, fruit tarts, pastries and fresh scones with clotted cream.

One of the special dining pleasures on a Silversea cruise is the signature Galley Brunch. A red carpet is rolled out through the shipÂ’s galley and guests are invited into the kitchen for an impressive buffet selection. The selection os fresh sushi, salads, breads, meats and vegetables is impressive. The dessert tables set up in The Restaurant are filled with colorful and artistic delights that will tempt any sweet tooth. The chocolate carvings and ice carvings are beautiful.

Bar Service

Oilver won Rickee's heart with his expertly prepared Mojito Our favorite spot on any Silversea Ship for a drink has always been the Panorama Bar. Most people head to The Bar on Deck 5 before dinner because it is closer to The Restaurant. Since we often skip dinner, or order room service, we head to Panorama which is much less crowded and offers a great 180 degree view of the ocean. Panorama waitress, Faye (with whom we have sailed previously), is excellent and always greets us by name and remembers my favorite drink.

On this cruise, something very strange occurred. Rickee took a risk on ordering a Mojito from Oliver, the always-smiling bartender at the Pool Bar. I say "took a risk" because Rickee has never had a Mojito she liked since the first one she had on Seabourn Pride way back in 2002...seriously. In the past seven years, Rickee has tried to duplicate that drink on various cruise ships, restaurants, bars and hotels. I thought she had given up. So, imagine my surprise when she, once again, tried to achieve Mojito satisfaction on Silver Wind. Well, history has been made. Oliver delivered a Mojito that had Rickee dragging me to the Pool Bar nearly every afternoon.

In general, the bar service on Silversea is excellent. Glasses of champagne are kept full without asking and when I order a scotch on the rocks, they always pour a double without asking. Interestingly, it is easier to get a drink on Silversea than on most ships where you pay extra for the drinks. And the drinks are better!



Le Champagne - A Special Dining Experience At Sea

On this cruise, we had the immense pleasure of dining at Le Champagne to celebrate my 30th birthday. I am much older than that, but was celebrating my 30th just the same. The exclusive Relais & Chateaux dining experience is unique to Silversea ships. A degustation wine selection is served with each of the five courses, complete with a detailed explanation about each wine delivered by Maitre d’Sommelier, Bharti. During our dinner, wines from North America were featured. The five courses served during the meal were deliciously prepared and professionally presented.

The Le Champagne experience is available to a maximum of eight people per night and reservations are required. There is a charge of $200 per person or, if you forego the wine, $30 per person. It was a magical and memorable way to celebrate my birthday.


THE SILVERSEA EXPERIENCE

Year after year, Silversea has been our choice as the “Best Small Ship Cruise Line.” There is no single reason for this. While there are cruise lines that may beat Silversea in certain areas, we can think of no other cruise line that does so much, so well. Silversea’s intimate 284-passenger Silver Wind and Silver Cloud, and only slightly less intimate Silver Whisper and Silver Shadow, offer an unparalleled combination of superb service, exotic itineraries, comfortable accommodations and nearly all-inclusive pricing.

Silversea’s cruise fares include all gratuities and all beverages served on board are complimentary. This makes a Silversea cruise a very good value. Compare a Verandah Suite on Silversea to a suite on a mainstream cruise line and you will find that the value is there, especially when you factor in gratuities and complimentary beverages. Also, when you book a Silversea cruise using your American Express card, you can get a $300 shipboard credit. 

Silversea has a reputation for attention to detail for things that most passengers would simply not notice or take for granted. One detail I picked up on was the fruit preserves provided on each table at breakfast. One of each type of fruit is available on each table...every day. That does not happen by accident. One of my pet peeves is having a selection that does not include strawberry preserves. It may seem like a minor detail, but it is just one more example of how someone at Silversea pays attention to details.
[AD-SILVERSEA]

PORTS OF CALL

Cape Town, South Africa – Unquestionably one of the most beautiful areas to embark or disembark a cruise. We opted to fly in two days early to deal with jet lag before getting on the ship. We arranged for two days of private touring and accommodations though Abercrombie & Kent (read more here).

