2012 Maui Trip -- Photos From Our Drives

To view photos we took while driving around Maui, CLICK HERE

2012 Maui Trip -- Photos of the Hotel Grounds

Good Morning from the KBH. The lawns are all groomed and ready for a new day.

To see a Flickr slideshow of photos we took on the grounds of the Ka'anapali Beach Hotel just CLICK HERE.

Ken's Trip To Maine -- August 2011

Just Married: Katie & Chris

Thursday, August 4
I flew out of Pensacola at 11:00 A.M., changed planes in Atlanta and got to Portland at 5:45 P.M. I was in Augusta by 7:30 and visited with my parents until 9:00 when I went over to the Civic Center Inn to check in.

Friday, August 5
A quiet day resting up from all the traveling.

Saturday, August 6
Early in the afternoon we drove to Freeport to meet Carol at the Freeport Inn. On the way we went down Freeport's Main Street. It was jammed with tourists and shoppers. The town really looks nice these days.

We got to the wedding venue 4:30. The weather was perfect, the site was beautiful. The wedding began at 5:00; over at 5:10. Loved that.


The lawn decorated for the wedding at Glisland Farm Audubon Center

Click here for more photos.


Sunday, August 7
It was very rainy in the morning. After we chatted for a while at the hotel with all the family we set out for Augusta. We had breakfast at the Fairground Cafe in Topsham. It's a few miles north of Brunswick and Freeport. Wonderful pancakes.

Monday, August 8
For lunch we had takeout from The Red Barn restaurant on Riverside Drive in Augusta. Great shrimps, fries, fried fish and onion rings.

Early afternoon I headed to Portland to spend the night because I had an early flight in the morning. In Brunswick I got off the Interstate and took little coastal roads through tiny villages.

I originally intended to go to one of Portland's harborside restaurants and have a Maine lobster. After listening to Portland radio traffic reports I was less interested in driving into the downtown area. And back out to the airport during rush hour. There was a lot f traffic congestion in Portland, apparently more than usual.

When I got back to Route 1 just south of Freeport I decided to find a lobster somewhere out of downtown Portland, then drop the car and go directly to my hotel. As I passed the Freeport Inn, where we stayed on Saturday night, I saw the Muddy Rudder seafood restaurant. Perfect. Lobster and corn both cooked just right. And I had an easy drive from there to drop off the car.

Tuesday, August 9
Got up very early to catch the hotel van to the airport for my 7:00 A.M. flight. Huge, slow crowds at airport security, at 5:45 A.M.! Happy to report the flights were all on time and I got to Pensacola at 10:30.

Emerald Princess Cruise, December 2010, The Photos

Emerald Princess in St. Lucia

PHOTOS FROM THE CRUISE:

Two Tails Ranch, Enroute to Fort Lauderdale and the cruise, Saturday, November 27, 2010

Port Everglades, Embarkation Day, Sunday, November 28

St. Kitts, Day 3, Wednesday, December 1

Barbados, Day 4, Thursday, December 2

St. Lucia, Day 5, Friday, December 3

Antigua, Day 6, Saturday, December 4

St. Thomas, USVI, Day 7, Sunday, December 5

A Visit to the Bridge, Day 8, Monday, December 6

Sunset at sea, heading for The Bahamas, Day 8, Monday, December 6

Emerald Princess Atrium, Day 9, Tuesday, December 7

The Vicksburg Trip -- Photos

Here's a link to a slideshow of the photos we took on this trip to Jackson, Vicksburg and Port Gibson, Mississippi.

Photos from the Island Princess Cruise, December 2009

At the Panama Canal our Island Princess photographers take balcony photos of passengers at the Gatun Locks

• Cartagena, Colombia, The Fort, December 4, 2009


• Cartagena, Colombia, Old Town, December 4, 2009


• Cartagena, Colombia, Harbor Views, December 4, 2009


• Panama Photo Set 1, December 5, 2009


• Panama Photo Set 2, December 5, 2009


• At sea on the Island Princess, December 7, 2009


• Ocho Rios, Jamaica,, December 8, 2009


• Island Princess Bridge Visit, December 9, 2009

New Orleans Photos

Here's a slideshow of photos taken during the New Orleans road trip.

