Well, the day has come where we have to wrap it up, and be ready to leave the ship tomorrow morning. After breakfast, we stopped at the front desk to pick up the final copy of our shipboard account. Unlike the old days, these statements are not sent to the rooms anymore. More and more, everything is on your cell phone app or on the computer. We still prefer the paper trail.
We finished most of the packing before the Captain came on with his daily update. The Zaandam is very far from Nuku Hiva now, and we are only 208 nautical miles away from San Diego. The current speed is 15 knots, which should get us to the harbor by 5:30am where they pick up the pilot. We should be docked by 6:30am and cleared by 7am. And the weather is expected to be sunny and warm.
Captain Smit admitted that today happens to be the roughest one of the whole trip with those deep and long sea swells of 3 to 4 meters. The force 4 winds are coming from the north and are chilly, even though the temperature is 63 degrees. The wind chill drops that a lot. It is mostly sunny with very few clouds. The sunset will be 5pm and the sunrise 6:23am.
We received our disembarkation envelope with 4 luggage tags to fill out and attach to each piece before putting them out in the hall later. We discovered our flight number had changed and the time was upped by 10 minutes. The good thing is that we can get off anytime between 8 and 9:30am . Breakfast will be in the Pinnacle Grill, but starting at 6:30am. We will be there, so we can leave for the airport early. What we like about San Diego, is that the airport is very close with a short ride in a taxi.
The usual activities took place today with the addition of an ice cream social in the Lido pool area. That is at the same time as our lunch, and we always forget to go. Starting tomorrow, there will be no desserts at home. These days, we find we don't need the extra calories.
Dinnertime was fun as they had the farewell parade with the head chef, head waiters, cooks, and wait staff winding through both decks of the dining room. Something went wrong with their music, so head waiter, Iggy had to sing the farewell song as the waiters played their trays for music. With the guest clapping, it turned out better. Everyone showed their appreciation to the crew as they marched by each table.
So for dinner, one of us ordered a bowl of chicken noodle soup (last chance), a shrimp cocktail, and a crispy Thai spring roll. One of us that likes rice had the sweet and sour shrimp, and the other one of us ordered a delicious and tender plate of BBQ ribs. Desserts were vanilla ice cream and watermelon sorbet. We thanked both of our excellent waiters and let them know we wish we see them again. Sarif said to stay healthy, and we wished him the same.
The entertainer this evening was John Milligan, a singer and pianist with renditions from popular artists like Sinatra, Dylon, Adele and Carole King to name a few. And finally, there was a Wajang movie, "Devotion" at 8:30pm. As for us, we had a date to finish the last touches of the luggage and get it out in the hall before 11pm. We did receive the stickers for our "Journeys" booklet in our mail slot, which showed we have traveled a total of 13,962 miles since September 25th to November 20th.
It has been a pleasure having you all reading our "journal". The cruise has gone by so fast, but we do plan on joining the Zuiderdam for her Grand World Voyage in early January 2025. So we will be back………….
Bill & Mary Ann