The baby elephants steal the show at Addo Elephant Park Port Elizabeth, South Africa – We chose the ship’s excursion to Addo Elephant Park when in Port Elizabeth. A one-hour coach ride takes us to the 126,000 hectare reserve that serves as a refuge for a variety of indigenous animals including elephants, kudu, wart hog, Cape buffalo, rhino, wildebeest, lions and tortoise. When the park first opened, there were only 11 elephants; however, due to conservation and breeding activities, more than 300 now roam the park.

It did not take long for our 4 X 4 to reach a watering hole where dozens of elephants congregated. The baby elephants were as cute as can be and the mothers huddled around to protect them. At one point, a small herd passed within three feet of our vehicle. Absolutely amazing!

The highlight, however, was a rare lion sighting. Lions tend to stay out of sight during the daylight hours, coming out at night to hunt. There are only fourteen lions in the entire park. Neverthless, we came upon a male lion resting about 50 yards from the road and a female in the bush about 10 feet from the road! One of our guides said she had visited hundreds of times and only seen a lion one other time. I guess we were really lucky. I put my 300 mm lens to the test, clicking dozens of shots of these majestic cats.

The entire ride through the park only took about one hour and, in addition to elephant and lion, we were treated to many wart hog sightings, kudu (a type of antelope), tortoise and ostrich. All in all, I think we can call this excursion a success.

Zebra are very photogenic at Tala Durban, South Africa – We chose the ship’s Tala Game Reserve excursion in Durban. The beautiful sunny weather we have been enjoying all week was replaced by clouds, drizzle, and yes...cold! Can you believe it? It is actually cold in Africa! The highlight of the day was our visit to the Tala Private Game Reserve about one hour outside of Durban. When we boarded our 4 X 4 it was around 50 degrees and very windy. Unfortunately, I was completely unprepared for this. When we walked off the ship, it was about 70 degrees.

The clouds and fog made picture taking difficult. While the wildlife at Tala was more varied than at Addo Elephant Park, it was typically much farther from the vehicle. Binoculars and zoom lenses were the order of the day at Tala.

Wildebeest are seemingly everywhere and are the most lively of the animals, chasing each other all over the park. Warthogs are also prolific and so ugly that they are cute. Large herds of zebra roam the hilly pastures and were the most photogenic of the animals. The most difficult to photograph were the hippos that insisted on remaining submerged in the middle of the lake. The massive white rhinoceros kept their distance, but were impressive nonetheless. Although obscured by trees, the giraffe could be seen quietly munching on leaves.

Everyone stops when a black rhino decides to cross the road Richard’s Bay, South Africa - Perhaps known more for its coal exporting (it is home to the largest coal export terminal in the world), Richard’s Bay is also home to the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve. This 90,000 hectare reserve is home to Africa’s “big five”, hundreds of bird species and many other smaller animals.

Our morning begins with a 1.5 hour coach ride from the pier to the reserve where we instantly boarded our open-sided 4 X 4 vehicles. The terrain we covered today is thick with brush and foliage, making good picture taking a challenge, especially in the reduced lighting of the clouds. Our first sighting was a Cape buffalo about 300 yards from the vehicle.

We soon pull off onto a side dirt road and locate three baboons lumbering down the road in front of us. Rickee was able to get a decent shot of them from her vantage point. Farther along we spot three giraffe in the distance, about 600 yards away. Getting a good photo from this distance is tough, even with a 300 mm zoom lens. Of course, there are always warthogs along the side of the road and they seem to be the most photogenic at this reserve.

We found a group of dung beetles rolling their “prize” down the road and were treated to a lengthy explanation of how important these insects are to the ecology.

After about an hour of animal watching, we headed to the main lodge where they had prepared a buffet lunch for our group. There was a great variety of salads and hot dishes, but unfortunately (for us, not the animals), none of the game were on the menu. I suppose they were trying to appeal to the typical AmericanÂ’s boring palate. After dung beetle watching, the meatballs were not a very popular menu item, to say the least.