Photos from the Cruise

Here are some slide shows from the cruise on the Emerald Princess, December 2008:

Aruba Photos, taken on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008
Bonaire Photos, taken on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2008
Dominica Photos, taken on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008
Grenada Photos, taken on Friday, Dec. 5, 2008
St. Thomas photos taken on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2008


Emerald Princess -- at sea
Emerald Princess -- photos inside the ship
Emerald Princess -- photos outside the ship

May 2008 Cruise -- Photos from Carnival Glory

Here's a link to the photos we took on this Carnival Glory cruise.

Backyard, Spring 2008 -- Wall Decor

Here is a link to a slide show with photos of the sunfaces and other artworks in our backyard right now.

Grand Princess Cruise, December 2007 -- Photos

Here's a link to the photos we took on our Grand Princess cruise.

Coral Princess Cruise, April 2007 -- Day 6

Saturday, Ocho Rios, Jamaica

According to Captain Manfuso's Log of the Cruise, "We were all fast alongside by 0800." Soon after that we went ashore to the terminal building. It was very hot and humid. The Coral Princess was the only ship in port here today.

For years we read about Firefly, Noel Coward's vacation retreat in Jamaica high above Blue Harbour and the town of Santa Maria.

Before we went to Montego Bay last December on the Golden Princess we looked into making the trip over to Firefly. However we couldn't find any official package tours, and it was too far for a day trip on our own.

On this cruise we would stop for a day in Ocho Rios and Firefly is just about 18 miles east of the port. Again there were no organized tours offering what we wanted, but through the Internet we found Marva Shaw who operates a tour service, KnowJamaica.com, and she was most helpful. Her company's slogan is, "Feel free to customize your own itinerary." Thank you, Marva, One Love from Pensacola!

Through Marva we set up exactly the tour we wanted -- a drive to Firefly and back with a nice visit there including a guided tour. The toast we made at Sir Noel's grave site we provided ourselves -- with a thermos of icy martinis we brought from the Coral Princess.

Firefly was rescued and restored by Chris Blackwell of Island Records. The estate is now operated and maintained by the Jamaica National Heritage Trust. For more information about Firefly and Chris Blackwell's other Jamaican interests click here.

On Flickr there are more photos from our visit to Firefly, just click here to see them.

And now for a few words of warning...
Outside the very heart of the tourist area of Ocho Rios the streets and roads are bad. Very bad. Do not think about renting a car and driving into the countryside yourself.

Our driver, Maroon, heroically avoided the worst of the potholes, often having to drive in the ditch. There are also long stretches of rough surfaces that cannot be avoided and I am talking about the main highways. To get to Firefly we needed to take some back roads and the conditions on these were terrible. We were both elated when we saw the sign for Firefly.

If you suffer from any kind of back or joint problems, tend to get motion sickness or have problems with long periods of violent shaking do not attempt the trip to Firefly. The round trip of less than 40 miles sounds easy but when much of it is taken at a speed of 5 to 10 miles an hour it makes for a long day.

We loved seeing Firefly, toasting Sir Noel and walking through the house. Inside Firefly there are lots of photos of his guests over the years. They were icons of the 20th Century -- Vivien Leigh, Lynn Fontanne & Alfred Lunt, Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren, the Queen Mother, Ian Fleming and many, many more...

It was worth the trip, despite the bumps.


DISTANCES
From Fort Lauderdale to Panama Canal
1273 nautical miles, 1464 statute miles, 2355 kilometers
average speed 21.0 knots

From Panama Canal to Limon
187 nautical miles, 215 statute miles, 346 kilometers
average speed 18.2 knots

From Limon to Ocho Rios
650 nautical miles, 748 statute miles, 1203 kilometers
average speed 18.1 knots

Total distance sailed
2110 nautical miles, 2427 statute miles, 3904 kilometers