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Parties, Sea Days End Another Grand Voyage Around the Globe

Posted on May 18, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 128 +7, 2024 Grand World Voyage Saturday, May 18, 2024; Fort Smith, Arkansas A week ago, I left the Zuiderdam in Fort Lauderdale. In some ways I feel I’ve been on dry land for much longer, but that is the way of life, it seems. This morning I’m watching

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2024 Grand World Voyage
37 comments

Volcanic Cape Verde Stirs Memories of Portuguese Exploration  

Posted on May 6, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 121, 2024 Grand World Voyage Friday, May 3, 2024; Mindelo, Ilha de São Vicente, Cape Verde. Portugal has left its mark on many ports of call around the world. Whether it be Brazil, Madeira, the Azores or Macau, I’ve found clues to their Portuguese past in building styles, the

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2024 Grand World Voyage
8 comments

Browsing Pier Boutiques a Highlight of Final African Ports

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Days 115, 119, 2024 Grand World Voyage Saturday and Wednesday, April 27 & May 1, 2024; Takoradi, Ghana, and Banjul, The Gambia Maybe it’s port overload after 40 so far. Maybe it’s because we were in these West African ports just a year ago, and they aren’t places I would

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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African Sarafi Adventure Delivers More than Just Wild Animals

Posted on April 29, 2024 by Eloise Johnston

Days 103-106, 2024 Grand World Voyage Monday-Thursday, April 15-18, 2024; Thanda Safari Private Game Reserve, South Africa, Part 2. Hello! Guest blogger Eloise again with another safari report. The last report covered our safari drives into the bush. This one will look at our time in the lodge, Thanda’s Villa

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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More African Animals! New Safari Experience Thrills Sisters

Posted on April 26, 2024 by Eloise Johnston

Days 103-106, 2024 Grand World Voyage Monday-Thursday, April 15-18, 2024; Thanda Safari Private Game Reserve, South Africa (Editor’s note: Enjoy the first of my sister Eloise’s two guest blog posts about the safari she and my sister Elaine took in South Africa!) What is a trip to Africa without exotic

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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Namibia’s Sea Life Proves There’s More Here Than Desert

Posted on April 25, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Days 109-110, 2024 Grand World Voyage Sunday and Monday, April 21-22, 2024; Lüderitz and Walvis Bay, Namibia This is when, with just three weeks remaining on our 18-week cruise, time starts to speed up. I find myself fighting against the urge to start packing. After all, the three weeks are

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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Three Days of Wine, Tea, Shopping in Stunning Cape Town

Posted on April 20, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Days 105-107, 2024 Grand World Voyage Wednesday-Friday, April 17-19, 2024; Cape Town, South Africa. I don’t think I have ever before spent two nights and three days in a port during a cruise, but what a thrill it is to do so in Cape Town – one of the world’s

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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African Wildlife, Colorful Markets Mark My Return to the Continent

Posted on April 17, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Days 101 and 103, 2024 Grand World Voyage Saturday and Monday, April 13 and 15, 2024; Maputo, Mozambique, and Durban, South Africa. I’m back in two African ports that I really never saw last year, when our overland safari departed from Maputo, Mozambique, and returned to Durban, South Africa. In

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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Zanzibar’s Stone Town Mosaic: From Slave Trade to Luxury Resorts

Posted on April 14, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 97, 2024 Grand World Voyage Tuesday, April 9, 2024; Zanzibar, Tanzania. If yesterday was all about the natural side of Zanzibar, today is about Zanzibar City and its historic center of Stone Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Again, we took a half-day excursion through our travel agency. We

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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Wading Through Zanzibar in Search of Elusive Rare Monkeys

Posted on April 12, 2024 by Jo Johnston

Day 96, 2024 Grand World Voyage Monday, April 8, 2024; Zanzibar, Tanzania. We’ve arrived in Africa! And let me just start out saying that Zanzibar is a great introduction to this vast continent. Yes, I’ve been to Africa before, but never Tanzania. It is in fact the 13th African country

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2024 Grand World Voyage
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