Add Planning Proceeds post

Signed-off-by: Jeremy T. Bouse <[email protected]>

content/blog/planning-proceeds/index.md

@@ -0,0 +1,137 @@
+---
+title: "The Planning Proceeds"
+date: 2024-02-24T08:52:15-05:00
+draft: false
+description: 
+noindex: false
+featured: true
+pinned: true
+# comments: false
+series:
+  - Cruising
+categories:
+  - Travel
+tags:
+  - ARRL
+  - POTA
+  - CEPT
+  - MSC
+  - cruising
+  - operating
+  - overseas
+#  - 
+# menu:
+#   main:
+#     weight: 100
+#     params:
+#       icon:
+#         vendor: bs
+#         name: book
+#         color: '#e24d0e'
+authors:
+  - jbouse
+---
+
+Steps are proceeding in preparation of our cruise later this summer. Visitor
+license applications have been filed and already have one back.
+
+<!--more-->
+
+As I discussed in my [previous]({{< ref "/blog/two-favorite-things" >}}) post, the wife and I will
+be taking our next cruise later this summer and I'm looking to finally combine my two favorite
+things, cruising and radios. We are booked on the [MSC] Seashore to embark out of Port Canaveral on
+a seven night Caribbean Cruise with ports of call in Nassau, Bahamas; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; George Town, Cayman Islands; and Cozumel, Mexico. All but Mexico have reciprocity with amateur radio but
+they are not part of [CEPT] or [IARP], so that requires filing for a visitor or temporary amateur
+radio license. Just as with the FCC, there is a small fee the agencies in charge of granting the
+license charge but it's not a big detriment.
+
+I started the process by taking a deep dive into the [MSC] website and published documents available
+carefully looking for anything that would prohibit my bringing my radio equipment with me. Many of
+the other cruise lines do mention it either favorably or not, but [MSC] had nothing. So to cover my
+bases I started by sending an email addressed to the Master of the Ship and copied it to customer
+service, the Director of Customer Service, the Vice President of Contact Center and the President of
+[MSC]. After a month where all I got was the bounce back to the incorrect email address for the
+Captian and an automated response from customer service stating that mailbox wasn't monitored, so I
+began trying to reach out by phone to the other executives I'd included in the email. None of which
+answered my call or returned the messages I left.
+
+Feeling I had done all I could do at this point and embarkation day drawing closer, based on the
+time frames I'd been given by [OfReg][OFREG] in the Cayman Islands and [URCA] in the Bahamas that
+I had already been in contact with I knew I needed to get my applications in to be sure I had the
+license back in time for the trip. Of those two, the [OfReg][OFREG] was the most expedient and I
+probably could have waited until later to file as I got my license back within a day. I was issued
+ZF2JE as my call sign to use while in the Cayman Islands. While I'm only planning to be there for a
+day during this trip, the license is good for a year and I do have the option to renew it so I can
+use it again in the future when traveling to the Cayman Islands. As this is not our first cruise to
+the Cayman Islands I can see using it again as a definite possibility. Not to mention there will be
+a bunch more [POTA] parks that I won't be able to get to activate this trip, so I have to go back!
+
+I did get an email back from [URCA] that my application is being processed and I'd previously been
+informed it could take 3-4 weeks so I'm patiently awaiting that license still. I have not yet heard
+back from my application submission to [SMA] of Jamaica but I intend to follow up on it next week.
+From what I've been able to find it seems that I won't be issued a new call sign like in the Cayman
+Islands but authorized to operate using the country prefix added to my existing FCC call sign. I
+will be able to confirm this once I get official authorization back, so I'll have to add that to a
+follow-up post.
+
+I've been in touch with [ZF1PB] from [CARS], who was wonderful in helping with my planning prep and
+I'm looking forward to actually getting to meet up with while on the island. I have also reached out
+to [JARA] to try and see if I can't make contact with some hams in Jamaica that might want to get
+together as well.
+
+When I initially started planning for this I did only have my General class license, but while
+volunteering as Security Assistant Chairman for Orlando HamCation I was able to sit and pass my
+Amateur Extra class license. With my Extra license I now can fully make use of [CEPT] as not all
+countries have implemented the [CEPT] Novice class license which General falls under, sorry to those
