Banjul, Gambia

Banjul is the capital of Gambia and was founded by the British as a trading post and base for suppressing the slave trade. We shuttled into the Albert Market, which is a crafts market. Walked around and were greeted by the friendly and somewhat persistent vendors. After our encounter with the very large spider (see picture), we decided it was time to head back.

Ghana

The tour of Ghana was of twin cities.......Sekondi and Takoradi. Takoradi is the largest city closest to the Equator and the Prime Meridian, making the city the most central location on the world map. Sekondi is older and larger and prospered from a railroad built in 1903. The cities combined in 1946. An interesting tour!!!!

Lome, Togo

Our arrival in Togo was early, due to a disabled ship in our berth and weather conditions in the previous port of Cotonou, Benin. The Captain said we could eventually dock, but might not get out. We missed the port of Benin.
Lome, Togo is a West African country that is very tropical and dependent on agriculture. We were met at the dock by local dancers in colorful native costumes. We signed up for a Voodoo tour. We were told that this is a serious ceremony and not a show. After an hour drive thru the city, we arrived at the ceremony site. Cold drinks were served and the show commenced. There were no dolls or pins, but chickens and trances were a big part of the ceremony. Since Voodoo is a religious belief here, we respected the fact that as part of their culture, animals were involved. Fortunately none were harmed in the ceremony we witnessed. The local children were adorable and one little girl loved the bag of Cheerios I had with me.

Dolphin and Seal Cruise........Walvis Bay, Namibia

Saw lots of seals, pelicans, sea gulls and birds. The Dolphins were not around, however. It was a great tour!!!!!

Namibia....Dinner Under the Stars

As the sun set on the Namibian desert, we boarded our bus for the drive to our Dinner Under the Stars. After a bumpy half hour ride we were greeted with a welcome drink and African music and dancers. The tables and chairs were set up in a billowy tent and dinner was served soon after our arrival. The night sky was so clear you could see every star and constellation. It was an unbelievable sight.
Upon our return, the crew and staff were lined up with washcloths, drinks and music to welcome us back to our "home".

Cape Town, South Africa

Sheltered beneath Table Mountain, the city of Cape Town, is a city of contrast. The ship is docked at the Victoria Waterfront, which has a mall, restaurants, shops, craft markets and lots of boating activities. It is a short walk to get anywhere at the waterfront.
Our last Full World Cruise event took place at the Blaauwklippen Estate and Winery. We were escorted on a red carpet to a lovely lawn area for wine tasting and then through the building into a courtyard of vendors and entertainment. Delicious canapes and more wine was served as we enjoyed our afternoon. There were 59 vintage cars awaiting us for our return to the ship. Most were vintage 50's. We were in a 1953 Cadillac that had electric windows and modified air conditioning. There were also Packards, Chevy's, Jaguars, Mercedes and A Bentley. The drive back to the ship was about 45 minutes and with the convoy on the freeway, we really got a lot of waves and smiles.
The drive to the beautiful wine region, took us past the shanty town, that is slowly being replaced with small government houses, complete with running water and electricity.

Docked perpendicular to our ship is Larry Ellison's mega yacht, Rising Sun. It is 453 ft long and the crew was always polishing, painting and cleaning. We think it is here for the World Cup.