Category: Travel

Carnival Miracle

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date October 14, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit the Western Caribbean Sea aboard the Carnival Miracle – exactly 15 years ago this week.

The Carnival Miracle was a fairly-new cruise ship at the time – 2½-years-old. Nowadays she sails short 3, 4, and 5-day cruises between Los Angeles (Long Beach) California and Baja Mexico.

I was on the Miracle from 08 to 15 October 2006 out of the Port Of Tampa. It was my 10TH cruise overall and 5TH on Carnival. It was also my only cruise out of Tampa; although, that will likely change in the future as I move closer to Tampa than Miami in the next few years (post-retirement).

Our ports-of-call were Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Belize (first-time ever), and Costa Maya (first-time ever).

Costa Maya is located on the south coast of the state of Quintana Roo on the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico – less than a 2-hour drive to the northern border of Belize. It’s a popular cruise ship port that was fairly-new back in 2006. I remember getting off the ship, walking around the small beach and pool area right at the debarkation point of the pier, and then within the hour getting back on the ship. (There’s likely much more to do there nowadays than there was 15 years ago.)

10 months after my visit to Costa Maya Hurricane Dean destroyed much of the cruise ship port (and region including Belize). It was one of the most intense hurricanes to make landfall anywhere along the Atlantic basin during the modern tracking era. It was a Category-5 with maximum sustained winds of 175 MPH and gusts over 200 MPH at landfall !

I have not been back to Costa Maya since 15 years ago (October 13TH 2006). I’m interested to see what it looks like today via a future cruise.

Here’s a rare picture of me posing along the rocky coastline of our first port-of-call – Grand Cayman.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

They keep you safe on your way, and your feet will not stumble. You can go to bed without fear. You will lie down and sleep soundly. You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes upon the wicked, for the LORD is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap. (Proverbs 3:23-26 NLT)

Tags Belize, Carnival Cruise, Carnival Miracle, Costa Maya, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Mexico, Travel

1970s Blogging Church Driving History Home Life Photography Scripture Travel

Lanham Maryland

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date October 7, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit the unincorporated Washington D.C. suburb of Lanham Maryland – my childhood home from 1975 to 1980. It was my favorite childhood home. The biggest mistake that was made by my Dad back then was when we moved away to Northern Virginia in November 1980. It changed my life forever. I lost all of my friends. My run with Scouting ended. My education suffered in that I entered a much tougher school system than the one I grew up with. I probably would not have joined the military 4 years later if we had stayed put. I probably would have gone to college (likely my Dad’s alma mater – the University Of Maryland). I may have embarked in a career in Meteorology or Radio Broadcasting. But we moved away in 1980, and my life took a different turn.

Via Redfin I recently viewed 35 photos of the house that me and my family lived in 41 to 46 years ago. (I love modern technology.) It was quite eerie yet fascinating to look inside and outside of that house – all modernized all of these years later. It looked gorgeous. It looked like it went through a massive HGTV makeover. When I saw my old bedroom I reminisced about all of the memories in that room (good and bad) as a 7 to 13-year-old. (I’m 54 now.) The backyard still has the original railroad ties landscaping done on it by my Dad back then. We bought the home brand new just after construction was done on it early-on in 1975. I think we paid about $59,000 for it. (It sold for $450,000 a year ago. Its current Redfin estimate is $534,153.)

Our house was located in a neighborhood right behind our previous apartment complex neighborhood of 1969 to 1972 (about a half-mile away). My Grandmom and Granddad lived exactly a mile away. My Aunt, Uncle, and many Cousins lived a mile-and-a-half away. My elementary school (Kindergarten and 3RD through 6TH grades) was imbedded within my neighborhood. I could literally walk up my street, cut-through a yard, climb the fence, and be on school grounds within a few minutes.

6 summers ago me and my family returned to Lanham Maryland as part of a vacation to drive-through our old neighborhoods. Here’s our family Catholic church from the early-to-mid-1970s. It’s where I attended 1ST and 2ND grades from 1973 to 1975. It’s where I observed my First Communion on February 15TH 1975.

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

Tags Lanham, Maryland, Travel

Blogging Nature Photography Scripture Travel

Fanning Island Kiribati

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date September 30, 2021

#TravelThursday continues, and in this edition we visit Fanning Island – part of the Republic of Kiribati. I’ve never been south of the Equator, but on this visit to the island it’s as close as I got to it – just below 3.9° north latitude. That’s about 250 miles north of the Equator.

I visited during the first week of March of 2006 as part of a 10-day NCL cruise with my family out of Hawaii – about 900 miles due north of Fanning Island. (Back then NCL had to sail to Kiribati and back in order to legally operate a Hawaiian Islands cruise under the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886.)

It’s the only time in my life that I crossed-over the International Date Line. The local time on Fanning Island is exactly 24 hours ahead (GMT + 14) of Honolulu (GMT – 10). Although the International Date Line straddles the 180TH meridian – it extends way to the east near the Equator so that all of Kiribati’s scattered islands are within a few hours of each other. Fanning Island is thus on the most advanced time zone on Earth, so it celebrates each new day first.

Kiribati has about 120,000 residents, and that includes about 2,500 scattered among 8 small villages on Fanning Island’s 13 square miles. The island is actually an atoll – a narrow strip of land that completely or partially encircles a lagoon.

I did not take pictures of anything before about 11 years ago. Luckily my brother had a camera at the time, and he documented our vacation back then via hundreds of photos – including our day across the line on Fanning Island:

YES – That’s me in that final photo from 15½ years ago. #DearYoungerMe

Join me next #TravelThursday as we visit another location on the face of this earth.

Tags Cruise, Fanning Island, Hawaii, Kiribati, Travel

Bible Blogging Christian Church God History Ministry Music Scripture Travel

Sunday Scripture

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date September 26, 2021

Greetings my friends. It is Sunday September 26TH 2021, and this is the day that our LORD has made. Let us rejoice. Let us be glad in it. Let us celebrate this great new day of believing, following, trusting, loving, and being more like our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ.

Yesterday afternoon here in my hometown at our local small performing arts theatre downtown I experienced this awesome event:

What do you get when you combine #TravelThursday, #RetroFriday, #SundayScripture, and #Top10Monday ? Well besides a normal weekend here on my blog you also get that music show above. It was essentially the story of the history of this great nation of ours as told through 400 years of music from coast-to-coast. It traveled the country and highlighted the music that emanated from each region. It was quite patriotic and spiritual. It was pretty much a singalong and clapalong as our 4-piece band (led by Matthew Sabatella) performed on stage via numerous musical instruments.

Once we arrived in the 20TH Century I pretty much knew every song performed, and I joined the singalong. The small audience definitely got louder as the years progressed into our lifetimes. It was definitely a “feel-good” 100-minute show.

Be filled with the Holy Spirit – singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in your hearts. (Ephesians 5:18b-19)

(That Scripture was featured during an early segment of the show.)

Thank you for reading my blog for this day, and may:

The LORD bless you, and keep you.
The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you.
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.