+with only Technician class as [CEPT] only covers General and above. The [MSC] Seashore, along with
+most [MSC] cruise ships, is flagged under Malta which is a country that has implemented [CEPT]
+license but not the [CEPT] Novice class. So now I'm technically able to operate from the ship while
+in international waters provided I had permission from the Ship's Master. That is however not part
+of my plan so I'm not even trying to pursue that avenue. 
+
+The plan is to take my radio equipment with me and go perform [POTA] activations while ashore in port
+on the islands I've gotten permission to operate. If successfully I'll be able to add three more [POTA] DXCC entities and at least three more new parks themselves. I have found parks that are not
+too far from the cruise terminal that I should be able to get to, set up, activate and get back
+aboard during the port of call hours. At least two of the parks appear to be about a 10-20 minute
+walk from the terminal, while another will likely mean needing to grab a taxi or other local
+transportation.
+
+I plan to take my typical [POTA] kit which includes my hard-shell case that holds my [FT-991A] and [BLF-1220A] along with my laptop bag to carry my [Yoga 11e], [AA-35 Zoom], [GRA-7350T], [GRA-ULT01],
+and my coil of coax. This has been field tested during Winter Field Day and several local [POTA]
+activations so far and is easily enough to transport. While I'd like to have my additional bag of
+tools and supplies I have to consider I have to get it all in and out in one trip. While the saying
+"two is one and one is none" with regards to antenna preparedness, I only have the one that is
+portable enough for this trip. I would love to take my PREDator antenna but the fiberglass rods to
+elevate the radials would definitely be a potential issue getting aboard the cruise ship. Possibly
+there may be a trip to the islands while not aboard a cruise to stay for a few days and then I would
+bring it along or even have it shipped over ahead of my arrival.
+
+So for now, I've done what I can and the wait is on. After getting my license from [OfReg][OFREG], I
+did go and get it setup on [QRZ] and [LotW] with a call sign certificate and setup the station in
+TQSL so I'll be ready to upload my logs once I'm back online. My logs will likely not be uploaded
+until we're back home as I don't typically get the WiFi aboard the cruise as the point is to actually
+disconnect from work and the internet while on vacation. The wife tolerated the wedding trip
+including me fixing a server remotely from the hotel business center all those years ago, I'm not
+going to press my luck! I will also be trying to take a nice photo from each park location to make
+a custom electronic QSL card that I'll email out when logs are uploaded.
+
+Still yet more to come as the trip approaches, so stay tuned.
+
+[MSC]: https://www.msccruisesusa.com/ "MSC Cruises"
+[POTA]: https://pota.app/ "Parks on the Air"
+[ZF1PB]: https://www.qrz.com/db/ZF1PB "ZF1PB: Phil Bodden"
+[CARS]: https://caymanhams.org/ "Cayman Amateur Radio Society"
+[JARA]: https://www.jamaicaham.org/ "The Jamaica Amateur Radio Association"
+[OFREG]: https://www.ofreg.ky/ "Utility Regulation and Competition Office of the Cayman Islands"
+[URCA]: https://www.urcabahamas.bs/ "Utilities Regulation & Competition Authority"
+[SMA]: https://www.sma.gov.jm/ "Spectrum Management Authority"
+[CEPT]: https://www.arrl.org/cept "European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations"
+[IARP]: https://www.arrl.org/iarp "International Amateur Radio Permit"
+[FT-991A]: https://www.yaesu.com/indexVS.cfm?cmd=DisplayProducts&ProdCatID=102&encProdID=490C4A71118AD0F4E825E89D821B73BB "Yaesu FT-991A"
+[AA-35 Zoom]: https://rigexpert.com/products/antenna-analyzers/aa-35-zoom/ "RigExpert AA-35 Zoom Antenna Analyzer"
+[LotW]: https://lotw.arrl.org/lotwuser/default "ARRL's Logbook of the World"
+[QRZ]: https://logbook.qrz.com/ "Logbook by QRZ.com"
+[GRA-7350T]: https://www.gabilradio.com/gra-7350t "GRA-7350T telescopic car antenna"
+[GRA-ULT01]: https://www.gabilradio.com/gra-ult01-mk3eng "GRA-ULT01 MK3 Lightweight Portable Antenna Mast Mount Tripod Tower"
+[Yoga 11e]: https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad11e/thinkpad-yoga-11e-(5th-gen)/20lms09v00 "Lenova Thinkpad Yoga 11e (5th Gen)"
+[BLF-1220A]: https://www.bioennopower.com/products/12v-20ah-lfp-battery-pvc-blf-1220a "Bioenno Power 12V 20Ah LFP Battery"

content/blog/two-favorite-things/index.md

@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ featured: true
 pinned: false
 # comments: false
 series:
- - Cruising
+  - Cruising
 categories:
   - Travel
 tags: