Geeks on Tour Blog

Sky Dining in Singapore

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:00:00 +0000

I've made lots of friends on board the Odyssey, one special woman - Lyn H. - and I have agreed to a weekly lunch date. Where I spend a lot of time in my cabin on my computer, Lynn is always out and about having fun with groups of people. She seems to always know about the special things to do in any port. So, when we got together for lunch on Sunday while at port in Singapore she told me about how you could actually have dinner while riding the cable cars.

Well, alrighty then!

The Odyssey in Singapore with the Cable Car line passing overhead.

We've been watching the cable cars that go right over our ship from the main part of Singapore to the Sentosa Island and back. We definitely wanted to take a ride and the idea that we could have dinner too sounded great. Did she want to join us? No. She's having a different kind of special dinner at "Dining in the Dark." Where you are served by blind waiters and you eat in total darkness. She says it's supposed to heighten your sense of taste and smell as you eat. OK ... 🤔

We mentioned the sky dining to our friends Russ and Kelly and they were up for it, so we made reservations for the next night. We had beautiful weather for it - hot, but clear and great views. You start with a cocktail at the open air lounge, then board the cable car which has been all set up with your dinner and wine. It takes one round trip to eat - about a half hour. Then you stay on the cable car for another round trip to enjoy the setting sun. When you get off the cable car you go to the open air restaurant for dessert. What a treat! Delicious food, wonderful company, and beautiful views.

Koh Chang, a delightful surprise

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sun, 26 Jul 2026 06:33:00 +0000

Spending 4 nights in Bangkok was tiring. Jim came down with a mild cold, and both of us were looking forward to getting back home (ship) and crashing. 2 sea days sounded good, and we had no plans for the next island. Several projects are in my plate, from tutorial videos, to submitting bills to our health insurance, to geek website updates. Just staying home, resting and working at our computers sounded good.

The 2 sea days went by in a flash, then we anchored at Koh Chang. The ocean swells made tendering difficult, so it was postponed till late in the afternoon. Didn't bother us since we had no plans. We are anchored here for 4 days. We got some work done and relaxed for day 1 and 2. We decided that we would take a tender in to shore one day just to set foot on land and see what's near the dock. At dinner on day 2 Nuran mentioned that she had arranged for a car and driver for the next day and there was room for a couple more people. We could even ride in with her and she could drop us off at the place where she had a wonderful lunch the day before. Ahh! Sounds perfect, leave the ship on the 10:30 shuttle, go to lunch, and come back.

But, once we got there we decided to stay the day in Nurans truck.

These open air trucks are the primary method of getting around on Koh Chang. They're called Songthaews. A songthaew literally means "two rows" in Thai, referring to the two long bench seats facing each other in the back of a modified pickup truck.

It was a private hire, so we could go wherever we wanted. The driver suggested a waterfall, a scenic overlook, an elephant preserve ... Wait! Elephants?!

We're in.

We were told this was the entrance to a private home.

At the first Elephant place, they were wandering around free.

At the second, they were confined and chained. It was sad, but I did enjoy feeding them. So interesting how they use their trunks like a hand - complete with an opposable thumb!

Nuran had a dentist appointment at 3, so we didn't want to venture too far. We saw elephants at 2 different places, took a delightful walk in the woods towards the waterfall saw the scenic overlook then dropped her off at the dentist.

The rest of us went to lunch at Porns. 😮🤣

Chris, Jim, Holly, Jim

At the end of the day, the monkeys came out to bid us farewell.

Bangkok

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 01:14:00 +0000

The ship didn't actually go to Bangkok. It docked at a port called Laem Chabang, a 1-2 hour drive from Bangkok. Traffic in Bangkok is legendary. You drive an hour or so and get to the city, then it may take another full hour or even more to get to your hotel. Gridlock. The ship stayed there for 5 days! That gave us all plenty of time to go to Bangkok and stay in a hotel for a few nights.

International Health Care

We've been on the ship for over a year now. We considered flying back to Florida for medical checkups but, even though all the medical costs would be covered by insurance there, the flights and travel time would be quite expensive. We also changed our home location from Fort Lauderdale to Gainesville, so we would need to find new doctors. We hear that this takes many weeks or even months to accomplish these days in the good ole USA. So we investigated getting things done over here.

There are several good options in this part of the world for health care, fast, high-quality, and inexpensive. Manila, VietNam, Thailand, and Singapore all came up in our research. On our first visit to Singapore, we signed up for screening packages. In one half-day, we got blood and urine tests, ultrasounds, bone density, mammogram, pap smear/HPV, xrays, and more. Reports with all the results were emailed to us a few days later. All that was fantastic, so efficient and professional. Everyone spoke english. All totaled we spent $2,500 which I do not consider inexpensive. So, we decided to continue with any follow up services in Bangkok.

We heard from a friend on board how wonderful the hospital - Bumrungrad - is, so that's where we booked. The best part is that we could book telemedicine appointments. We did that and somewhere floating in the Gulf of Thailand, we talked to Dr. Vibhakorn. We told her we wanted to book colonoscopy and gastroscopy procedures when we got to Bangkok. After a conversation she said we didn't need those tests for several more years. OK. Jim has some prescriptions he wanted and she said that will be easily handled when we're in Bangkok. Also some vaccinations, and a dermatologist appointment for me. Once again, everything went smoothly and efficiently. We stayed at a hotel that was an easy 10 minute walk to the hospital. All doctors, labs, vaccinations, and pharmacy, was all under one roof. So convenient.

Once again, it was more expensive than I had hoped. We spent about $5,000 there. The majority of that was for Maunjaro for Jim plus a 6 month supply of other meds. He needs to lose the weight that he's gained on the ship! The best part is that Dr. Vibakhorn will be our main doctor, available by telemedicine, wherever we are. She can also interface with the ship's doctor.

Sightseeing in Bangkok

We really loved that our hotel was right beside one of the many canals in Bangkok. There were these long boats that acted as water taxis - getting you where you wanted to go in a fraction of the time required to go by road. Check out the video above - it is NOT speeded up. That is how fast these boats go. What a rush!

One evening we took a water taxi to old town and went up to a rooftop bar called The View. Great view, great food and drinks.

The next day, after a follow up appointment at the hospital for vaccines, we took the water taxi to the end of the canal, then a tuk-tuk to see some temples, then another long boat at the main river to explore the canals on the other side of the river.

The food in our hotel was excellent. That's the canal right outside the window.

Our Odyssey Rotary club joined the Rotary Club of Bangkok South Luncheon

We visited several temples and buddhas. This one was the Lucky Buddha

The hand positions (mudras?) obviously have meanings. I love this one!

Our tuk-tuk (motorcycle taxi) and driver, Charlie. He would wait for us when we explored the temples

Next, we got on this 'longtail' boat for a ride on the river and across to the canals on the other side

Floating market - you could buy beer, soda, trinkets from her. There are times that there are dozens of them. For us, she was the only one.

Big Buddha

Wat Arun

On our last day in Bangkok, we took advantage of the blazing fast Internet in our hotel to do our YouTube show live. Time zone makes live streaming difficult because if we did the show at our comfortable tim of 2pm - that's 3am in Florida and no one would show up! So we did it at 8am our time (9pm Florida, 6pm Los Angeles) and we had about 50 people in our audience. We so enjoyed that.

