It was so nice to have a day at sea to rest up from yesterday's marathon adventure. The skies were mostly cloudy, but when that sun came out, it was strong. From here on throughout the rest of the South Pacific, we need to remember how easy it is to sunburn. Another area of concern with the sun's rays is anywhere around the Equator. We did cross the magic line back in the Ecuador area, but we did not celebrate the occasion. We will however, have that King Neptune ceremony towards the end of this voyage.
Many classes took place today, as they have been since the beginning of the cruise. We are certain much can be learned from the culinary arts demos, Tahitian crafts, tai chi, photo editing, creating interesting videos that do not bore your guests, and learning how to samba without crushing your partner's toes.
Cruise director, Gene, announced that all the ladies playing in the casino at 8pm would receive a free glass of champagne. He added that anyone wearing a dress would qualify, however, he hoped that would not entice any of the fellows to wear one. Be careful what you say, Gene, because anything is possible. The casino is one place that we never participate. Gambling has never been an appealing passtime for us, so we can live without it.
We were personally invited to attend an exclusive event in the Merabella Boutique from 7 to 8pm. In fact, everyone on the ship was personally invited. The official unveiling of the collection of Tara pearls should attract some customers. On a previous trip, we did buy some gorgeous South Sea pearls from the shop onboard. The main reason for the extravagant purchase was to use a significant shipboard credit. If we did not spend it, we would have forfeited the money. In other words, use it, or lose it. And since we did not exceed our customs limit, we did not have to pay extra taxes on the necklace. A win/win.
The pool area was fairly empty this afternoon. We believe the taped Hawaiian music has driven some folks out of there. No we are not heading for Hawaii, so some Tahitian music may be approriate. There was a Tahitian music class at 2pm where you could learn to blow a conch shell again or play the ukulele. That was in the Crows Nest, so no student would drive other passengers crazy. Around 2:30pm, the sun disappeared under a black cloud, and the rain started. It looked like it would be brief, but most all the sunbathers picked up their stuff and left the area, including us. Good time to have a bite to eat, and work on yesterday's photos.
Have we mentioned that the internet hotspot devices have been increased all over ship? We happen to have a new one right outside our door, and it really does give us a good signal most times. Propping open the door seems to give us a boosted signal. For the last week, we have been emailing right from our cabin, without having to go to a public area to go online. The downside is that we have not seen a lot of the regulars we normally see and chat with on deck five near the Ocean Bar.
Dinner was great tonight with our choice of the veal cordon bleu plate. Sometimes we wonder if the chicken cordon bleu is a frozen pre-made product, as they all look suspiciously the same. Our entrees appeared to be put together from scratch tonight, cooked crispy and tenderly moist. The nice thing is that all of the courses are conservative, and you do not go away from the table stuffed to the gills. There were two birthdays celebrated near us, so we all joined in on the special birthday song, sang by the waiters. Looks like the birthday cake is the 5 inch x 5 inch dense brownie covered with whipped cream. Hardly enough to pass around a table fo eight. We have requested a regular size white cake with lemon filling, and they said it would be done. Hope they remember in two days from now.
And not by surprise, the clocks went back one more hour this evening.
One more lovely day at sea, and we should be in the vicinity of Pitcairn Island, another small dot on the map in the middle of nowhere. But what history surrounds it!
