Robertson International Travel

Saturday, March 20 ~ At Sea in the Arabian Sea En Route to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

DAY 2 IN THE ARABIAN SEA AND OUR PREPARATION FOR PIRATES AND SAUDI ARABIA

We are getting rested up after our first relaxing day at sea!  First thing this morning is our briefing by Captain Glenn on our transit down "Pirate Alley".  We are very impressed with the complete and total preparation by Crystal Cruises including the vast network of protective agencies including the U.S. Navy.  We are now preparing for our visit at our next port of call, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Crystal Cruises has made arrangements to have Jessica Stockwell, a U.S. Citizen living in Jeddah, come aboard to assist in preparing us for this special port of call. We congratulate Crystal Cruises for bringing Jessica aboard who has been a tremendous help to everyone, especially the ladies with their black abayas, the cusomary wear for ladies in Saudi Arabia. These abayas were distributed in the Stardust Club compliments of Crystal Cruises. Thank you Crystal! Many lectures today plus enrichment classes to further educate us on top of our already saturated minds! Speaking of minds, we very much enjoyed our lecture today by Michael DiSpezio entitled, "Brain Power - Making the Right Connections for Life Long Learning." Michael demonstrated with puzzles, challenges and mind games to get us to be better thinkers. Much more on Michael at www.michaeldispezio.com .   Good luck!

CAPTAIN'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"A house is made of brick, but a home is made of heart."

Friday, March 19 ~ At Sea in the Arabian Sea En Route to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

OUR FIRST OF FOUR DAYS AT SEA AND OUR INTRODUCTION OF AMBASSADOR MARC GINSBURG

After a vast number of port days in such a diverse area of our world including the Middle Eastern countries of Iran, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, we are exhausted!  Iran was a very long day (16 hours) and many never recovered from the heat, the extensive walking, the restrictions, etc.  So many cultures and different customs plus the vast complexity of the region has saturated our minds! This past two weeks has been a very impressive segment of our world cruise and we have all learned so much! We do not regret one minute of it!  Now we start a very nice four days at sea between Fujeirah, Oman and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia via the Arabian and Red Seas. Our most important and exciting lecture today was with Ambassador Marc Ginsberg entitled, "Al Qaeda's Virtual Caliphate - The Internet and Media Battle for Hearts and MInds." Marc's assessment of Al Qaeda and their use of the Internet was a powerful reminder of our enemy's use of technology.

Five years ago, we were on a Crystal Christmas Cruise to Mexico and our stateroom right next door to Marc and Janet Ginsberg's stateroom. Since then, Marc and Janet have been aboard our Crystal World Cruises and have become very good friends. Marc was U.S. Ambassador to Morocco during the Clinton administration and his credentials stretch over decades of experience invoving U.S. foreign, economic and defense policy in the Middle East. Between the ages of 9 and 17, Marc was raised in Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon and is fluent in Middle Eastern languages, Hebrew, Arabic and French.

Marc is President of Layalina Productions, a television production company in the Middle East with educational programs for children consisting of debate, drama, entertainment, and educational shows that address controversial issues affecting U.S. - Arab relations. This is a major and extremely important project and we applaud Ambassador Marc Ginsberg and his wife, Janet, for their fabulous success. You can learn more about Layalina Productions at

http://www.layalina.tv/about.html.

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY.....

"We would do better in the world if we understood it" - Ambassador Marc Ginsberg

Thursday, March 18 ~ Al Fujeirah, United Arab Emrites

A DIFFERENT EMIRATE WITH A DIFFERENT CLIMATE AT THE FOOT OF THE HAJAR MOUNTAINS

Al Fujairah is in a picturesque setting with the backdrop of the Hajar Mountains - in a way very similar in topography to our own Santa Barbara, California, but the comparison stops there.   Looking at the Crystal Cruise Web Cam this morning, all three of the Cams (Port, Bridge, and Starboard) give you a very good view of what we are seeing.      

Go to www.crystalcruises.com/ExperienceMain.aspx and click on "The Crystal Experience" and then "Live Views".

Our arrival this morning landed us in smoggy conditions, it's very hot, and we have big company next door, the huge Royal Caribbean International ship, Brilliance of the Seas, weighing in at 90,000 gross tons, is 962 feet long, with a passenger capacity of 2500!  Big and crowded!      

Back to our much smaller enviornment with our current count of 500 Crystal passengers, we see our gangplank is down and our coaches are all ready to take our Crystal folks on their excursion entitled, "East Coast Kaleidoscope".   Others are taking off in 4 X 4 vehicles for mountain safaris.   For us, we have been on all of those tours, so we will be taking the shuttle into town and visiting with the locals.   More later in the day..........