New Country! Thailand - Koh Samui

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 09:05:00 +0000

Officially, Thailand is known as The Kingdom of Thailand. Before 1939 it was known as Siam. Neither Jim nor I have ever been here before. The country of Thailand has a very unusual shape! Some say it looks like an elephant. The elephant is the offiicial national symbol of Thailand!

Our first stop was an island called Koh Samui. Koh means 'island' in Thai. We anchored off of Nathon Pier and took a tender in. It was a very active town right at the pier. We found a nice little restaurant with air and had some real Thai food. Thai food is known for being very spicy. That's what Jim likes, but I can't handle hot-spicy food at all. I found Pad Thai on the menu and I know that to be a tasty, sweet, noodle dish with chicken or pork, It was delicious! Jim had a spicy shrimp soup: Tom Yum?

Just down the block and take a left at an alleyway and you see brightly colored temple.

Diving

The next day, Jim went diving. I couldn't go because of my skin cancer creme doing its work on my face. I enjoyed a day to myself at my computer.

Tour

I saw all sorts of spectacular temples and Buddhas when researching Koh Samui, so I decided to book a tour thru Ida at our destination desk - no extra charge: $50pp for the day. It was just Jim, Me, and Diedre in a nice air conditioned car and our guide, Emma was great.

Ganesh

Happy Buddha

Just the 3 of us on this tour: Diedre, Jim, Me

Entrance to the Magic Garden

Fantastic Tour!

Blessed be the Flexible, for they Shall Not Get Bent Out of Shape

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 10:39:44 +0000

I'm not sure where I first saw that quote - I think it was Ashleigh Brilliant - but it's always been a guiding light for me. Flexibility, both in body and in mind, are essential for a happy life.

Flexibility of Body

When we first started living on the Villa Vie Odyssey, I was excited that there was a morning stretch class every morning. It is included as an amenity with our monthly maintenance fees. All I had to do is walk down the hall, up two flights of stairs and plop down on a mat. No gym membership, no getting in a car and driving to the gym, so convenient.
Did I go?
Wellllll .... once or twice in the first couple weeks, then I got sidetracked with so many other things and it was months before I saw the inside of the fitness center again. Then, last week I got myself up in time for the 8am class and I did it! I felt SO good after, and I was SO productive all day long! I credit the stretches for opening up the flow of energy in my body. It was so pronounced that I determined then and there that I would go to stretch class more often. Not every day, that would set myself up for failure, but 2 or 3 times a week would be great. Now it is one week later - and I've been 3 times! Oh Boy!

Having a flexible body means that it bends to trauma rather than breaking. For example, when I step on the stairs wrong and my ankle twists all the way over. Sure it hurts, it may even throb for a few days, but there was no permanent damage because good stretch classes focus on every part, including ankles, making sure the tendons stretch so that they don't tear.

The Fitness Center at our home, the Residential Cruise Ship: Villa Vie Odyssey

Flexibility of Mind

Maybe it's because of the way I was raised, but I've never been one to be upset when plans change. Plans? What plans? 😊Before reaching High School, I lived in 5 different states, and they weren't nearby states: Tennessee, Hawaii, Washington, Alaska, Florida. And that doesn't count the many months spent on the road traveling from place to place, or just plain traveling. When I was in third grade we lived in Alaska but took a 6-month RV trip to Guatemala and back.

This mental fexibility serves me well in my current life on a residential cruise ship. I hate making plans, so it's delightful that someone else is doing all that work. I just get to wake up in the morning and look out the window and then at my Google Maps to see where I am today! Singapore? Great, let's go see the Gardens by the Bay, Tarempa Indonesia? Uhh, never heard of it - let's go see. Not stopping in Puerto Princessa after all? Darn, I wanted to go snorkeling in a spot that others recommended. Oh well, now our line dancing group will all be on board for the sea day instead and we can learn a new dance.

Sometimes when things are falling apart they may actually be falling into place

Singapore

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sat, 20 Jun 2026 10:47:41 +0000

What exactly IS Singapore? Is it a city, a country, or an island in Malaysia? Apparently, it is all of the above! Singapore is a city-island-country. Singapore (the city) is the capital of Singapore (the country.) If you ask Google if Singapore is a country or a city, here is the response:

Singapore is a sovereign island country and city-state located in maritime Southeast Asia. It gained independence and became a sovereign state in 1965, functioning as an independent nation with its own government, legal system, and economy. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Singapore Tour

Singapore is a wealthy place full of chrome and glass skyscrapers housing all the major world banks.

View from the Fullerton One waterfront mall where we picked up our Singapore Tour.

We had a perfect day for a boat ride on the Singapore River. Starting at an area called Clarke Quay, we headed downriver and under a few bridges till we reached the Merlion (mermaid+lion) statue/fountain that represents Singapore. The city started as a humble fishing village - thus the fish tail. The Lion part came from a legend that the first person to see the city thought he saw a lion and named the town 'Singapura' meaning Lion City. Turns out there are no lions here - maybe it was a tiger?

The Merlion with the famous Marina Bay Sands hotel in the background. Meant to look like a ship resting atop the 3 towers. It houses a hotel with 1,850 rooms. Also in front is a convention center and luxury mall. If you want to stay there, be aware that an average room cost is $1,050 per night. 😮

Gardens by the Bay and the Super Trees

Next stop on our tour was the Gardens by the Bay. Described as one of the most 'Instagrammable Spots' in Singapore. We went there to see the Rhapsody Light show, so we were there after dark. The show was light and music. Think the Epcot nightly fireworks but all orchestrated with these giant high tech 'Super Trees.'

Marina Bay Sands and Spectra

Then it was back on the bus for the short ride to the Marina Bay Sands to watch their light and water show called 'Spectra." I expected water fountains shooting up to the beat of music and displaying different colors. What I didn't expect was the wall of water spray acting as a screen for laser artwork to be displayed. What a show.

Night view of the city from the vantage point of the Marina Bay Sands hotel waterfront

Last Stop - Street Food

Singapore has very stringent health regulations so 'street food' isn't exactly allowed. To accomodate the different vendors - known as Hawkers, a large building was constructed long ago in the heart of the business district. This is called Lau Pa Sat. Once inside it felt like a giant food court with a dizzying number of choices. I had heard about there being good Satay so went on the hunt. It turns out that Satay has its own street on the side of the building. It's called Satay Street! And, it is literally a street with traffic during the day. They close it off and fill it with tables and benches at night. There are 9 stalls all selling Satay sticks - chicken or beef - covered with delicious peanut sauce and seasonings and grilled over an open flame. You buy 10-15 sticks and they are served with a little dish of spicy peanut sauce. I skipped the sauce and thoroughly enjoyed my Satay. Jim loved the spicy sauce.

Yummy Satay sticks. Eating out on "Satay Street" 😊 in Lau Pa Sat market

Tour by Viator

This was a fantastic tour. I highly recommend it and our tour guide 'Jingle' - yes, that's actually her name, just like in Jingle Bells. She was very Singaporean as she told us how she speaks 4 languages: English, Cantonese, Malay, and Tamil.

The tour itself was about 4 hours, but it dropped us off at the Lau Pa Sat and we spent another hour wandering and eating, then found our way to a bus that got us back to the ship.