After lunch, we boarded the 4 X 4 again for some more game watching. The highlight was a black rhino that walked within 15 feet of the vehicle. After the rhino “marked his territory” behind our vehicle, he lumbered off across the road. We learned that the difference between white rhinos and black are the shape of their mouths and how they graze. White rhinos graze on grasses with their heads down while the black rhino grazes with his head up on branches and shrubs.

The Maputo train station was featured in the movie Blood Diamonds Maputo, Mozambique - Even though comparable in size to Turkey, Mozambique is an LEDC (less economically developed country). It is a little bit of a mystery as to why Silversea chooses to stop in Maputo. There really does not seem to be much to see and the ship only offers a couple of tours, neither of which sound very interesting. We noticed that in the Silversea Chronicles (the ship’s daily newspaper) they include “Tips for Staying Safe,” indicating that Mozambique may not be the safest place to wander off alone.

Even as well-traveled and security conscious as I am, I almost became the victim of a crime today in Maputo. We boarded a shuttle provided by Silversea and rode into town, stopping briefly to look at a “famous” railway station that was featured in the movie Blood Diamonds. Once we were dropped in town, we were surrounded by locals shoving every form of bric-a-brac in our faces. After a few minutes of fighting our way through the hordes of street vendors, I was ready to get back to the ship. However, Rickee always insists on buying a refrigerator magnet from every destination we travel to. She finally found a guy that had one magnet and she bought it for $5. OK, so now we can go back to the ship, right?

The shuttle bus returned and we got on as soon as the other victims, er, passengers got off the bus. The other passengers always ask “how is it?” before they leave their seats. This is where self-preservation kicks in and you find yourself saying “boy, it is really nice here. You don’t want to miss this,” so they will get off the bus and you can get back on. Remember, you are still standing outside the bus with 14 vendors shoving wooden African war masks in your face trying to make a sale at this point. You will say anything to get a seat on the bus back to the ship.

Once back on the bus, I breathed a sigh of relief. That was until a vendor walked up to the bus window where I was sitting and held up not one, but an entire selection of magnets. Oh God no. There is no way Rickee can resist this temptation. Now she wants another magnet for a friend. Can you believe there are two people in the world that collect magnets and I just happen to know both of them! In a moment of weakness, I slid open the window and began negotiating for the magnet. Of course, you never pay full price, right? He wanted $5 and I masterfully negotiated him down to $4. Passing money from a bus window to a vendor in Mozambique is like dropping a bright shiny spinner in a lake full of bass. Immediately, there were vendors surrounding our window. It was like they were all diabetic and I had the insulin franchise.

One man in particular worked his way to the front of the group, introduced himself as “Johnny” and basically began begging for money for his “birthday”. He was not even selling anything, he just wanted money so we could “make him happy on his birthday.” Okay, here is mistake #2: after his persistence, I gave him $1. Of course, he wanted more so he continued to persist. I was not going to give him any more since I had only given the guy with the magnet $4. So this guy is practically leaning in the window of the bus, there are six or seven others surrounding him all holding up their wares and trying to talk over him, and Rickee, believing it is his birthday, is singing Happy Birthday repeatedly, like a mental patient.

Since I was unable to close the window, I decided to “flee” the scene. I stood up, grabbed Marilyn Monroe by the arm and we moved to the front of the bus. Unbeknownst to me at that time, my portable Sony camera must have slipped off my lap and onto the seat where I was sitting. The next thing I know, there is a loud commotion and at least a dozen vendors are running around to the back of the bus. I just assumed a piece of chrome, i.e. merchandise, fell off the bus or something, but as it turns out, they came around to the side where the van door was and one of the guys was holding my camera! He was yelling something like “Johnny stole your camera,” and he was returning it to me. I thanked him, handed him $5 and miraculously, another international incident was averted. Apparently, the birthday boy reached in the window when we stood up and grabbed my camera off the seat of the bus, the others chased him down, retrieved the camera and brought it back to me.

Tulear, Madagascar – We skipped this port due to cyclones in the area. The Captain decided to keep the ship in port in Maputo an extra day. No big loss. I don’t think there was much to see or do in Tulear anyway.

Rickee finds a playful lemur on Nosy Komba Nosy Be, Madagascar – Our arrival in Nosy Be was met with much hotter termperatures than we have experienced up until now and, extremely high humidity. We chose the Nosy Be Lemur Park tour through the ship’s Tour Office. Local boats picked us up at the ship’s boat launch at 9:00 am and we were whisked off for a ten-minute high-speed water ride to the island of Nosy Komba. Once we “hit the beach,” we departed the boat and began walking through the little town. Note: this tour involves a “water landing,” so make sure to wear water shoes or waterproof sandals for getting off the boat. As we walk through the small town, the paths are lined with locals selling all sorts of handicrafts. Every few feet there are groups of 3 to 6 children singing and dancing in hopes of getting a small token of appreciation. So, if you visit Nosy Komba, make sure to bring lots of dollars or Euros to drop into their baskets. They are very appreciative. Trust me, you will wish you could give $1 to every one of them!

Once in the jungle area, we find the lemurs are concentrated in a fairly small area. They are very friendly and curious animals. In fact, they will climb all over you to get a snack of banana. However, you should be warned about standing directly under a tree where a lemur is sitting. You might get annointed with processed banana! The lemurs are cute and very photogenic.

After spending a few minutes with the lemurs here, we walk further through the jungle. One guest succumbs to the heat and humidity and has to return to the ship. Note: This tour is moderately strenuous with walking and extreme temperatures, so book this tour with that knowledge.

I get a new boa necklace on Nosy Komba A little further down the path, we arrive at a “park” where we are shown several other animal varieties. There are tortoises, snakes, and lizards. There is a boa constrictor that will gladly wrap itself around your neck for a photo op. There are also a few more lemurs in this area to enjoy, as well.

After the "zoo" visit, we walk back through town and a series of small shops with souvenirs for purchase. American dollars and Euros are welcome everywhere. The whole tour took less than two hours and we were back on the ship by 11:30 am. Just as well since it just gets hotter as the day goes on.

We also took the shipÂ’s tender to Nosy Be just to see what the town was like. There really is not much to see in town.

Obamania has taken over Africa Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania - The list of third-world ports to which I have no desire to return seems to be growing every day. You can add Dar Es Salaam to that list, I suppose. I guess I just don’t see the interest in rundown, overly-congested cities. Maybe I am missing some nuance here. First of all, the Captain announced this morning before we docked that we had to turn around and head out of the port area due to security concerns. That is always refreshing. Apparently, the port did not meet the “minimum security standards” that Silversea requires before docking and did not have the huge rubber "bumpers" in place on the side of the pier. So, once they got the leaking nuclear reactor moved to a distant location (just kidding!), the Captain announced that it was now “safe” to proceed to port. We finally got docked about noon. However, it took at least an hour for them to clear the ship so we could disembark.

It was almost 2:00 pm when we finally stepped off the ship to the welcoming aroma of dead fish and spent petroleum products. We hurriedly found our way to the small shuttle van that Silversea had arranged to take us into town. Our destination? If we are fortunate, our goal is to arrive at a small shopping center, which we do after driving for close to 40 minutes. One thing you will find only in third-world countries are highrise office buildings, which otherwise look modern, but have window air-conditioning units outside each office! I thought that was funny until I realized that my shirt was sticking to the back of the vinyl seat of the van, longing for even a cool 80 degree breeze from the vanÂ’s A/C.

As we depart the van at The Slipway shopping center, we head off on our quest for the elusive magnet. We scoured every stall and shop in the tiny mall and no magnets were to be found. Disappointed, Rickee turns her attention to her alternate souvenir of choice...jewelry. We find a small shop with a selection of necklaces, bracelets, etc., with a nice shop attendant who claims he is the “artist” who created all of the items. First, I am not sure if drilling a hole in a stone and stringing a piece of leather through it qualifies as art. Secondly, I find it quite a coincidence that we just happened to stumble onto the studio of the master who has created every other piece of identical jewelry in every shop in every port we have visited in Africa. Maybe we are just lucky!