Later.......after taking the shuttle, we spend about 45 minutes at "the souk" which ended up being a large department store selling everything from electronics to washing machines to mens and ladies apparel.  What struck us was how many products were from the United States in this global economy.  We were specifically looking for Kodak photo paper to print our group Voyager Club pictures and there it was - "How many packs do you want"?  

This evening we hosted our Virtuoso Voyager Club Cocktail Reception and invited our special guest lecturers for this segment, Hugh Downs, Ambassador Marc Ginsberg, and Dinesh D'Sousa.  All three are power houses in their fields and will be offering a dynamic lecture series as we continue our Middle Eastern itinerary.   The Reception was a great success!

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY.....

"There is a close correlation between getting up in the morning and getting up in the world". 

Wednesday, March 17 ~ Khasab, Oman

ST. PATRICKS DAY IN ANOTHER WORLD - THE OMANI COAST AND "THE NORWAY OF ARABIA"

Crystal Cruises made a great choice in selecting Khasab for a Maiden Call in this very picturesque and quaint little resort community. The Arabs like to call this the "Norway of Arabia". Our Norwegian Captain Glenn casts a weary eye on that claim as he daily reminds us that only Norway has the ultimate beauty in the Fjords!

     

As we entered the Khasab harbor, we had the mega yacht LOALOAT AL BEHAR in view, the yacht built in 1982 for the Sultan of Oman, His Majesty Sulan Qaboos bin Said. In 2008, a larger yacht was built for the Sultan and he gifted his orginal yacht to the Oman Ministry of Tourism and now entertains dignataries from around the world.

A quick trip into town on the shuttle only produced about 20 minutes of looking around including a view of the main mosque in the town square. Other than a nice chat with a few of the locals in the Old Souk, there wasn't much to see so back to the ship.  

The afternoon proved to be a sheer delight on a traditional Omani dhow for a cruise to the nearby fjords. There were two dhows cruising in tandem past small villages and into picturesque coves. The landscape was breath-taking! 

Then the two dhows got very close together and with the deck hands clapping and yelling strange high pitched sounds, the dhow picked up speed and within a minute, we could see what they were doing - creating excitment for the dolphins....lots of them! 

Voyager Club members Alfred and Chongkolnee Epprecht and Inga and John Rigg enjoyed the break from the Crystal motorcoach tours which have all been excellent considering the area of the world we are cruising.  We anchored off Telegraph Island for a short swim before returning to Khasab harbor and the Crystal Serenity.

This was a very special afternoon for us and we also had great reports from other Voyager Club members on other excursions including the 4X4 off road vehicle excursion into the mountains. A great port, Crystal Cruises, and congratulations on your Maiden Call here! There were a lot of smiles around the ship this evening!

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"All the statistics in the world can not measure the warmth of a smile" - Chris Hart

 

Tuesday, March 16 ~ Dubai, United Arab Emirates

INTO THE CITY AND THE TALLEST BUILDING IN THE WORLD - THE BURJ -  UP CLOSE

3 Years Ago......

The skyline of Dubai was an interesting sight in 2007 when we called here on our world cruise 3 years ago. Our picture of the skyline was fascinating with hundreds of cranes fast at work and the excitment in the city was something to behold! We could not believe the energy in the air while the Middle East's "Disneyland" was being built. Palm Island was an amazing sight, The World was being constructed, the the tallest building in the world, The Burj, was starting to take shape (center of picture).

Today.......

Today, it is quite a different story here. The whole world was affected by the collapse of the Dubai economy the the scene here is quite different. The Burj has been completed and is now the real icon of Dubai with a total height of over 3,200 feet, over half a mile high! But all around Dubai, you see many cranes and partially completed buildings, but the cranes are silent. The huge shopping mall is busy, but it is questionable how much merchandise is being sold or whether tourists are just looking. Even at the The Burj Al Arab Hotel last night, we didn't see the hustle and bustle we did 3 years ago. This year we could inspect any suite (they only have suites) we wanted - 3 years ago they laughed when we wanted to inspect a suite due to overbooked capacity.

Quite a different story in Dubai and hopefully, this city will recover. All of the United Arab Emrites are praying for Dubai's success including the Sheikh of Abu Dhabi who gave 30 billion dollars to Dubai to assist in the recovery. Speaking of Abu Dhabi, many here in the UAE are calling Dubai the new Middle East Disneyland and Abu Dhabi is the new Paris of the Middle East. What gives you the first clue when Abu Dhabi is developing the Guggenheim and the Louvre.