Singapore River Cruise, Night Garden Rhapsody & Spectra by CYT

Manila and Jose Rizal

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 12:53:54 +0000

Our four-day stop in Manila was a mix of the practical and the profound. After taking care of some routine business—including a dermatologist appointment that, thankfully, went perfectly well—Jim and I got to put on our tourist hats for an afternoon. We headed straight for Intramuros, the historic walled city, and spent hours wandering through Fort Santiago. I went in expecting to see some old Spanish stone architecture, but I walked away completely captivated by the incredible, turbulent history of the Philippines—and one man’s life in particular. I was inspired to come home and find a movie about him - José Rizal (1998) - was quite good.

History of the Philippines

First off, you learn about the general history of these islands - over 7,000 of them! Over the centuries, five distinct flags have flown over the Philippines: the Spanish empire, the British empire, the rising sun of Japan, the stars and stripes of the United States, and finally, the proud flag of an independent Philippines. Each era left its mark, but it was the Spanish colonial period that set the stage for a fascinating historical turnabout.

Jose Rizal

His name is everywhere - Rizal Park, Rizal Avenue, Rizal Sports Complex, Rizal Province. Who was this guy? Rizal wasn’t a military general or a fiery rebel commander. He was an intellectual—an ophthalmologist, a novelist, and a poet. He looked at the harsh treatment of the Filipino people under Spanish rule and chose to fight not with a sword, but with his pen. Through his writings, he advocated for peaceful reforms, equal rights, and better treatment for his countrymen. He explicitly did not organize any violent rebellions. In fact, he believed the country wasn't ready for one.

Rizal didn’t want a war. He wanted equality, education, and respect. But the Spanish authorities couldn't tell the difference between a demand for justice and a call to arms.

The Ultimate Historical Backfire

Threatened by his influence, the colonial government arrested Rizal, accused him of inciting a rebellion he actually discouraged, and sentenced him to death. In December 1896, they executed him by firing squad.

Talk about a move completely backfiring!

By executing a peaceful reformer, the government achieved the exact opposite of what they wanted. They didn’t silence the movement; they created an immortal martyr. The outrage over his execution became the tipping point for the country, igniting a genuine revolution and cementing a national identity that eventually drove the colonizers out. The Spanish wanted to crush a spark, but instead, they threw fuel on a wildfire.

The American era

Then, thru another twist of history, the USA got involved because of the Spanish-American war. They helped defeat the Spanish in the Philippines and were thought to be the peoples' liberator but instead of independence, the Americans purchased the islands from the Spanish for 20 million dollars. Thus began the Philippine-American war 1898-1902 and the Philippines ended up being under the control of the US until the end of WW2. During this time, the US 'Americanized' the islands, setting up school systems and building infrastructure. The US successfully defended the Philippines against the Japanese and granted Independence in 1946.

Today, our 2 countries are considered the best of allies, however the US no longer maintains any military bases in the Philippines - a lease extension was denied in 1992. Subic bay, which was the largest overseas U.S. naval installation during the cold war era, is now a privately owned shipyard utilized by the US for repairs.

Our TukTuk driver on the way back to the ship asked us where we were from. When we said the USA, he said, "Oh we love the USA! They helped us out of World War II."

Mabuhay! Bula! Live Long and Prosper!

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 09 Jun 2026 10:26:00 +0000

On June 7, our Odyssey pulled in to the docks in Manila, Philippines. The next day, a major event was planned. The Villa Vie Odyssey was being inaugurated as a Global Flagship of Peace. There were speakers included Chef Reggie Aspiras who gave us a lesson in Philippine language, customs and food. I especially enjoyed the description of the word, Mabuhay.

In the Philippines, they say Mabuhay. It means Hello, Welcome, Long Live, and it means Life. It is said as a greeting, a cheer, a celebration of life, a general expression of joy. In Fiji it's Bula, in Hawaii they say Aloha. They don't all mean exactly the same thing, but I feel they are said in the same spirit, welcome! Cheers! Live long and prosper!

There are more such words all around the world. They go way beyond a simple "hello." They are linguistic hugs—words wrapped in wishes for good health, life, spirit, and mutual respect.

Pura Vida (Costa Rica)
Literal Meaning: "Pure life."
A general life philosophy of gratitude and slowing down.
Sawubona (South Africa / Zulu culture)
Literal Meaning: "I see you."
It is a profound acknowledgment of human connection.
Namaste (India / Nepal)
Literal Meaning: "I bow to the divine in you."
It recognizes the shared spirit or life force in one another. It's spoken with a slight bow and hands pressed together at the chest, signaling humility and deep spiritual respect.
Kia Ora (New Zealand / Māori culture)
Literal Meaning: "Be well" or "Have life."
Kia Ora is a wish for the recipient's health and vitality.
¡Salud! / Sláinte / Skål (Various)
Literal Meaning: "Health!"
Raising a glass and saying these words is a literal invocation of long life, good health, and shared joy around the table.

The Common Thread: Notice how almost every single one of these terms connects back to "Life" (Mabuhay, Pura Vida, Kia Ora) or "Breath/Spirit" (Aloha, Bula). They don't just acknowledge your physical presence; they celebrate your life force!

Chef Reggie's speech

Chef Reggie gave a very entertaining talk. See it in the video below. She begins with Mabuhay.

Island hopping and snorkeling in Coron

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 11:20:32 +0000

What a great day. A van picked us up at the port entrance at 8am and took us to where the boats were. These traditional outrigger boats are so cool, they look like giant water bugs.

First stop was Kayangan Lake. We got off the boat onto a boardwalk then climbed a few hundred stairs to a viewpoint. From there we descended down a few hundred stairs to the lake. Warm, brackish water was wonderful for swimming. Beautiful limestone rock features we're visible underwater even without a mask because the water was so clear. But Jim had his underwater camera that our guide took down and thru an arch. Then she led us into a cave. After a bit more exploring and swimming to the starting point, we hiked back up and over to where the boat waited for us.

Next stop, Siete Pecados Marine Park. This is a protected area with healthy reefs, and lots of fish. 7 little rock Islands. We snorkeled around two of them and saw all sorts of cool stuff. Lots of tridacna clams with bright colored lips were embedded in the coral. Schools of silversides, a big sea snake, fields of carpet anemones - but no anemone fish ❓I saw so much that I didn't feel deprived for not being on scuba.

Third stop was a beach for lunch, then home.

Great day. Good exercise. More evidence to support our bartenders statement that Coron is heaven!

Salt Water Hot Springs in Coron

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sat, 30 May 2026 09:53:00 +0000

First off ... where is Coron? It's at the north end of the state of Palawan, in the country of the Philippines. We were in Palawan back last September when we had a boat ride in an underground river. Now we're back in the Philippines, but not in the exact same place.

There's some really interesting sights near Coron. I'm instantly drawn to the Maquinit Hot Springs. I've been a fan of hot springs ever since my California days in the 1980s. Reading up on it you learn that it is salt water. I've never heard of a salt water hot springs. Gotta go!

Here's the ship docked at Coron:

When we first got here, we went for a walk. Yikes, this is a poor place. The main method of transportation is the tuktuk. Basically it's a motorcycle with a sidecar contraption that can hold several people. This is the taxi service. People who live here either walk or have a motorcycle.

We walked thru the town, dodging tuktuks, dogs, and chickens. Then, down one side street, we saw the Dive Bar. Ha! Sounds like our kind of place. It was nice. As with lots of poor places, there's a big difference when you get to the tourist places. This bar was very nice. We struck up a conversation with the bartenders who were from Manila. Manila, they tell us is a metropolis of 14 million people!! To them, Coron is heaven! Truly, they love it here. The beer was good too. Red Horse, a Philippine brew.

On the walk back, I saw the town thru different eyes - could have been the beer 🥰 but mostly the conversation with the bartenders. Sure, it was poor, but the people seemed happy. It's not a huge, crowded city like Manila and it is surrounded by exquisite natural beauty. We noticed a barber shop striped pole and Jim decided to take advantage and get a haircut.

Nice job! and the cost? 300 Philippine Pesos, or about $3.25. I need a haircut too. Let's see if I get brave enough. After all, in 14 years of RVing around the USA I got accustomed to "hairdresser roulette!"

On to the hot springs

The next day, we saw a message on our ship's whatsapp group that someone had arranged a van to tour the town and go to the hot springs. They had a few spaces left so we jumped on it. We drove thru the town, stopped at the main church in town, then the Cashew factory. How interesting! Cashews grow out the bottom of a 'cashew apple' that looks like a bell pepper. At the factory, the separate the nut from the fruit, shell it, cut it in half, roast it, and flavor it.

The hot springs was delightful. It was hot, but not too hot - my guess is 102-3 degrees fahrenheit. The water was crystal clear and the springs were large, with 3 separate pools. It was obviously a popular local attraction with lots of people there, but still not crowded. We enjoyed soaking for about an hour with a few breaks. Here's the video that Jim put together of our day:

Borneo - Yes, we have no Orangutans

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sun, 24 May 2026 08:38:00 +0000

Jim and I were in Borneo in 1999. It was on our way to a dive trip on Sipadan and Sangalaki. We heard lots of stories about the Orangutans on the island of Borneo and really wanted to go, but we just couldn't work it in to that trip. 27 years later, we find ourselves on Borneo again and I want to see Orangutans!!

From our port in Kuching, we signed up for an excursion (arranged by a fellow resident) to Semenggoh Wildlife sanctuary where they rehabilitate Orangutans. We understood that you were not guaranteed to see them, but chances were good. It was less than an hour van ride from the ship to the park, then we had good walk to the place where they feed the Orangutans. hmmmm ... it's not looking good.

Another group from our ship went the day before.

All we saw was the statue of an Orangutan at the entrance. It was a lovely walk and jungle however.

The tour included a crocodile farm and the fairy cave. Both memorable experiences. We'll just have to come back again (actually the ship is scheduled to return to Kuching at the beginning of November. Maybe fruit will not be in season then!

For more about our stop in Kuching, see of our "Tech Tips and Travel Tales: Episode 322"

In addition to showing where we were, photos of the Orangutan park, Crocodile Farm, and Fairy cave, This 17 minute video also teaches how to use the 'circle to search' feature on your phone to look at anything and get an answer to 'What is that?' We also show the detailed map of our travels and how to make your own, and how to remove the fence from a photo.

The world of money

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Fri, 22 May 2026 19:37:00 +0000

We are in Kuching Borneo. We tried unsuccessfully to get some local cash at an ATM. Don't know why it didn't work, our debit card has worked in all the other countries we've been thru. So, when we wanted to purchase a 50 cent item at a local store we didn't think it was reasonable to use a card and pulled out whatever cash I had to see if they would take it. 1 us dollar? No, they didn't like that. Let's see what else I have. How about Singapore dollars or Australian dollars? That's what I had in my bag.

The cash I had in my bag. Indonesian, Australian, Singapore, Philippines, USA 😜

I ended up using the card after all. 2.50 Malaysian ringet is about 60 cents, it shows up on my credit card transactions as 0.64 USD.

QR Codes are not all created equal

Next stop The Monkey Bar for a beer. They had a sign by the register that said cash or QR code only, no credit cards. Well, that should be no problem, we know how to scan a QR code, and we have Google wallet all set up. We also have the Wise app with money in it, and Wise can scan a QR code to send payment. Nope, scanning the QR code just yielded a long number, no link, nothing else popped up, just the number.

Apparently they are expecting you to have a local banking app that will scan the code and pay. The Google wallet is still backed by a credit card and they don't want a credit card.

Maybe the Wise app would have worked. I didn't think of that until we left. Luckily there were other shipmates in the bar and they had some cash, having successfully navigated the ATM earlier.

Turns out the QR codes are for their local payment apps Alipay, or Sarawak pay.

Singapore, Health Screenings and Line Dancing

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sun, 17 May 2026 07:31:00 +0000

I've always been confused about Singapore. Is it a city or a country? There's good reason for the confusion. According to Google, Singapore is both a sovereign country and a city. It operates as a "city-state," meaning its territory comprises an entire independent nation that functions as a single metropolitan area without separate states or provinces. Expressing it a different way, Singapore is the capital of Singapore! If you look closely at the map, it is an island, so pretty easy to delineate.

Health Screenings

The ship was docked here for 3 days, giving us time to take care of some health screenings at the Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre. We had previously ruled out coming back to the states for medical checkups due to several factors. Even though our Medicare and supplemental insurance meant that the checkups would be free for us, the travel would probably cost more than the screenings in Singapore. And, we weren't even sure we'd be able to get appointments within a week or even a month back in the states. Here in Singapore we both had full Executive screenings including blood and urine analysis, physical exams, vision test, glucose, kidney and liver functions, colorectal cancer screening, blood tumor markers. Then I also had a mammogram and ultrasound, bone density test, and pelvic exam. Jim had an abdomen ultrasound and an xray of his neck. This was all completed in one half day!! The grand total was about $2500. We received a .pdf report via email a few days later and then a phone call from the Doctor to discuss the results.

We didn't do any sightseeing this time around. We will be back to Singapore a couple of times this summer because it is the one dependable source for fuel these days. We may decide to get some follow up medical procedures done then, or we may wait until we're in Bangkok, where it is less expensive. There is a hospital there, Bumrungrad that is very well known for it's care of an international clientele. We may even be able to get a doctor who will keep in touch thru video calls - that's what I really want. We do have medical facility on board, but that's not the same. Besides the medical staff on board rotates out every few months.

Another Line Dancing Group

There was another gathering with a local line dancing group though! It was held at the Eurasian Community Center. The "Country Line Dance Association of Singapore" (CLDAS.com) has been dancing for more than 25 years!

Michael (in front) Yeo, and Selina from the CLDAS came to the port to pick us up.

The Eurasian Community House

They are an active bunch of dancers! They prepared a list of 62 😮 dances for us to do together. They were still going strong when I started fading and decided to get a Grab ride back to the ship.

Group shot:

Surabaya and Semarang, Indonesia

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Mon, 11 May 2026 07:31:00 +0000

Our sail away from Bali was on the evening of a full moon. So beautiful. And we were invited up to a balcony cabin of our friend Nuran for a 'sail away party.'

