February 16, 2019 - Kuantan, Thailand - Saturday, Day 41

February 16, 2019 - Kuantan, Thailand - Saturday, Day 41

My walk this morning did not start until 5:50. I was tired and we had decided to sleep in today. The decks were already starting to dry from their washing. The brisk wind was helping that. It also kept me dry. a nice change. Another nice change was the light traffic. I only encountered 5 other walkers. Some are still finding their way even walking the deck. Two oriental ladies were trying to open the door to on elf the Lanai Suites. These open onto the deck and have their own lounge chairs. They are stainless steel doors the entry doors are beautifully varnished teak. I directed the ladies to the entry. They sheepishly thanked me. No problem.

I have started to cut back on my food consumption. The first cruise was free ranging. This next 41 days I will be more disciplined. I have been trying to recall my approach on last year’s cruise. It was very successful. I should be able to replicate it.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, Alice and I decided to skip excursions today. The one offered for a ride to town and 1.5 hours on our own before returning was $85 each. We decided to take the free port shuttle to the gate. This is a working industrial port. Walking is not allowed except from the gangway the buses.

Fortunately for us we were able to listen to local musicians play in greeting when we went on deck after breakfast. When we walked off the ship we passed a few vendors booths on the way to the shuttle. We would take the shuttle to the gate to see if other vendors were there.

The shuttle was air conditioned and comfortable. The ride was fairly short. The scenery was nonexistent. At the gate passengers were standing in the sun waiting for taxis. There were no vendors. We stayed on the shuttle.

When we returned we shopped at the booths. Our goal was to spend our remaining Malaysian currency. We accomplished this handily as we found some very nice souvenirs at one man’s stall. He was agreeable to negotiating. We all were satisfied with the transaction.