In India's Sunny Clime

Prepared March 7 and 8, 2012, en route Hong Kong, China



February 24, 2012, en route to Chennai (Madras), India:  Chronicles

Departing Colombo, we turned south and rounded the southern tip of Sri Lanka before turning north-northwest toward Chennai, formerly Madras.  Looking at a map, one would find this route strange.  Why not sail directly north from Colombo and sail through Adam's Bridge and the Palk Strait that separate India from Sri Lanka at the northern end of the Island of Ceylon?   The reason is that at certain times of day, the water in the region of Adam's Bridge is too shallow for safe passage of a ship that draws as much water as the Silver Whisper.  So, the transit to Chennai is along the eastern side of Ceylon.

One stable of cruising is the daily plan-of-the-day, called the "Silversea Chronicles," in the case of the Silver Whisper or any Silversea ship for that matter.  The next day's Chronicles is normally found on your bed in the evening before the day it concerns.  The format is fixed, so there is not much variation in topics covered.  Page 1 tells you the date, where you are, where you are going, and the dress code for that evening.  Many passengers forget these things on a regular basis.  (It's the passenger demographic!)  Also, page one will contain a short article, probably "liberated" from the internet, on such topics as our next port of call, oceanography, regional religions, etc.  In other words, filler material.  Page 2 contains advertising for commercial activities on Silversea: "Your next cruise is waiting"; The on-board shops and spa -- "Be forever covered in mud" or some other suspicious substance---visit The Spa of Silversea; and, the on-board casino - "We will make your money our money!"

Page 3 is the heart of the matter.  A minute by minute list of activities on board from sunup to midnight, or later.  Those activities include physical fitness, internet support, contests, "enrichment lectures," bridge lessons and play, afternoon tea , Bingo and Team Trivia, and various evening entertainments.  All this is fitted neatly on one page.  Page 4 contains brief writeups of some of the events.  For example, on February 24, the four  articles enlighten guests on "Artist Michel Bell," "Fancy Dress Making Contest," "Water Volleyball, Did You Know?," and, "Martini Demonstration."  Fascinating, absolutely fascinating!  Next, there are inserted menus for lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner, followed by Page 5.

Page 5 contains more brief writeups of on-board activities, which you will be spared from knowing to keep you from falling asleep while reading this.  Well, maybe not, they do give flavor.  Today, they include the ad for Le Champagne, and notes on "Cocktail of the Day," "Wellness Breakfast on the Pool Deck," "Ever wanted to Learn Napkin Folding?," and "Join Us for a Wiener Kaffee."  Finally, we reach Page 6, which is devoted to "Meal and Snack Hours," "Bar Hours," "Ship's Directory,"  (Yes, after nearly two months, we still have people who can't find things, including E.)  and, "Today's positioning of Silversea's Fleet."

So, now the passenger is informed.  It is hard to miss that a vast majority of the content concerns food and drink.  And, if you haven't guessed, this is the most important information sought by the passenger.  Where and when is their food, and where and when are their drinks?


February 25, 2012, in port Chennai (Madras), India:  Silversea Scholars

Chennai (Madras) was a new port for J & E.  J had worked there in the 1970s and '80s but had never returned to Chennai or the Tamil Nadu region of India as a tourist.  There were several interesting tours, including a seven-hour bus safari to Mahabalipuram, a 7th and 8th Century AD temple complex carved into rock outcroppings.  However, the thought of another case of bus butt was too much.  So, we chose an architectural tour of Chennai.  The tour was limited to 10 people and conducted by a local itinerate academic, Dr. Suresh.

We met Dr. Suresh and our fellow "Silversea Scholars" on the pier and boarded a 16-passenger minibus for the tour.  The title of "Silversea Scholar" was Dr. Suresh's.  He needed something to call us and thought this most appropriate -- the verdict is still out on that.  After traveling only a short distance, we left our bus, crossed a major Chennai street (a real heart stopper, that!), and entered Fort St. George.  Since Fort George (as it is commonly known) is the seat of the First Minister (Governor) of Tamil Nadu and an active military garrison, only selected buildings were available to tour, and no non-governmental, official vehicles were allowed in the Fort.  Another "Mad Dogs and Englishmen" experience was at hand!

The first building was the St. Mary's Church, the oldest Anglican Church in India.  The church was built to be not only a place of worship, but a shelter for civilians during war time.  It was last used as a bomb shelter during WWII, when Japanese air attacks were feared.  (Chennai was shelled by the Imperial German cruiser SMS Emdem during WWI.)  The building is a massive structure, with 5-foot thick walls and fort-like portal doors.  Inside, the church is rather plain, except for all of the commemorative plaques to the members of the congregation who died for the British East India Company and the British Empire in India.  There are a great number of plaques!  Among those of repute are Clive of India, who was married in the church, and Eli Yale (of Yale University fame), who worshiped there.  The impression that a walk through St. Mary's leaves you with is:  the life of the British Raj during the 17th and 18th Centuries in India was short and maybe not as posh as portrayed in fiction!  (Unless you consider a rather large tombstone posh.)