Photo using my Samsung S25Ultra at 100X

When we woke up the next morning we were in Surabaya, Indonesia. We didn't get off the ship there, choosing to stay put on the ship for a while. Both Jim and I had plans for the next port, Semarang.

Jim scheduled a tour to the world famous Prambanan Hindu Temple

And Borobudur Buddhist Temple in Central Java. Dating from the 9th century, this site is renowned as the largest Buddhist temple in the world.

I didn't go on the tour with him because I was involved with the ship's line dancers and we were invited to dance with a local line dancing group in Semarang. It is just so cool to have this reason to get together with locals.

The Odyssey "Wave Dancers" getting together with Henny's Line Dancers in Semarang, Java. They even gifted us the sarongs you see in the last photo.

Back to Bali: Rotary, monkeys, and monsters

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sat, 02 May 2026 13:51:00 +0000

We were first in Bali from April 11 to 14, then after Komodo we were back to Bali from April 29 to May 2. We love staying so long in a port. It gives us opportunity to explore and do stuff! In case I haven't mentioned it before, we recently formed a Rotary Club on board. The officers, including Jim as secretary, made arrangements to visit a local Rotary club in Bali.

As soon as we were docked, our group got into a hired van and rode to the location for the Bali Seminyak Rotary group. This is a group of Expats mostly from the US and Canada and at least one from France. We thoroughly enjoyed chatting and getting to know them. Interesting how they made Bali their home, some for as much as 30 years. The president still keeps a full time job back in Denmark (I think) working remotely.

The venue was a meeting room at a high-end hotel. We had a delicious lunch and listened to presentations about their projects.

I especially liked the presentation about their project to create a Plastic Free Bali. They are funding recycling centers and teaching the locals about collecting plastics and using the recycling centers. They say they are documenting the education process so that it can be replicated. That got me all excited thinking that our Odyssey Rotary Club could have a project for spreading this system. Plastics is such a HUGE problem for the planet, it would be a very worthy project.

The group of us representing the Odyssey Rotary Club

All the atendees of the Bali Seminyak Rotary club, including a visiting Australian club and us from the Odyssey

A Day of Exploration

Our friends on board, Kathryn and Frank, arranged for a car and driver for a day in Bali and asked if we wanted to come along. Great! We had been too lazy and preoccupied with our computer work to make any arrangements to see Bali so we jumped at their offer.

There are elaborate sculptures in the middle of every roundabout on the roads in Bali.

Our first stop was the most memorable. The Ogoh-Ogoh Bali. Ogoh-Ogoh are sculptures made of lightweight materials, bamboo, cloth, paper and are crafted into giant monsters. These are carried in a parade on the eve of the 'Day of Silence.' At the end of the day, they are burned as a ritual cleansing - destroying the malevolent monsters. One man made it his mission to save some of the sculptures and display his collection in a museum for the public to see.

Kathryn and Frank in the Ogoh Ogoh museum

Photos really don't do it justice. Check out this video that Jim made:

Pura Taman Ayun temple in Bali Mengui.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: The temple was recognized by UNESCO in 2012 for its significance as a royal temple of the Mengwi kingdom, built in the 17th century.

Jim is standing by the Shri Devi Statue at the Pura Taman Ayun temple in Mengwi, Bali. She is the goddess of fertility and prosperity.

Monkeys and Bats

Alas Kedaton Monkey Forest in Bali, Indonesia is a 6.5-hectare protected forest and nature reserve that houses a sacred Hindu temple inhabited by approximately 1,800 long-tailed macaques.

There are also bats at this sanctuary - Flying Foxes to be exact. A staff person made Jim sit down and put bats into his hands in different ways for photo opps.

Just hanging around, exposing themselves.

The Famous Tanah Lot Temple

Our last stop was this sacred Hindu shrine built on a large offshore rock formation. It is one of Bali's most iconic coastal landmarks.

A well deserved drink at the end of a great day in Bali thanks to Frank and Kathryn arranging it.

Bali to Komodo

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 03:31:00 +0000

From Bali, we headed East thru Indonesia to East Timor, then turned back west to Komodo and finally, returned for a second visit to Bali.

Waingapu

Marker #23 is a place called Waingapu where they literally rolled out the red carpet for us, sent officials to shake hands with our captain, and performed right on the dock. This is one of those little ports, like Topolobampo in Mexico (Highlight #2 on our anniversary video) that rarely if ever, see a cruise ship. They love us!

We walked over and inspected the vendors in the evening, listened to a bit of music, but other than that we didn't get off the ship. Others, like Viv, went horseback riding on the beach.😮 Apparently, they're known for that here.

We get overwhelmed with all there is to do. Besides, we still have our 'normal' stuff, like Zoom calls. It's so nice that we can stay connected with our business and personal world in the US, while living anywhere but!

East Timor

Next port - East Timor or, Timor L'este. This was a 'tender' port, meaning we couldn't just walk off the ship onto a port. This ship is anchored and you need to get on a tender, a shuttle boat, to get to shore. We didn't bother. Too much other stuff to do just staying on board.

One Year VillaVersary

We were at Timor Leste on April 20, exactly one year since we boarded the Odyssey in Cartagena, Colombia and we wanted to commemorate it. We had lots of videos to make. Check out our YouTube show #320 and #321.

Komodo

From Timor Leste we headed to Komodo. The dock was supposed to be at LaJuan Bajo, but for some reason they revoked our reservation so the captain found an anchorage right in Komodo. It presented major obstacles for getting around. Most tours had been planned from Lajuan Bajo. Some of the tour boats were given permission to pick up passengers directly from the ship. This had never been done before. We LOVED it. We had an all-day in Komodo trip planned, hiking, snorkeling and touring Komodo with the dragons.

Komodo National Park was a stunning anchorage location

First up - hiking up a hill (a big hill!) to a viewpoint to see Komodo National park. Then we went to Pink Beach and walked around a bit and swam. Next up seeing the dragons at Komodo Village and lastly, snorkeling amongst some gorgeous corals.

The big boy Komodo Dragons were 7-8 feet. Think of a very fat alligator.

Our guides would take our phones to snap a photo. They had a good eye for perspective!

It was an interesting walk thru the village. This is our sweet Komodo Village Guide. The stick is for keeping the dragons at bay!

A photo from a shipmate. He let his guide take his phone and put it on the ground in front of the path of a dragon. The dragon obediently walked right over it. This is a frame from the video.

Coming home after a full day in Komodo islands. Our tour boat took us right to the ship - see that opening at the bottom about one third of the way back from the bow.

April 20, 2026 - Our One Year "VillaVersary"

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 09:07:00 +0000

It’s been exactly one year since we moved our lives onto the Villa Vie Odyssey. We have been living the dream and loving it. We've met so many new friends and we've visited some of the most beautiful and interesting places on the planet. We so enjoy the life of luxury where all our meals are prepared, our cabin is cleaned, our laundry is done - without us needing to lift a finger - and it's all included in one reasonable monthly fee. We don't have to plan any travels, no airplanes, no hotels, no packing and unpacking. We just wake up in our own beds and look out the window to see where we are today.

Just 2 examples of some of the epic places we've been

But as I’ve learned this year, while the scenery is great, the internal navigation takes practice. There’s no manual for turning a five-star "vacation" ship into a "forever" home. To keep the journey smooth, I’ve had to recalibrate my internal compass.

