Subject: Report # 123 Sailing Towards Cartagena, Colombia May 2, 2016 Monday Partly cloudy & 84 degrees 23 Pictures
Our first day at sea of this re-positioning voyage was a busy one. Only a few things were different from the previous grand voyage, such as no arts and crafts, watercolor classes, or dance lessons. What still is available are bridge lessons (regular or duplicate), casino lessons, the digital workshop, and many free fitness classes. Cruise Director Gene's fun games are still happening. And trivia has two sessions….one at 1pm, and the second, a genius level follows at 1:30pm. We KNOW Maureen, our buddy, will be at every genius game, since she really is one, most of the time.
One other thing we happened to notice was that Happy Hour was added yesterday at 4 to 5pm and 6 to 7pm in the Ocean Bar and Crows Nest. In addition, the Crows Nest had the 9 to 10pm Happy Hour also. Today, Happy Hour happened at 4 to 5pm in the Ocean Bar and Crows Nest, better than nowhere, right?
Our day began with a delightful breakfast, but with different waiters. We have been able to stay at our usual breakfast and lunch table (179), although it was never assigned as such. Truthfully, there are always many tables empty in the dining room for these meals, it has been no problem for us to stay in one place. The plus side of this is that the waiters have taken the time to get to know us and what we order. If possible, they will save some berries and Greek yogurt for us every day. Yitno, our favorite "muffin man", sees to it we have at least one blueberry muffin with some berries in it. He no longer plays his special song….maybe someone complained? Who knows?
The lower promenade deck was full of new guests, staking out their favorite teak lounges, no doubt. We sure miss our friends Shirley and Jack, who set up their lounges in the same spot every sea day, regardless of the weather. We think that most everyone has come from a place in the world where the cold weather is still hanging in there, such as in Canada. Even the aft deck was full of people that will be feeling the burn tonight. Today the weather was warm, humid, and getting hotter the further south we drop. By the way, this afternoon, found the Amsterdam sailing past the southern side of Cuba……very much in the news today, as a cruise ship in the Carnival family is on their way there today for the first time in many years. We happened to turn on the TV news channel to see Arnold Donald, the CEO, who was recently on this ship back in Australia. Also fun to say that we dined with him and his wife Hazel, along with 20 other guests and CEO's in the Kings Room during that time. Small world………..
One of us had an appointment for a trim with the cute Japanese hairdresser in the Spa this morning. She seemed delighted to get her hands into long hair, although she had to almost sit on the floor to trim it. She did an excellent job and only charged $15 plus gratuity. In addition, she conditioned it with a kerotine oil, then proceeded to braid and twist it for a formal look, adding pins to keep it together in a bun. Yes, all that for a small fee…….how often does that happen on a cruise ship? Like, never.
Other interesting activities today were talks in the Queens Lounge with Nyron, the shore ex manager, a new guest speaker, Valerie Mock, and Location Guide, Wallis Hutton. Nyron gave valuable tour info, while Valerie spoke about the Spanish explorers of the Americas. Wallis talked about things to do and see in Cartagena, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua. Sure hope our stop in Costa Rica is at Puntarenas and not Puerto Caldera. We do know from past trips, that if Captain Fred can get into Puntarenas, he will do it.
While we enjoyed an excellent lunch of a cheeseburger and pork piccata with spaghetti in the dining room, a live champagne art auction took place in the Ocean Bar. The sales continued, making us realize that we only had one week of this promotion during the entire world cruise. That was plenty for most all of us. We think the better activity of the day was learning how to make those addictive Panama Canal rolls that we will be getting soon, a very special treat no matter what they call them.
Now that the world cruise is over, we received the online surveys to fill out. While inquiring about some other things at the front desk, we learned that 30 minutes had been added to our account. That would barely be enough for one questionnaire. Since two surveys needed to be completed, an additional 30 minutes was added. We did add several responses to direct questions, so the first survey took 40 minutes. This is the first time that we were given extra minutes to complete the surveys, so we cannot complain.
Tonight is the first Gala evening, so we set off to check out what people were wearing. Sitting at one of our favorite spots on deck five across from the Ocean Bar, we noticed there was very little difference with the formal wear the folks had on tonight as compared to the grand voyage. In fact, these passengers have dressed even better. Many more were stopping at the photographer's lair to have portraits taken. Some of the camera people are new, which is a good thing. Sometimes they can be intrusive, especially during dinnertime.
Passing through the Casino, we noticed that it was busier than normal. People can smoke in here, so most of the slot machines were being played by smokers. That confirms our suspicions that on shorter cruises, people participate in everything. That includes shopping in the stores, taking advantage of spa treatments, and buying shore excursions. All good for the company.
Checking out the entertainers in the lounges, we found the Neptunes were in the Ocean Bar, but the group was different from the previous cruise. The Crows Nest has a fellow guitarist named Brian, who drew a good-sized crowd, while the new Piano Bar entertainer, Don, packed the room with a tribute to Neil Diamond.
The sunset was at 6:20pm, and we made it to deck nine minutes before that time. This was the nicest sunset we have seen in a month. On the horizon, we could see the blackest rain clouds ever. We did not hang around long enough to find out. Don't think the Captain mentioned the forecast in his talk today.
Dinner was good with a Gala menu, which was limited to three choices per course. We had a salad, a soup, appetizers of shrimp, and rack of lamb with a baked potato. Since the lamb was very small in size, the headwaiter brought over another helping for one of us. One plate had the lamb, but no gravy. Our headwaiter quickly remedied that with a gravy boat full. Dessert was a chocolate soufflé, and a meringue-cake combination with a scoop of ice cream….all no sugar added (whatever that means). We suspect there is sugar in all of the dessert, but maybe not as much.
The show in the Queens Lounge was Jazz Blues and Rock and Roll, performed by the Amsterdam's singers and dancers. Their show was a mix of classic dances, modern and ballet, along with great music from rock and roll heroes. The jazz and blues showcased the talents of this group.
Looking forward to another day at sea tomorrow as we head towards Cartagena, Colombia. By the way, thanks for all of your kind comments on the blog. Means a lot knowing they are being read. Elaine – cannot imagine being on the mega RCI ships…what an experience. All the packages for the grand voyages will be online or sent to you in the Know Before You Go booklet. Barbara and Orlin – we shall see you both on next year's world cruise. Be here before you know it.
Bill & Mary Ann
A sunset to enjoy………………
