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Cruise Lines Help with Evacuations and Aid to Puerto Rico

Nearly a week after Hurricane Maria slammed Puerto Rico, many residents are in critical need of supplies. Food, water, and medicine are dwindling and the island is expected to be without power for several months. The international airport in San Juan continues to operate on limited emergency power with fewer than ten commercial flights to the US each day. Instead, Puerto Rico is relying on cruise ships to bring resources to the devastated island. Royal Caribbean Cruises cancelled its Adventure of the Seas cruise to utilize the ship for evacuation and humanitarian efforts. The ship arrived in San Juan yesterday, before heading to St. Thomas and St. Croix to aid in the evacuation and donate critical supplies to each destination. Adventure of the Seas will bring evacuees to Fort Lauderdale before returning to San Juan on October 6. Carnival, the world’s largest cruise line, also has been helping with the aid effort. Carnival ships are currently traveling to destinations in the Caribbean that have been impacted by both Hurricane Irma and Maria. 

 

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Day in the Life: Kosrae, Micronesia

Guest Post and Photos by Claudia Danford 


Welcome to Kosrae, a small island in Micronesia where I’ve wisely decided to spend part of my gap year between high school and university. It was my cousin who initially came to Micronesia ten years ago for WorldTeach. In 2014, he founded the Green Banana Paper Company, an eco-factory making wallets from the fibers of banana tree trunks that would otherwise rot. Matt now has 25 employees and is one of the largest private employers on the island. While Kosrae itself is not a big travel destination, certainly not compared to the other islands in the Pacific region, I hope to give you a taste of “island life” through this blog post. 

I grew up in a small town in western Massachusetts, far from the ocean and jungle. Now I’m smack dab in the middle of the Pacific with 6,600 people and a bunch of tropical fruit. I am outside the realm of any past experiences. My days consist of surfing, scuba diving, consuming lots of coconuts and bananas (many varieties of bananas!), learning to speak Kosraean, and hiking in the jungle to waterfalls. Living in this land of piercing sun and luscious green, soaking up local culture, working in the eco-commerce world at Green Banana Paper, and writing for its website have been wonderful learning experiences. 

Kosrae is part of the Federated States of Micronesia, comprised of Kosrae, Yap, Pohnpei, and Chuuk. The USA gives FSM money for education and government, and, in return, America gets land, air bases, and water for military use. Big ships deliver goods every few weeks, and there are four flights a week: two towards Hawaii and two towards Guam.

Most mornings, I amble out of bed to the colorful, expansive Pacific Ocean and let the waves and sun awaken me. I have also loved scuba diving since being introduced to it here. On one of my first boat rides to a scuba diving site, dolphins swam in front of the boat for a while, just another friendly reminder of all of the beautiful and vibrant life that surrounds this little gem of an island. I later went diving in Lelu Harbor to find two shipwrecks. Apparently there are four ships and two or three planes from World War II in the Harbor. The visibility was very poor because the bottom is murky, but swimming around was wild and somewhat eerie. Above the water are the beautiful lush green mountains and picturesque views, but underneath the remnants of war. Quite a contrast. 

One Saturday afternoon, I was reading in my hammock, hung between coconut trees at the beach, when I noticed a little girl of around 5 years old curiously looking at me. She giggled and came closer, and started drawing in the sand. We ended up playing together for a while, drawing in the sand and swinging in the hammock. She fanned through the book I was reading, looking at the pages and excitedly pointing out pictures. She also climbed a little ways up a coconut tree and jumped into my arms, then ran back to the base of the tree to climb again, and again, and again. She constantly chatted in Kosraean and I only understood a small fraction of what she said. I am now very motivated to improving my skills with the local language. We mostly laughed together; I used Kosraean when I could.

All in all, I encourage you to consider being “active travelers” and explore the Western Pacific and the greater Pacific region if you have the chance. Kosrae is known as the Island of the Sleeping Lady because its collection of mountain peaks resembles a sleeping lady. The beauty of this region is breathtaking, and embracing the island culture is fulfilling my goal of experiencing a vastly different way of life.
 
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Relaxation at the Riu Ocho Rios

There are two types of travel. One where you visit someplace new and see as many sites as possible. Or the alternative, to simply return to a familiar locale knowing you don’t have to do any sightseeing because you’ve done it all before. This was the case last week when I returned to Jamaica for the 8th time. We even returned to an all-inclusive resort we stayed at once before, the Riu Ocho Rios on a long stretch of beach 90 minutes from the Montego Bay airport. Having already walked up Dunns River Falls twice, tubed down the White River, visited the boyhood home of Bob Marley, and horsebacked ride along the surf, I felt no need to do anything except find a good beach chair and read two thick books, Barbara Kingsolver’s epic “Poisonwood Bible” and Donna Tartt’s overwrought but intoxicating latest, “The Goldfinch.” Besides getting up to walk the beach, swim in the warm shallow ocean with my family, go kayaking, order another “Dirty Banana,” and grab my daily plate of spicy jerk chicken at the jerk hut, my only outing was to visit a recommended boutique hotel down the road. We had a glorious room overlooking the expanse of ocean and beach, watching large cruise ships come and go. I was happy to stay put and do relatively nothing but spend time with my family and read. That’s what I call a vacation. 

