May 18, 2007:
Well, I’m finally hitting old-quaint-town-burnout.
The Star Princess arrived at the seaport in Zeebrugge, Belgium under the, now usual, grey skies and occasional misting rain.
The port has little to recommend it and most passengers headed off to Brussels or to Bruges. I went to Bruges, which is world-renown
for chocolate and beer. I purchased some of both......OK, it was about a 90-10 mixture of beer to chocolate. I can attest
that the beer is very good.....the chocolate is still waiting to be consumed.
Not much of interest to mention about the day. It was pleasant and uneventful in that nothing extraordinary
occurred. The town of Bruges is picturesque, but heavy clouds during most of the day kept me from having any major “Kodak
Moments”. But still, it was nice to stroll the cobblestone streets and watch the tourists......of whom there were many.....perhaps
too many. The guide books say that during the summer the crowds can be heavy.....this wasn’t summer, but the major squares
and shopping streets were still packed. So, in the end, the place seemed just a little too ‘touristy’ for my taste.....perhaps
April would be a better time to visit than May.
The only “high drama” in today’s dinner conversation was the revelation that Mrs. Bond
got left in Bruges by her tour. Apparently when a Belgium tour company says be back at the meeting place at 12:15pm they really
mean it.....and when Mrs. Bond showed up at 12:25pm the bus was long gone. Bruges is about a 30 minute drive from our docking
place in Zeebrugge. So, for a while, it looked like Mrs. Bond was facing a very expensive taxi ride, but finally she prevailed
on another tour group with some empty seats on their bus to get her back to the ship. To hear her tell the story, it
was as if the tour company had intentionally deserted her in Enemy Territory instead of it being that she showed up late and
missed the bus. But she made it back in one piece and with only a little inconvenience, so all was well.
.....at this point I should make a note that I am
actually developing some real affection for the Bonds and the SuperGlues. Each evening brings some new drama or revelation
that viewed in one way as boring, tedious or torturous, but viewed in another light is interesting, revealing or even provocative.
These folks are not part of my environment back in the real world (as opposed to the Cruise World that I currently inhabit).
They come from some parallel universe...a place where Tiffany’s doesn’t carry large enough diamonds and where
septuagenarian secret agents still protect the Free World in a battle of wits with minions of the Evil Empire. My education
in the “Ways of the World” was incomplete before this voyage. For those readers who haven’t actually
met me and spent long dreary hours in my presence, I should point out that I am an introvert....not just your run-of-the-mill
“shy fellow”....I am a certified, off-the-scale, INTROVERT. Back in my former life as a technical manager with
Texas Instruments I once had to attend an upper management development course. As part of the course I was given several aptitude
and psychological tests....including the Meyers-Briggs personality assessment. I was tested as being so introverted that the
data point was literally “off the chart”. But, I hide it well. However, after 14 days at this dinner table I believe
I can now handle myself in any social situation. I am now suave and world-wise compared to some.
Once again, I’m a bit pressed for time
so I’ll cut this short and see if I can post a few photos.
