February 9, 2026

The view below shows the channel to the north of Ha'apai Island and King's Island  in the background. The protected lagoon is to the right and the sea and Fiji  are way to the left.  Here's our happy group at the beginning of the week in the lounge pit before dinner.

(L to R) Bosco, Susan & Memo, Doug & Lucia , Anna & Jimbo, Ben, Aliana, Basia, Me, Kim & Phil. ( Whitney is sadly missing).

Speaking of Dinner - the food at the resort was delicious! Below are some of the ones I remember to get a photo of before eating.

Dinner was at 7 pm every night and is very social with all the guest and host joining. We reviewed the day and set up schedule for next days activities. We ran out of time to do everything because the weather was a little stormy the last 2 days we were there and the water got a lot more swell action going - so we never kayaked or snorkled all the spots we intended. Great reason to go back, plus whale season there is supposedly spectacular! Lots of mom's come to have their calves here!

I did get to ride a bike, into the village, on Sunday morning, to go to the local church and experience their incredibly loud and enthusiastic singing ( over 1.5 hours at full volume!)

I also went with Basia & Jimbo on a morning adventure to uninhabited Bird Island via an hour boat ride, each way. As I walked around the tiny island, it reminded me of my childhood nightmare after watching The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock.  Except these birds didn't swarm me and the island was quiet serene, with tons of crabs and actually very peaceful.

SAIGON, VIETNAM - INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE EVENT

By Pat Patrick • September 21, 2026
I joined in with 49 other Ship Residents to attend an event the next day at The Vietnam War Remnants Museum also known as The Museum for Peace. This was put together by our residents as part of our ongoing efforts with the Ship's Odyssey Rotary Club and our Global Flagship of Peace initiative.

HO CHI MING CITY, VIETNAM

By Pat Patrick • September 21, 2026
HO CHI MING CITY or SAIGON was our last port in Vietnam . The downtown area was an hour away from the Port , so most of us got Hotel rooms in town, as prices were so reasonable. Sadly, it was a rainy four days, but that kept temperatures moderate and we could still get out and do most things. We stayed in district #1 as most of the City highlights are in this area along with the nightlife. Traffic is very busy in the City, especially motorbikes. Crossing the streets needs to be done with intent and quickly as there are very few traffic lights or stop signs.

SHIP SHENANIGANS - CLUE PARTY

By Pat Patrick • September 16, 2026
It's never a dull Sea Day on the Odyssey! We have such creative residents, that are always coming up with new ideas to entertain ourselves and have a good time. This plot was the calculating of Eddie and Michelle - a Game of Clue! The rules were simple - find the party venue at 8:30 pm, come dressed as a character, weapon or room from the game and solve the mystery of who stole the Ship's bell.