San Diego

Dateline, March 21, 2000 - And what a lovely sunny day for Judi, Michael, and Mary Ann to arrive.  But what's with all that luggage?!?  It can't ALL be shoes.  Could it be?  Could Charlie have invited his entire flock to sail on the Statendam?

Hang on folks, the story is unfolding.

Dateline, March 22, 2001 - By now the rest of the group has de-planed and, as veteran cruisers, they naturally are... HUNGRY.

For a Bon Voyage Bash, what better spot than Trattoria Fantastica?  Um, I wonder if a certain co-hostess with the last name RIZZO selected that particular restaurant?  Bob Hoover (our official webmaster and unofficial food critic) reports the food was OUTSTANDING.  I think the company was as well.

Admiral Chet set the mood for the evening by making sure everyone got lei'ed.  Hey, Chet!  You're supposed to wait until you GET to Hawaii for that!

No matter, Ellen and Mary Ann have everything under control.  Sort of.

It seems that Charlie was miffed at so many humans and so FEW chicks.  Before long, everyone in the group was accompanied by a chicken companion with a wardrobe.  Aha!  That explains the luggage!  Naturally their fine feathered friends joined in the festivities.  If you haven't met Charlie, he's a well-traveled chicken with his own story Charlie, Chicken of the Sea.  This is his second Statendam Circle Hawaii cruise and we assume he'll be dining with the Captain at the very least.  We'll surely be meeting his pals in the days to come.

The food looks great!  We assume no one was gauche enough to order poultry as an entree.

What would a group cruise be without something to identify its members?  A special symbol of their time together to wear with pride...

And here it is... the OFFICIAL
Aloha ha ha Sea 4 Sail CCotC tee shirt.  For anyone who hasn't been listening closely (and you know who you are!), that stands for Cackle Cruise of the Century.  And CACKLE means Cruising and Carousing Keeps Life Entertaining.

Now, doesn't it all make sense?

The party's not over, though...

Click on over to more photos and more fun... right here.