 
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Maine Week-Portland Deserves the Foodie Acclaim

It’s no surprise that Portland was recently recognized by Bon Appetit magazine as the Restaurant City of the Year. Lisa and I have been heading up to Portland for memorable meals since the James Beard-award winning Fore Street opened over two decades ago. Another long-time love is Duckfat, always our first stop for those heavenly fries, innovative salads and grilled panini sandwiches, all washed down with an extra-thick milkshakes or Maine craft brew. Duckfat was once again our first stop in town last week, before checking in at the brand new AC Hotel Portland Downtown on the waterfront, a short stroll from the restaurant . Our 24 hours of gluttony continued with IPAs on the picnic tables at Rising Tide, dumplings at Bao Bao, and the best bagel and lox I had all year (including a stop at my old stomping grounds, Manhattan’s Upper West Side at Barney Greengrass) at the deli, Rose Foods. Thankfully, we were headed the next day to Maine’s North Woods to paddle and hike off all those luscious calories. 

 Photo by Jake Jermanok
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Don’t Hesitate to Stay at Corral del Rey

We loved our penthouse room at Corral del Rey, a boutique property in the old quarter of Seville, where rooms are located inside a former 17th-century estate. We had a large outdoor patio with views overlooking the Gothic Cathedral, plunge pool, bath built for two, fantastic shower, and a heavenly mattress. It’s no surprise it was our favorite hotel of our entire stay in Spain. We took full advantage of the room, polishing off a bottle of Tempranillo with our nephew, Micah, who’s studying in Seville this semester, before strolling over to a hole-in-the-wall tapas joint with outdoor tables, Estrella. The place is popular with flamenco dancers, guitarists, and singers who perform at the nearby Museo del Baile Flamenco, as we would soon find out when seeing an hourlong flamenco show. The guy I just met at the bar was the guitarist for the show, and wow, was he good, along with two soulful singers, and three incredibly talented flamenco dancers. We made the wise move of booking the VIP show, where only two rows of audience view the show in an intimate setting inside a former wine cellar. The performance was so moving that I looked over at Lisa and saw tears rolling down her cheek. 

 
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Time to Put the Azores on Your Bucket List

As a long-time ActiveTravels client, I’d strongly recommend the Azores for an easy retreat: just a four-hour direct flight from Boston. On the island of São Miguel, stay at the historic villa of Quinta Minuvida, with orchards, gardens, pool, and yoga studio, surrounded by acres of green pastures, and framed by old stone walls and beaches. Hosts Rimi and João lead “curated” adventures and know local drivers and guides. 

Eat fresh fish, cheese, bread, fruit and jam. Don’t miss the geothermal stew (cozido nas caldeiras), chouriço (smoked sausage) and bacalhau (salted cod). Soak at Caldeira Velha and Poça da Dona Beija volcanic hot springs. Hike in Furnas, or all over the island. Ascend winding roads to Sete Cidades crater lakes. Explore lava tunnels in Ponta Delgada. Learn about unique-to-the-Azores pineapple production at Arruda plantation. Walk the black sand beaches of Santa Bárbara and Santana. Don’t miss Quinta dos Sabores, a farm-to-table restaurant. Enjoy Minuvida’s firepit. Also kayak, go canyoning or birding, bike, ride horses, see whales, learn about local ceramic and tea production, and more. 
 
July and August are busy, but the island is enjoyable year-round. I loved February! High season runs May – September, “shoulder” season is recommended (March/April, and October/November). Enjoy! 
 
Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches 
 
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At Portland’s Drifters Wife, Believe the Hype

Located on the burgeoning Washington Avenue neighborhood in Portland, Drifters Wife has had a loyal following since its debut in 2016, two years prior to Bon Appetit Magazine naming it one of the country’s top 10 new restaurants. But now it’s so popular that food writer Alex Hall noted in yesterday’s Boston Globe “that in July, you’ve got a better shot at getting your kid into Harvard on a full scholarship than walking in and nabbing a table at Beard Award-decorated favorites like Fore Street or Drifters Wife.” You can reserve a table 30 days in advance, which is exactly what we did for a dinner this past Saturday, when we knew we were spending a night in Portland after our visit to Acadia National Park with friends. Those friends are from Laguna Beach, California, home to one of the best farmers markets on the West Coast. So they’re accustomed to getting a vast assortment of fresh vegetables year round. Maine, of course, has a much shorter growing season, but what Drifters Wife finds locally was more than enough to blow us all away. The choice of appetizers and entrees are limited, 4 or 5 appetizers and 3 entrees. But all were exceptional, from starters of grilled shishito peppers and a zesty arugula salad to entrees of a whole black bass and a tender chunk of hake with a clam sauce. Wash it down with one of their natural wines or a bottle of Peeper from Maine Beer Co. Then finish off the memorable meal with a dish of milk pudding topped with pistachio chunks called Malabi. Sublime. 

 

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