QE World Voyage 2014

Day 34 - Lahaina

February 12

Lahaina is our first tender port (meaning we drop anchor and have to take small boats to land). On most cruise lines, people who book ship excursions or those high up in the line's loyalty program get the first tenders. We were in tender #7 and were ashore by 10:30.

There were three of us from CC that had signed up for the whale watching. We signed in at their shop and then had about a half hour to spare. I had seen "shaved ice" on TV and wanted to try it. I was expecting it to be pretty much the same as a snow cone but it was not. We first chose locally made ice cream, then the shaved ice was piled on and then you had a choice of three toppings (out of about 50). It was delicious.

When finished we worked our way down to the waterside to get on our boat. On the way we stopped to see the huge banyan tree (planted in 1873) and the old Court House (1895). The town was once a major port for the whaling industry.

Our trip started at 11:30. We were able to see dozens of whales. It seems that these humped-back whales are "snow birds" - they live most of the year in the waters off of the Pacific Northwest, Canada and Alaska but like to winter in the warm waters of Hawaii. It is also birthing and mating season. We saw one mother with her baby and saw a number of males vying for the attention of the female. I did not get any spectacular pictures but I will include a few of what I did get.

We wandered around town until about 3 pm and then queued up to get the tender back to the ship. I then headed to the Lido for a really late lunch and then for the sail-away party.

Our regular group at dinner had a great time catching up on what everyone has been doing. After two busy days I opted to return to my stateroom and work on my blog instead of going to the show.

The z-pack that I received from the doctor was really good. I have no head pain and the congestion is almost gone. Unfortunately, the cough will likely linger but at least I am feeling human again.