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Of
the places we visited on our cruise, perhaps the most spectacular was
Fanning Island in the Republic of Kiribati. This ring-shaped atoll is
located almost 1,000 miles south of the Hawaiian Islands. To reach this
island, we departed the Big Island on MON...
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...afternoon,
were at sea all day TUE, and arrived at Fanning Island at 0900 WED.
The Star anchored off-shore and we were transported on the ship's boats
to spend about 6 hours ashore. This island has no electricity or telephones
and is reachable only by...
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...ship (ie, it has no air strips for landing a plane). As we
approached the opening to the atoll, the beauty of the tropical waters
and shoreline were breath-taking. If one wanted to see how Hawaii and
most of the South Pacific must have looked 100 years ago, this was IT!
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After
entering the calm, crystal-clear waters of the atoll, we passed a native
hut and saw how some of the 'locals' lived. It did not take a great
deal of imagination to figure out that these peoples' lives were focused
around fishing and the sea.
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We
learned later that Norwegian Cruise Lines had come to Fanning Island
and "built up" this remote and inhabited area by bringing
in supplies and materials to build shacks and tables and fire-pits to...
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...accommodate
their weekly cruise ship stop-overs. They also arranged for local natives
to travel from surrounding islands one day per week to entertain the
Star's passengers while we were ashore for our six hour stopover. .
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The
one side of the atoll was used for swimming while the opposite side
of the atoll was set up for picnicking on the beach (with all foods
and supplies being brought ashore and prepared by the Star's crew).
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Since
we were so close to the equator, Lena just *HAD* to try smimming in
the warm tropical waters (which she found to be VERY different than
the waters in Russia's Black Sea)!
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The
beaches were very well maintained, had beautiful white sand, and were
NOT crowded. (Since there were NO NATIVES, the ONLY people on the beach
were passengers from the Star!)
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While
it was possible to rent jet skies or sailboats or to use free flotation
devices or to swim or lay in the sun, we opted to walk along the beach
for a mile or so until we more or less ran out of beach.
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The
thrill of seeing and exploring these mostly-untouched beaches (as well
as trying to capture the many beautiful images on film) occupied several
hours of our time.
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After
we had reached a point where the palm trees were almost to the edge
of the beach, we reversed our course and returned to the ship's landing
to get a boat across to the picnic on the other side of the atoll.
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We
had to get a photo of the Star 'anchored' off-shore Fanning Island.
[Actually, the water is way too deep just off the atoll to actually
anchor the ship, so the Star uses her satellite GPS navigational system
and engines to automatically keep positioned in...
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...exactly
the same spot during our 6-hour visit!] After crossing to the other
side and enjoying a picnic on the beach, we had to get our photo taken
by this "mileage marker" as a souvenir of our visit to Fanning.
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After
we returned aboard the Star, we took this photo of the entry way to
the atoll. The beach area where we had walked along the shore is to
the left side of the entry; the picnic was held on the section of the
beach to the right.
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One
last parting Fanning Island photo of a very attractive woman with the
beautiful tropical atoll in the background!
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This
is a shot looking down about 4 decks near one of the larger 'open' interior
areas in the Norweigian Star. This picturesque view downward is of the
glass-enclosed elevators and several of the restaurants .
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This
is another photo of Lena and I in the same general area of the Star
(showing one of the speciality restaurants in the upper-left of the
photo).
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This
is a coffee and beverage bar (which also features live entertainment
in the evenings).
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Lena
tried a Japanese meal with several courses for the first time on this
cruise.
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The
Tempura Shrimp and Lobster were quite tasty!
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If
your' re into wines, the Star featured a nice selection (for a PRICE!)
from which to choose for each meal. This wine presentation is at the
entry point to one of the main dining areas at the stern of the ship.
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Also
located at the entrance to this same dining room is this beautiful floral
arrangement.
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In
the forward section of the ship is a large cocktail lounge area which
has a nice enclosed view of the ocean directly ahead of the ship.
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Since
we were eating 3 or 4 meals per day (and ALSO enjoying those FREE desserts
in our cabin!), some of us tried to stay in shape by working out each
day. Lena found this heated indoor pool very comfortable for taking
a few laps...
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...after
she had worked out on the treadmill or...
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...or
used the bicycling machine. Of course, it was interesting that the Star's
fitness center was located so that people could look directly out the
window (while they were on the tread mill or other athletic equipment)
and see people in line for FREE ICE CREAM CONES!
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Another
large outside pool was located amidships on the top deck. This pool
had water slides for the kids and two Jacuzzis in which to relax.
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Lena
waves "Hello" from the pool!
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Relaxing
in the sun on the top deck was always a nice way to spend some time.
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