The FOMO Filter

The majority of the 350 residents on board participate in chat groups set up in WhatsApp. It's a great way for us all to stay connected, but it does get busy. The chats include a constant stream of "Spectacular!" and "Check out this photo!"

“That hike to the waterfall in Bora Bora was breathtaking.”
“We just finished a traditional tea ceremony in Kyoto.”
“Don't miss the Tarsiers at the nature reserve!”

The FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is real. We didn't do the tea ceremony. We didn't see the tiny monkeys. Why? Because I have to sit at my computer. I have a blog to write, the Geeks On Tour website to manage, newsletters to ship, and videos to make. I'm not being forced to do any of that mind you, it's what I love. Geeks on Tour has been our business since 2004 and we still make a little bit of money at it, but we want to do it because it's who we are.

I’ve had to learn a new mental skill: reading those messages and saying, "I love hearing about all that," rather than "I'm missing out on that." I’ve traded the waterfall for the keyboard so that this lifestyle remains sustainable. Their photos are almost as good as being there—right?

The "Non-Stop Rally"

People think "Sea Days" (when we are in transit between ports) are quiet. They aren't! In fact, they are often busier than port days because that’s when the community comes alive. Meetings, classes, rehearsals, and meals! Lots of meals with lots of friends.

Back when we were full-time RVers, we loved attending RV Rallies—weeks full of seminars, parties, and reunions. But when the rally was over, everyone drove their bedrooms in different directions and went back to "normal" life. Living on the Odyssey is like a non-stop RV rally. Take a look at just one of our recent Sea Days:

Chris: Line dancing, Women with Wanderlust luncheon, and a Jeopardy skit rehearsal.
Jim: Skit rehearsals a poetry reading recording, and tech management (visuals/light/sound) for a full length play.
Both: Ship safety drills, presentation by the Chief Engineer about the ship, and dinner with friends.

Where is the time to pay bills or answer emails? The challenge is adjusting our mindset to realize that just because there is a party, doesn't mean we have to be at it.

The Buffet and the Bathrobe

The physical adjustments are the funniest. Having every meal prepared is easy to get used to; learning not to eat like it’s a holiday every day is the hard part!

Then there’s the "Public Life" shift. In a house or an RV, you can spend all day in a ratty t-shirt with messy hair. On the ship, the moment you leave your cabin, you are in public. I never thought I’d see the day where I’d put on earrings just to go get breakfast—yet, here we are!

The Art of Doing Nothing

One year in, I’ve realized that the most important thing I need to do is... nothing. In a lifestyle that offers 24/7 stimulation and global exploration, choosing to sit still is the most difficult mental adjustment of all.

We aren't on a year-long vacation; we are living our lives at sea. And sometimes, the best way to navigate that life is to go to your room and shut the door. I really like our cabin. As much as I love the real world, I also love my online world. Sitting at my computer, joining Zoom calls, writing, watching others' videos. That's as nourishing to me as hiking to a waterfall. I need both. We've set up our room to be very comfortable for one or both of us to be there. We can both be at our computers, or we can take a nap, or we can just stare out the window and watch the waves go by.

The New Equation: Play/Life Balance

We’ve all heard of Work/Life balance, but on the Odyssey, I’ve had to invent a new metric: Play/Life balance. When your backyard is a rotating gallery of the world’s wonders and your "living room" is a hub of constant social activity, "Play" becomes the default setting. It’s a wonderful "problem" to have, but it’s still a challenge. If I spent every day playing, the Geeks on Tour website would gather digital dust, the bills wouldn't get paid, and I’d eventually burn out from too much of a good thing.

Recalibrating for the long haul means realizing that:

"Life" is the quiet morning coffee, the focused work hours, and the zoom calls with stateside friends and colleagues.
"Play" is the Bali tubing, the line dancing, and the late-night dinners with friends.

Finding that balance is how we ensure this isn't just a one-year experiment, but a sustainable way to live for many years to come. I’m learning that it’s okay to say "no" to the play so that I can say "yes" to the life.

Bali

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 14 Apr 2026 20:33:00 +0000

The Odyssey takes us to so many wonderful places, but there's something different about this one. The sheer volume and diversity of posts inside our community Whatsapp groups is astonishing. Lots of posts and photos of the coffee tasting place, others with flying foxes/ bats, others seeing Balinese dance performances. We did a few of these things when we were here in 2023 - see that Blog Post here.

When the Odyssey entered the harbor we were meet with 2 tugboats shooting off their water cabins in a salute, making us feel honored and welcomed.

Line Dancing in Bali

After docking and getting settled a local group of line dancers came in board and joined the 'Villa Vie Wave Damcers' for a performance. I'm in the Wave Dancers group and I had so much fun! Especially when we did the stand by me dance where we paired up with the Balinese ladies and get to high five at each turn.

See the video of the event here.

Scuba Diving in Bali

Then we went diving. We booked divers for us and our 2 dive buddies on board, Wayne and Donna, with Bali Scuba. This is who we went diving with when we were here 3 years ago with Alvin and Lisa. Back then our dive guides we're Sila and Yannick - to our delight, they're both still here. Yannick was already booked with another group, but Sila was available to lead our little group.

Subscribe to our Free monthly newsletter

Website: GeeksOnTour.com
Cruising life info: GeeksOnTour.com/cruising
YouTube channel: YouTube.com/@geeksontour
Facebook page: Facebook.com/geeksontour
Business WhatsApp: wa.me/17547155948

Geeks on Tour monthly newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 01:12:00 +0000

Have you seen our Geeks on Tour newsletter? I haven't missed even one month Since 2007. And, all of them are listed and available to read on our website at https://geeksontour.com/recent-newsletters/.

Part travel journal and part tech tips, it's a fair amount of work to put these newsletters together, but I love that it gives me a motivation - a deadline - to get some writing done.

For the last few years, I've been starting with a photo, something that represents our life in the past month. It's usually travel related. I keep the images in a Google Photos album, so I can look at an overview - like a Year in review. For example, here is 2025:

I always feel stressed when I realize it's time to get the newsletter done, and I always feel accomplished when it's been sent out to our subscribers. During the time I need to get it done, I tend to be a recluse on board the ship. I say 'no' to a lot of invitations to participate in events. For example, there's almost always a theatrical production going on. I'm sure I would enjoy taking on a part in a play, but I just don't want to commit.

Sometimes I think it may be time to shut it down, be completely retired. But then I get a comment that makes me feel so good ...

Thank you for your email. I found your Show 319, about Google Drive, particularly interesting.
Thanks for all the interesting stuff you share.
Keep up the good work.
Mike S

Subscribe to our Free monthly newsletter

Website: GeeksOnTour.com
Cruising life info: GeeksOnTour.com/cruising
YouTube channel: YouTube.com/@geeksontour
Facebook page: Facebook.com/geeksontour
Business WhatsApp: wa.me/17547155948

Western Australia, Sailing races, Quokkas, and beer

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sun, 05 Apr 2026 23:20:00 +0000

Our last port in Australia was Fremantle. It is the port city just outside of Perth. We arrived mid afternoon on Saturday and had that afternoon and all day Sunday to explore, and it was beautiful weather.

