Carnival Spirit and the GPS of a Trajedy

On days when the ship was at sea with no land in sight, we would turn on the television to the channel with the GPS of the route. Usually it looked like a child's drawing of a single arrow and nothing else, except the wind and ship's speeds.
The morning after our visit to Mystery island was different. In the early morning we kept hearing an announcement for a crew member to please report in. At the same time you could feel the ship slowing down. During the course of the morning there were 2 separate all-hands drills for crew members to congregate. Also, there was a request for the same missing crew memeber to "please report in. you won't be in trouble. Please let us know you are okay." By this time the ship had stopped.
Finally there was an announcement that a crew member had disappeared overboard  and that we were going back to look for him. The ship turned around and picked up speed again. The next morning, this is the GPS we saw on the TV - a record of the squares within squares that the ship made on its all night search for the missing crew member. Later that morning we were released by the local officials and set out again on the cruise route.
Everyone was hit very hard by this sad situation, but I have to praise the entire crew of the Carnival Spirit for their prompt reaction and the way that it was handled, especially with the 2100 passengers aboard. There was genuine concern for their missing crew member and his parents in India. There was constant communication with the passengers at every step  and yes, we missed a stop at Port Denaray, Fiji, but everyone understood the importance of going back. After all, it could have been any one of us who went overboard.
After that morning it was difficult to look at the child's scrawl of a GPS arrow without thinking of the lost crewman.

Mystery Island, Vanuatu Farewell

It was good to get back to the ship and sadly, say farewell to Mystery Island, Vanuatu. As soon as all were on board the ship took off for Port Denarau in the Fiji Islands. It would take one full day at sea and then docking at the port the following morning.

Mystery Understood!

All stops at ports last about 8 hours before the rush back to the ship and then off to the next destination. A gorgeous morning on Mystery island turned into a windy rainy afternoon with 100s of people waiting for a lifeboat to take them back to the ship. Ferrying with lifeboats is called "tendering", but there was nothing tender about the rocking and rolling ride back to the ship. It was an E ticket (You have to be a very old American to understand that term). Let's just say it was exciting and a relief to be back on the ship.

How Can I Live Here?

Boating on Mystery island

All the Comforts of Home...

There may be no roads, electricity, phones, or buildings, but somehow there are comfort stations - and in keeping with true island life!

The Instant Shopping Mecca of Mystery Island

It was so impressive how a desserted island could be turned into a shopping mecca in a matter of hours. Dresses, wraps, scarves of gorgeous vivid colors, handmade jewelry, carved wooden items, purses, and 100s of items could be purchased at extremely low prices. When you finished shopping, you could have your hair braided and beaded, sip fresh coconut juice out of the coconut, sample the local cuisine, or get crazy and try a drink of the mouth numbing Kava.

Cannibal Soup

There is no better way to remember your time on Mystery island than to make a film of you in a bowl of cannibal soup. I was a bit stunned by this. Most countries I have visited tend to downplay or hide their less than stellar past. But why hide it, when you can capitalize on it? Everyone seemed to have a great time as the "cannibals" prompted the tourists on how to make the most dramatic shots of their turn in the bowl.