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Dick retired officially from TRW Space Systems Group in January of 2000 when he reached the retirement age for TRW of 65. Cheryl was still busily employed as the Aquatic Director and Professor of Physical Education at Ventura College at that time. Cheryl retired within two years of Dick's retirement. But their formal retirements didn't keep them quiet for very long.
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Dick fell into the opportunity to start giving lectures for the cruise lines while on a cruise in October 1999. On a trip through the Panama Canal that they paid for to see again the Panama Canal before it was turned over to Panama by the United States on December 31, 1999, no lecturer had been assigned to be on board during the transit. Dick volunteered to be the guest lecturer for the transit through the Panama Canal which turned out to be very successful in front of the 2,000 passengers on this particular ship. During the years after his full retirement since that particular cruise, he has lectured on all kinds of subject matter on many different ships, almost all of the lectures based on his own experiences in life.
Working on the cruise ships of four different cruise lines as a guest lecturer doesn't pay anything, but it provides the same free travel as any paying guest would experience, and all the expenses associated with that travel, like getting to and from the ship wherever you have to meet it anywhere in the world. "We have been to many parts of the world since retirement without it costing us a penny." What a wonderful opportunity this has provided! And besides that, imagine being taken care of in the manner of a very fancy hotel, at sea, someone making up your bed every morning, and cleaning up the stateroom for you, changing the towels every day, and providing you with great cuisine in a beautiful dining room three or four times a day. Living on the same cruise ship for over 40 days at a time makes it feel as though it is your home. What a great opportunity this has been for us. A wonderful way to start out a retirement period in our lives.
And being able to be entertained almost every night at no cost by some of the best entertainers in the world.
"We have travelled much of the western world during that time. We've been everywhere in Central America, the Caribbean, and South America; visited almost every port in those areas. We have had the privilege of going throughout the South Pacific Islands from Hawaii all the way to Australia, spending a month in Australia at the end of one of our trips. We have made two trips for over 1,000 miles each into the heart of the South American continent, to Manaus in the center of Brazil, on the Amazon River, visiting remote indian villages during those trips." And getting to see so many other things on that particular trip, like pink fresh water dolphins, which I had read about but never imagined I would see.
We have taken trips and tours to remote places that very few people in the world ever get to see. And example of this is our visit to a remote Embera Indian village in the high mountains of Panama. These Indians live a very primitive life style in open huts exposed to the many dangers of the jungle. We travelled by dugout canoe for several hours up the Chagres River first and the the San Juan River until we reached their village. I have included some great photos in one of the photo albums of the Indians of Panama that you might enjoy.
A trip around the southern tip of South America was a very special thrill, through the area called "the graveyard of ships" and getting caught in the middle of a monster storm in that area showed them why that part of the world merits its name. Waves of over 30 feet high, winds of over 90 MPH and taking green water over the bridge were but a few of the thrills of this trip around the Cape Horn of South America. The ship listed over 30 degrees at one point while the Captain was seeking shelter behind an island. This caused the breakage of almost all the loose glassware in the dining areas and in the bars and the stores on board the ship. This really makes for a thrilling ride.
During these cruising years Dick and Cheryl have done more than just make an occasional trip. In these years they have spent more than 900 days aboard ship. They have crossed the Equator many times enjoying the ceremony as neophytes are introduced to the society of those that have made the crossing. They go from being polywogs to shellbacks. And Dick even got to play the part of King Neptune on one trip, participating in the initiation ceremony. Great fun!
Crossing the International Date Line is another of those thrills that comes with a lot of cruising to all parts of the world.
Part of the joy of cruising is being able to enjoy the oceans and they have really done that in a big way. But they have also been exposed to the many dangers prevalent on the open seas. They have been on the edges of several hurricanes where the oceans were at their worst. They have had rogue waves hit their ships destroying windows even in the main dining room and also taking out a whole section of balconies with all the partitions and chairs on those balconies. They have experienced a ship making a 180 degree turn with no warning when the rudder swung hard over to the left causing the ship to list dangerously. This happened twice. And they have experienced all the systems on the ship stopping without warning in the middle of an evening meal; no lights, no air conditioning, no engines. Nothing but the bouncing of the ship on the waves, and in the darkness, no less! Quite an experience!
The beauty of the open oceans has also been a major part of their enjoyment. Sunsets that have no obstruction and looking at these through clean air is a real thrill that can only happen at sea. Watching the sun set and seeing the green flame that comes out on the horizon is a thrill that only happens when you are at sea. And then watching the sunrise is another of those thrills. Finding a small bird on the ship when you are hundreds of miles from land is another of those thills. And then in the Amazon, at night, having the ship covered with butterflies and other flying insects of all kinds is a wonder to behold. The color of all these animals was enough to make the trip worth while.
And how do you explain to someone who hasn't seen the action the frothing of the ocean when thousands of dolphin swarm around the ship as far as you can see, jumping and playing as if putting on a show for the passengers on the ship? And then watching as these dolphin play in the bow wave just missing the leading edge of the bow as if to challenge the movement of the ship through "their water".
Or how do you explain what the sea looks like when thousands of flying fish take off as the bow breaks the water, putting their tails down in the water to propel themselves while the body stays out of the water as if they were really flying, and they really are! They have wings. And you can see them up close in the open fish markets on the islands of the Caribbean where the fishermen have them for sale as food-fish.
Watching the whale show just off the cost of Hilo, Hawaii is another fantastic show as the Hump Back whales put on their aerial show, jumping and breaching as they play and romp for all the passengers to enjoy.
Dick and Cheryl have also enjoyed this time on the ships getting to meet people from all over the world. The audiences have been super. On their last cruise on Holland America's Noordam, 1,400 people jammed into the theater to hear his lecture on Panama and the Panama Canal. This theater only seats 900, so people were standing everywhere, sitting in the aisles, and even up on the stage where Dick was trying to find room to stand for the lecture.
They have continued many friendships well past the time aboard the ships. In fact, they just got home from the high mountains of Colorado where the whole family worked for almost two weeks at a shipboard acquaintance friend's mountain home above Fort Garland, Colorado.
Others that they have met fit the same pattern. From as far away as Switzerland, South America and Australia, and all over the U.S., Canada and the islands of the Pacific, friends continue to keep in touch with Dick and his wife
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Life changed for Dick and Cheryl Holt with the last cruise on the Holland America Noordam which terminated in Long Beach Harbor, Los Angeles on May 9, 2007. They made the decision to end their wonderful eight years of lecturing on cruise ships. Their life is now centered on their home and their family. Their two fantastic grandsons, Shilo and Dakota, take up much of their time. They now spend all the time they can with these two little men, as Dick calls them. What a wonderful life this has become for both Dick and Cheryl.
Dick and Cheryl are counting their blessings and remembering the fantastic opportunity they have had over the 900 plus days at sea over these few years.
They have been to many parts of the world during these years of cruising and have met thousands of guests on the ships.
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