After 6 days at sea, we were ready! I worked hard to finish our monthly newsletter for geeks on tour and got it published before we docked. So I was ready for a celebratory beer as soon as we got off, but first we needed to visit the local office supply to pick up a USB hub that Jim needed. Success!

Click here to read our April Newsletter

Heading into the city center, it was clear that we weren't the only ones celebrating, lots of people, music, and other acts were out and about and streets were block off for pedestrians only. It was delightful. And look! There's a 'BeerPourium" - doesn't that sound good. It was on the 3d floor and had balcony seating that gave us a great view of the festivities below.

Jim noticed a restaurant called Aussie Ribs. We enjoyed a delicious meat eaters meal.

On Sunday we played tourist, maritime museum, brewery, ferry to Rottnest Island to see the scenery and the Quokkas. Back home well after dark. Fantastic day. There were moments I thought I would just burst from happiness and gratitude for the life I get to lead.

Jim's Dad was captain on a charter boat taking tourists to watch the sailboats in the America's Cup race in Newport Road Island. This newpaper is from the day when Australia won it in 1983.

Rottnest Island - Party Island is more like it! What a beautiful, fun place.

This is a Quokka - a mini-me kangaroo. They're protected, and they're everywhere.

Marsupials

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sat, 21 Mar 2026 20:24:00 +0000

We visited 2 wildlife sanctuaries, one in Tasmania and one in Melbourne. We learned a lot about marsupials. Those are mammals who raise their young in a pouch on the outside of their bodies. I always thought that meant after the babies were born they suckled and kept comfy in this pouch, but no, they come out of the birth canal as a fertilized egg no bigger than a grain of rice, or maybe a kidney bean. The pouch is basically an external womb where they develop into a kangaroo or koala or wombat or echidna. The babies of all of these marsupials are called Joey's.

A kangaroo with a Joey in its pouch. It never showed its head, but I did see it wiggle.

All of these animals we saw in these sanctuaries. The one in Tasmania was called Bonorong and a fellow Odyssey resident arranged for a group of us (nearly 100) to get a special after-hours tour. That meant we had the place to ourselves after it closed to the public. First stop was visiting their "mob" of kangaroos. We were each given a bag of kangaroo food and told to go interact with them. They like to be scratched under the chin, but don't touch them anywhere else. What a great experience!

One of my favorite memories of our visit to Australia in 2017 was visiting a similar place in Brisbane and getting to pet kangaroos. I was so glad that Jo was able to have that experience while she was visiting us.

After the kangaroos, we split up into smaller groups and a guide introduced us to other animals around the grounds.

Tasmanian devil

Echidna

Emu

The wombat was shy and would not come out of it's burrow, but we did get to see it's poop in the shape of a cube😱 All of these animals are Marsupials.

There are no koalas in Tasmania so we had to go to another preserve when we got mainland Australia in Melbourne. It was much further than we thought from the ship and our schedule was a little tight. But we had a delightful driver, Karla, who is a good friend of Fran. Fran is another odysseans who is from Melbourne. We got to enjoy Karlas company for the 1.5 hour drive each way to Healsville sanctuary. It was another beautiful location with lots going on but we had no guide to show us around, so I'm sure we missed a lot. We did find the Koalas though!

And there were more kangaroos, but you couldn't get close to them here. We did see one with a Joey in it's pouch though. Her belly was quite distended, and at one point I saw it wiggle.

New Zealand, abbreviated

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 11:29:00 +0000

We were supposed to have 6 Ports in new Zealand, plus cruising the fjords in the South but as it turned out we only made it to 4 ports and skipped the fjords.

At least, we had a couple of memorable excursions. In our first stop of Tauranga, we did the railcarts.

Golf carts adapted to run on an abandoned railroad make for a fun excursion. Here, we stop to feed the ducks and geese.

Never seen geese like this! They have curly feathers and can't fly - Sebastopol geese.

Then we got the news about the ships bottom needing extra cleaning before we would be allowed in any more ports. Even after 3 days of divers scraping our hull, it still wasn't good enough. Although we were allowed in ports, we could only stay for 24 hours and we weren't allowed in the fjords at all.

Friends and Family

Villa Vie has a great program for those of us who own our cabins on board. It's called 'friends and family' where we can invite someone to join us for up to 2 weeks in board at very little cost. We were scheduled to pick up our first visitor in Wellington. Luckily we were able to collect her even with our port troubles and her missed flights. And we even had a few hours to spare where we got to see a little of the renowned museum Te Papa.

An impressive exhibit about the battle at Gallipoli during WW1

We did get Jo on board, but her luggage didn't make it. Somehow it ended up in Christchurch. That was the ships next stop, so Jim and Jo took a bus from the port to the airport to get it and that pretty much consumed that port since we only had 24 hours.

During the sea days, we had a wedding on board - the second one since we've been on the ship. This time it was Ric and Ellie who - just like the first wedding - met each other on board. So sweet!

Dunedin Train Ride

Next stop, Dunedin where we had previously booked a train ride. A lot of people had booked this same trying ride, so the ship kicked a few things to make sure that our 24 hours accommodate us. It was a great ride.

The Dunedin Train Station is one of the most photographed buildings in the Southern Hemisphere, so we had to do our part to keep that up!

A really cool part is that they had us get off the train and walk across a bridge. Then we could look back and photograph the train coming across the same bridge.

After Dunedin, we were off for 5 sea days back to Australia. People who really wanted to see new Zealand got off the ship and rented cars, then flew to Melbourne to meet back up with us.

Hang on, rough seas

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 22:35:00 +0000

Wow. This is an experience. Not necessarily a good one😜. We just spent an extra 3 days at sea off the coast of Tauranga in order to get our hull scraped. New Zealand has very strict biosecurity laws. Even though the odyssey had its hull cleaned in the Philippines, that wasn't good enough for them. I get it. As an island where any infestation could be catastrophic, they need to be extremely careful.

What a process. The ship has to go out beyond the 12 mile limit and a boat with divers followed us. They worked all the first day, then got delayed on the second day due to bumpy seas. They were able to work a third day and get it done. The ship then went back to dock around midnight where there were residents waiting to be picked up. Then we got underway to Wellington, skipping the Napier stop. We were supposed to be in Wellington Mar 2,3,4. Now we're scheduled to get there on the 4th.

The problem now is really rough seas. To give you an idea of the intensity, the local ferries between the North and South Islands have been canceled for several days. The roughest seas before this were when we came in to San Francisco. This is rougher. And longer. In San Francisco rough waters were over as soon as we turned in to the bay, just a few hours of a bumpy ride. Here it started yesterday afternoon, went all night and is only worse now. Forecasts don't have it lightening up until we reach Wellington tomorrow.

The boats stabilizers do a good job of keeping it level side to side but we are sure going up and down front to back and the boom when the ship crashes into the sea is deafening. We're sure getting bounced around. I joked to Jim that it's a good thing we just got a mattress topper or we may have gotten bruised during the night.

Our TV turned to the Bridge Camera channel

I asked Gemini if this happens often and it said the Cook Straits is known worldwide as a very treacherous waterway.

I might need a sleeping pill by tonight.