Exterior, St. Mary's Church, Fort St. George

St. Mary's Is A Very Sturdy Church

Yes, those are the grave stones of the Raj!

Interior Altar View, St. Mary's Church

The plaques commemorate the men and women who gave their all for the Empire.

More Testament to the Price of Empire

The next stop was the Fort St. George Museum, an 18th Century British East India Company building that has served many functions, but in the 19th and 20th Centuries, at least until 1947, it had been a British Officers' Club.  After Indian Independence and the British quit India, the building became a museum dedicated, more-or-less, to the artifacts of the British period in India.  There were rooms dedicated to militaria, household items, paintings of British governors, etc.  The two most interesting items were the statues of Lord Cornwallis and the Duke of Wellington.   Cornwallis, of the loser of the Battle of Yorktown to Gen. Washington fame, went from the Americas to India.  In the service of the British East India Company, he bashed about a number of Indian Rajas and the French to gain military fame and a statue (formerly outside, under a cupola).  Wellington, victor of Waterloo and the campaigns in the Peninsula (Spain and Portugal), gained much of his early military experience in India.  So, their statues (which were considered inappropriate for display in the open following independence) have been moved into the museum.

Interior, Fort St. George Museum

Lord Cornwallis Statue

No, It Is Not Darth Vader!

Statue of the Duke of Wellington

Leaving Fort St. George, we drove by the building of the Chennai High Court.   This building, considered by many to be the largest high court complex in the world, was built by the British in 1892 and has towers and turrets in the Indo-Saracenic style, typical of much of the Imperial architecture in India.  Also, in the later British Empire style is the municipal building of the Chennai Corporation.

Chennai Railroad Station

An example of  late British Empire Architecture

Chennai Municipal Corporation Building

Late British Empire Architecture

Our final stop was the Government Museum at Egmore.  This building complex, which houses theaters, archaeology and natural history museums, is a large collection of Indo-Saracenic architecture built of red brick.  Most of our time here was spent visiting the stone and the bronze statuary collections.  Those collections are largely of Hindu/Buddhist gods and goddesses.  Without an intimate knowledge of Hindu/Buddhist mythology,  the statues of the gods displayed begin to run together.  However, this does not detract from the quality of the craftsmanship represented by individual pieces.

Exterior View Government Museum Egmore

Typical Red Brick, Government Museum Egmore

Stone Buddha

Stone Hindu Goddess

Stone Elephant Statue

The bronze collection is housed in a newly-modernized gallery, which has air-conditioning.  The air-conditioning definitely improved the attention span of the Silversea Scholars; even though their ability to discern the difference between one dancing Shiva and another did not seem to improve much.  The bronze collection is of significance, because many of the statues were crafted in Tamil Nadu between the 7th and 15th Centuries.

Bronze Dancing Shiva

After the museum, it was back to the baby bus and a tour along the Chennai seafront on Marina Drive, arriving back at the Silver Whisper about 1:30pm.  By this time, Chennai had reached temperatures into the low 90 Deg. F and humidities in the 80 percent range.

Marina Drive and Beach, Chennai

Gratefully, this was not our bus!

February 26, 2012 to March 3, 2012, en route Port Blair, Andaman Islands, India; in port, Port Blair, Andaman Islands; en route, Phuket, Thailand; in port,  Phuket, Thailand; and en route, Singapore:  Confined to Quarters

On returning to the ship from the Chennai tour, J began to develop symptoms of a cold.  This cold had been about the ship since Fort Lauderdale, but both J & E had avoided contracting it.  Well, J's luck ran out, and for seven days, he was out of action and did not leave the room in the hope of not spreading the cold to other passengers or members of the crew.  E became his faithful caregiver.  Not an easy task, at the best of times.

The Sick Room!

Actually, our suite on the Silver Whisper

Finally, by day four, the home remedy approach was shelved, and the ship's doctor was visited.  Mostly, this resulted in more powerful cough medicine with codeine (yum-yum), cold medicine, and an antibiotic for symptoms of respiratory infection.   Recovery then began to take hold, or because of the "good" drugs, J just didn't notice the cold anymore.

During those seven days, we lived entirely in our stateroom, and it was definitely getting smaller by the end of the confinement.  Our butler, Mary Ann, served our meals and brought us anything we required from outside, while Regan, our room steward, kept the place in order.  We read, wrote on the blog, played cards, watched TV and movies, and looked out the window.  Such an exciting cruise!

As proof of life, J has included images of the ports at Port Blair and Phuket.  J's condition was rapidly improving as we approached Singapore.  Although he still had some minor symptoms, he was declared 90 percent fit and allowed out of the room for a short time on March 3, as we passed through the Straits of Malacca.

Port Blair, Andaman Islands, India

Port, Phuket, Thailand

Sunset, Straits of Malacca