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"In times like these, it helps to recall that there have always been times like these".

- Paul Harvey

 

Monday, March 15 ~ Dubai, United Arab Emirates

THE DUBAI ICON - THE LUXURIOUS 7 STAR BURJ AL ARAB HOTEL

Today is the end of our world cruise segment from Mumbai to Dubai as we say goodbye to several Voyager Club members returning home. After lunch, we greeted new Voyager Club member arrivals for this segment from Dubai to Athens. It was a busy day on the ship also greeting our lecturer friends who will be with us to Athens including Ambassador Marc and Janet Ginsberg and Bob and Joan Hale.  
The big event for the day was finally getting Rex Ziak and his new wife, Japanese Relations Officer, Keiko Ziak off the ship for dinner and celebrate their marraige which took place in Oregon on November 7th! We have always wanted to have dinner at the Mahara Restaurant in the luxurious icon of Dubai, the Hotel Burj Al Arab. What an evening! After clearing the security, we crossed the bridge to the entrance to the hotel and gazed up the atrium of fountains flanked by two huge aquariums alongside the escalators. We were greeted by the Business Development Manager, Camelia Binbrek, and given a grand tour starting with the suites. There is no reception in the hotel - only the private reception on your specific floor where each suite has its own butler.    

 

Following our tour, we were greeted by Hassen Boussif, Assistant Manager of Al Mahara Restaurant and shown to our table across from the gigantic aquarium exclusive to Al Mahara. We were mezzmerized by the schools of different kinds of fish the entire evening.

During our coffee and dessert, Hassen had arranged for flowers for Judy and Keiko and presented a beautiful chocolate cake for the celebration of their marraige. It was definitely a 7 Star evening with our very special friends, Rex and Keiko. We also gained a brand new appreciation for this fabulous hotel including leaving the Al Mahara Restaurant in a submarine taking us back to the surface! The entire experience tonight was definitely "Over the Top"!

 

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"The fragrance always remains in the hand that gives the rose" - Heda Bejar

Sunday, March 14 ~ Dubai, United Arab Emirates

DUBAI - OUR ARRIVAL AND FIRST OF THREE DAYS IN THIS WORLD WIDE PHENOMENON

When we arrived at 7:00am, we could not see the city due to smog and fog, but it slowly cleared and we could only see the very top of The Burj, the tallest building in the world!

   Finally, we could see the entire building amongst the other "skyscrapers"!  Wow!  
Right next to us and very good company, we shared our berth with the mega yacht DUBAI, owned by the Dubai Government for official state and private use of the Dubai ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum.    

We enjoyed talking to our Voyager Club members today as they went back and forth to the City.  Meanwhile, it was the end our our world cruise segment between Mumbai and Dubai and time to get all caught up with our Voyager Club duties.   Tomorrow - we enjoy Dubai and look forward to our dinner at iconic Hotel Burj Al Arab with Rex and Keiko Ziak and Ambassador Marc and Janet Gisberg.  

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position fails, your ego goes with it".  - Colin Powell

Saturday, March 13 ~ Cruising The Gulf En Route to Dubai, UAE

Post Pending

Friday, March 12 ~ Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

ABU DHABI - THE CITY

We all agree that Abu Dhabi is a fabulous destination with the The Emirates Palace as the exclamation point! It seems almost impossible that this world class resort of Abu Dhabi saw its first paved road in 1961! The city is now booming thanks to the late Sheikh Zayed. Construction is constant  and most of it very modern with sleek new buildings going up every week! Cranes everywhere! Recession? We took the afternoon Crystal Shore Excursion to visit the highlights of this capital of the UAE which was a great way to get an overview. We first stopped at the former home of Sheikh Zayed, beloved founding father of today's United Arab Emirates. This cultural heartbeat of the city showcases weekly exhibitions and we were amazed at the collection of memorabilia of Sheikh Zayed. He was quite the sportsman and all around champion of the people.

Among many of his treasured items, he was very attached to his stuffed lion. Outside - camels everywhere!

   

After a short drive, we came to the iconic Grand Mosque, one of the largest in all of the UAE and originally used as a school back in the early 1900's. It is Friday so we could not visit the inside due to prayer day.

 Our last stop was Heritage Village which was inspired by the Bedouin community depicting the daily activities of the Arab community before the discovery of oil.  

It is very striking to learn about this entire Gulf region and what oil has done to change it. The major concern of all in this area of the world - what happens if the oil disappears or is no longer needed due to improved technology. Well, what happened to the booming gold rush communities when there was no more gold? We will wait and see. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi remains our favorite in The Gulf so far.