RickeeÂ’s haggling acumen soon becomes apparent when she gets him to agree to a price of $18 for a necklace that you could buy at TiffanyÂ’s for $10. However, the earthen prize was not to be ours this day. Picasso would not accept our $1 bills in payment. Locals want larger denominations as they can't change small bills at their local banks. So, the cruise line suggests taking only small currency and the locals only accept $5 bills and up. So my advice is, shop online.

Children singing the alphabet song in the streets of Zanzibar Zanzibar, Tanzania - Silver Wind anchored off the coast of Zanzibar at 8:00 am this morning. We headed down to the tender dock and rode the tender and arrived at the pier around 11 am. Even though Zanzibar is just about as “scary” a place as Dar Es Salaam, there is something much more interesting about this city. We boarded a small shuttle provided by Silversea and headed into town. On the way into town, the local guide said he could take us on a walking tour of Stone Town for $10 per person. If for no other reason than “safety”, we decided to accept his offer.

We piled off the little bus and Sayid, our guide, began walking us through the narrow, ancient streets of Stone Town, a World Heritage Site. The narrow streets are lined with merchants all selling souvenirs, many of which resemble exactly what we have seen in other African ports. It is also interesting to note that all of the shops seem to be selling exactly the same thing, with a few exceptions. Rickee's magnet obsession was soon satisfied.

In spite of the frequent aggressive merchant trying to sell one of his items (they seem to hit on women more than men), Zanzibar is an interesting and exotic location. This is one of those places to which I have no desire to return, but I am glad I got the chance to see it. And, If you stop here on a cruise, take a tour or go into town and check it out.

Mombassa, Kenya - Today is disembarkation day. We bid a fond farewell to Silver Wind, our home for the past 16 nights. We regret leaving behind this beautifully refurbished ship and her kind crew. Oh well, perhaps we will be lucky enough to sail with Silversea again in the future.

Enough of the regrets, we have a lot still to look forward to! We take a 45-minute ride to the Mombasa International Airport where we eventually board our Fly540 prop jet for Nairobi. The disembarkation and transfer to the airport is the only area where SilverseaÂ’s Tour Desk really could have done a better job. When we got off the ship, we were told to identify our luggage and make sure it was loaded onto a truck. Somebody at the truck said we would get our bags at the airport but didn't say which airport. When we got to the airport in Mombasa, guess what? No bags, no truck. An Akorn rep (the ground operator in Africa for Silversea) at the airport said that we would claim our luggage at the Nairobi airport. So, we assumed that it was going to be automatically loaded onto the plane. However, when we arrived in Nairobi, guess what? No luggage. The Silversea/Akorn rep in Nairobi then tells us that the luggage is coming by truck and will be delivered to our hotel several hours later. Since we were spending the night in Nairobi, it was not as big an issue for us as it was for those guests who were catching a flight out that night.

Summary

Once again, Silversea has managed to exceed our ever-growing expectations. This is a cruise company that keeps getting things right, over and over. Any cruise line can have a "good day". But we are convinced that one of Silversea's greatest assets is consistency. Somewhere at Silversea there is someone, or several "someones" who just seems to "get it". They understand luxury travel and they consistently deliver. As each year passes, I think it is safe to say that we (meaning Rickee and I), get harder and harder to please. Maybe we are just spoiled? I can honestly say we have never been disappointed with Silversea.

Post-Cruise Safari

After we disembark Silver Wind, we arranged for a 4-day post-cruise stay in Kenya. Our arrangements were handled through Abercrombie & Kent, a luxury travel company that specializes in Africa safaris.

To read all about our exciting post-cruise Africa Safari, click here

TIPS FOR AN AFRICA CRUISE

Spend at least two days in Cape Town pre/post-cruise. Three or four days would be even better. To do it right, get a private and personal tour of Cape Town using a professional service like Abercrombie & Kent. Buy a good digital camera with a good optical zoom of 10X or more. You will be glad you have that zoom ability when shooting wildlife. Combine your cruise with a pre/post-cruise safari.