Multiple days at sea - time to study

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 22:21:00 +0000

Aaaahhhhh. I am so enjoying just hanging out in my room and working on my computer. I still go to meals, and I went to a couple of line dance classes. Someone said "where have you been?" It appears I'm being anti-social. Well, I kinda need that 😀. I do love all the opportunities we have here to be social, but I still have that need to be alone. Jim is pretty busy operating the tech for various theatrical endeavors on board, so I have the room all to myself.

I'm scheduled to give a speakers corner talk on Bitcoin, Blockchain, and Web 3 tomorrow night. I've been diving deep into all the material and learning so much. Not much I love to do more that learn and figure out how best to teach. The difficult but oh-so-important part is making it simple and short. I think that's what I'm good at so I want to prove it - if only to myself. I've been working on this talk for a couple of months now.

Gemini has been a fantastic helper. And I'm using Google drive tools: slides and docs for organizing and delivering my thoughts. I put all my resources in to NotebookLM and asked it to prepare slides, videos, info graphics etc. WOW but my finished product needs to be mine. I am using pieces from several AIs. The best was asking copilot to give me some humorous ways of saying things😀. It came up with this Pirate Glossary of Crypto Terms that I love. It also gave me some analogies that help me explain this complex topic:

“Bitcoin is the shiny sports car everyone points at.

Blockchain is the engine under the hood doing all the real work — and Web3 is the highway it’s about to drive on.”

and

A blockchain is basically a group project where everyone checks everyone else’s work. Painful, but no one can cheat.

As I tackled each part of explaning this technology I had many questions myself. In times past it would take me hours to research each question and find the appropriate resource that addressed my issue. Now, I just asked Gemini. It gives me explanations exactly on point to my questions and I can ask follow up questions. It does this in just seconds. I love having my own personal teacher. One example: years ago when I was first looking into Bitcoin and Ethereum, I registered the ethereum domain name chrisguld.eth. With Gemini's help I was able to find that and renew it, but boy did I have lots of questions. Here is a bit of our conversation:

Me:

So I've registered chrisguld.eth on the ethereum name service but what exactly is that? Is it a wallet? Do I have keys to it somewhere? Or is it something, a token, in my metamask wallet? Is it my ID on web 3? Or just a shorthand to my metamask wallet address? If it is my Identity on web3 is it subject to being hacked or spoofed? On web 2 my Identity is chrisguld@gmail.com and a big fear is that it can be hacked or spoofed.

Gemini:

It is completely understandable to feel a bit of "tech vertigo" when moving from the familiar world of Gmail to the decentralized world of Web3. Since you're already used to teaching others how to navigate new tools, think of chrisguld.eth as the Web3 version of a domain name (like GeeksOnTour.com) mixed with the convenience of a nickname.

Here is the breakdown of what exactly you own:

1. Is it a wallet?

No. It is not a wallet itself, and it doesn't "hold" your money. It is an address book entry on the blockchain.

The Shorthand: Its primary job is to point to your long, clunky MetaMask address (the one starting with 0x...).
The Analogy: If your MetaMask address is the GPS coordinates to your house, chrisguld.eth is your street address. It’s much easier to tell someone "Send it to chrisguld.eth" than to read off 42 random characters.

2. Is it a token in my MetaMask?

Yes. Technically, an ENS name is an NFT (Non-Fungible Token). If you look in your MetaMask under the "NFTs" or "Assets" tab, you should see it there. Because it's an NFT, you truly own it; it’s sitting in your wallet just like a digital collectible would.

3. Do I have keys to it?

You have the master key: your MetaMask Recovery Phrase. There isn't a separate password for chrisguld.eth. Whoever controls the wallet that owns the NFT controls the name. As long as your MetaMask is secure, your ENS name is secure.

4. Is it my Web3 Identity?

Yes, and this is the coolest part. In Web2, you use chrisguld@gmail.com to log in to sites. In Web3, you "Connect Wallet." Once connected, apps can see you own chrisguld.eth and will display that name and your chosen avatar instead of a random string of numbers. It becomes your "username" across the decentralized web.

Security: Hacking vs. Spoofing

You mentioned the fear of being hacked or spoofed, which is a very valid concern for anyone teaching tech.

Hacking: Unlike a Gmail account, there is no "Forgot Password" link or central server for a hacker to breach. To "hack" your ENS name, someone would need your MetaMask Secret Recovery Phrase. As long as you keep that phrase offline (not in an email or a photo!), your identity is mathematically much more secure than a standard email.
Spoofing: People can try to mimic you by registering chris-guld.eth or chrisguld.com.eth, but they can never take chrisguld.eth from you as long as you keep the registration current. It is unique and verifiable.
The Risk: The biggest threat isn't a "hack," but a scam. If you accidentally connect your wallet to a malicious site and "sign" a transaction you don't understand, you could inadvertently give a scammer permission to transfer the NFT out of your wallet.

With all that, I'm starting to understand, but I still have questions. so I asked

Me:

If I do lose my keys, is there no one at metamask that can help me?

Gemini:

The short answer is: No, MetaMask cannot help you recover your keys. Because MetaMask is "self-custodial," they never have access to your Secret Recovery Phrase. They don't have a database of users and passwords like Google does. If they could reset your password, it would mean they have a "backdoor" to your wallet, which would make it less secure for everyone.

The "Safety Net" Rules

There are only a few specific scenarios where you can still save your "boat":

Scenario A: You know your password and still have the app. If you can still log into your MetaMask on your phone or computer, you can go into Settings > Security & Privacy and reveal your Secret Recovery Phrase there. You can then write it down (properly this time!).
Scenario B: You have the device, but forgot the password. There are some advanced "Vault Decryptor" tools provided by MetaMask that can sometimes extract the phrase from your browser's local files, but this only works if you haven't deleted the app or cleared your cache.
Scenario C: You lost the device and the phrase. In this case, the "boat" is unfortunately lost at sea. There is no one to call, no ID you can show, and no way to prove you are the owner of chrisguld.eth.

A Warning for the "Teacher" in You

Because scammers know that losing keys is a big fear, they often pretend to be "MetaMask Support" on Facebook, X, or Farcaster.

Golden Rule: If anyone—even someone claiming to be "MetaMask Lead Engineer"—asks for your 12-word recovery phrase to "synchronize" or "verify" your wallet, they are a pirate trying to steal your boat. Real support will never ask for it.

Valentine's day

noreply@blogger.com (Chris Guld) — Sat, 14 Feb 2026 21:37:00 +0000

Who better to spend valentine's dinner with than Ric and Ellie. They met on the ship, feel in love, and they're getting married in the ship in a few weeks! We've been diving together, shared many meals and are planning some future excursions together. If you want to be around happy people, you can't do any better than them!

I only think of these things at the last minute. It was as we're starting to get ready for dinner that it occurred to me that it would be nice for valentine's to make dinner special by sharing it with another couple. I thought of Ric and Ellie and sent him a Whatsapp message less than an hour before dinner time. I wasn't sure he would even see the message in time, let alone be available and respond, but he did.

They talked about how they were attracted to each other. It was inevitable, like 2 objects in space that are drawn together by a magnetic force, they just found themselves bumping in together. Ric says "Ellie was smart, beautiful inside and out, active, funny ... And tall!

We sat and talked for the full 2 hours of dinner time in the thistle dining room so we didn't have to get up to go to the buffet. It was a delight.