Returning to the ship, we watched a large megayacht arrive called the "ECSTASEA". For fun, we went on the internet and Googled, "Megayacht ECSTASEA". There it is! This beautiful creature is owned by Russia's weathiest tycoon, Ambramson. Moving on.........next stop: DUBAI!

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"It is a great challenge to be better than your opportunities". - Sarah Jessica Parker

Thursday, March 11 ~ Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (Overnight)

ABU DHABI AND THE PALACIAL VIRTUOSO PROPERTY - THE EMIRATES PALACE

We have two days to explore this glorious Capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) - ABU DHABI ! Our first day is focused on the most magnificent hotel/resort in The Gulf, if not the world - The Emirates Palace. This Virtuoso property does not carry the words "hotel" or "resort" in its name. It's a Palace after all. Costing 3 billion dollars to build, it now caters to the world's elite including all government social functions and many meetings including one during our visit today with the United Arab Emirates' Defense Minister.

Our host today was Hazem Harfoush, Assistant Director of Sales and Marketing for The Emirates Palace (on the right), who gave us a very comprehensive golf cart tour of the exterior of the hotel followed by lunch on the terrace.   

The grounds were immaculate plus a vast far reaching beautifully manicured beach for all guests to enjoy. Our lunch with Hazem was buffet style and the selection was right out of the Arabian Knights. The lavish display was the creation of their Executive Chef who explained many of the dishes to us.

 

 Following lunch, Hazem introduced us to Jiji, one of the Palaces' Guest Relations Hostesses, who gave us a grand tour of the interior including the Royal Suite.

 

 

 

It seemed like we were in a palace of gold and, in a way, we were.

The fixtures in the bathroom of the Royal Suite were all gold, but for some reason it did not seem garrish, but rather tastefully designed with simple elegance. The service, if Jiji is any example, can be desribed as warm, gracious and refind.

 

We encouraged Hazem to start making plans to attend our Virtuoso Travel Mart at the Bellagio in Las Vegas in August where he can meet, along with hundreds of other hotel and resort managers and executives from around the world, over 1,000 of the top luxury travel consultants, all Virtuoso members. We think we convinced him to attend! 

We couldn't get The Emirates Palace out of our minds.....what an experience to actually be there! The singing group sensation, IL DIVO, was coming to The Emirates Palace and they are also coming to the Crystal Serenity in a couple of weeks!  Vice President of Crystal Entertainment, Brett Bullock, has been very busy and has really hit a home run with the incredible entertainment on our world cruise!

 

 

 

When we returned to the Crystal Serenity, we ran into Bill Miller, one of our favorite lecturers and encouraged him to visit the Emirates Palace. He did and loved it! Bill lectured on the great oceanliners of the past and brought us up to date on the latest cruise developments around the world. A documentary on Bill's life, "Mr. Ocean Liner" will be debuting soon! For more on Bill Miller (and there's much more!), go to WWW.BILLMILLERATSEA.COM.

MAKING IT CRYSTAL CLEAR......A FABULOUS CRYSTAL WORLD CRUISE EVENT THIS EVENING.....WHAT AN EYE OPENER!

This evening we were treated to one of two World Cruise Shore Events for full world cruisers, "Welcome to The World of the Yas Marina Circuit".   Our tour of the track in our coaches gave us great perspective on the size of the Yas Marina Circuit which has hosted the Formula 1 Grand Prix and has some of the fastest strights, tightest corners and the futuristic race support services on the planet.

Together with the Formula 1 Circuit in Bahrain which is hosting the Grand Prix as we write this, we can see that this area of the world is a haven for Formula 1 Grand Prix racing. 

During our Reception on the upper deck, we enjoyed the music of a harpist in a large bubble and chatted with our Cruise Director, Rick Spath, who got the thrill of his life as a passenger in of the race cars!  The bright blue lights in the background is the new Yas Hotel on the Circuit grounds!  Futuristic! 

 

We were so pleased to once again see the creator of our event, John Stoll, Director of Land Programs for Crystal Cruises.  John worked for over a year on this World Cruise Event and all full world cruises were treated to a breaktaking vision of what Abu Dhabi has in its focus for the modern world.  Certainly, Formula 1 Grand Prix Racing is on the cutting edge of Abu Dhabi! 

 

Speaking of Abu Dhabi....so much for palaces and race cars.........tomorrow it's all about this capital of the United Arab Emirates.........popular and fantastic Abu Dhabi!

OUR THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"The past is a source of knowledge, and the future is a source of hope.  Love of the past implies faith in the future".  -  Stephen Ambrose