Sure was nice to sleep in a bit later this morning. Always like the time change that rolls us back one hour. For some reason, it has been impossible to get to sleep before midnight. We are still not completely settled yet. Today was a good time to hang some more wall hooks for small stuff. Speaking of these hooks, we found it important to bring a small bottle of alcohol and cotton balls to wipe down the wall first. Noticing that the room stewards wipe the walls down with an oily cloth, we suspected that the hooks would not stick well. The alcohol does the trick. Here is another little hint: we save a few of the small lotion bottles to bring small amounts of dish wash soap, alcohol, and even pre-stain soak. They are durable and never leak.
The late morning was the best time to spend at the Seaview Pool today. It was warm, but there was a breeze blowing across the deck. We had the added pleasure of watching dozens of boobys and a few frigates as they soared overhead, and dove for fish. Don't know why these birds like to drift over the aft deck, but it sure makes one nervous while relaxing on the lounges. Makes us like targets. The deck waiters have been bringing us glasses of lemon and cucumber ice water, compliments of Roger and Twinkle. Roger, the beverage manager, said he is the "boss", and he will take care of us. So far he has done a great job.
We had a late lunch of salads and a split sandwich before settling in to work on photos from yesterday. It is such a fun hobby, but very time-consuming….like three hours. While the computer expert worked on that, one of us worked on making notes on all of the changes we have spotted so far on this trip. As we may have stated already, some of these are money-saving efforts on the company's part, while other things are a good idea. Thought we would address these things a few at a time in no particular order. If we have already addressed these, then bear with us since we may repeat some.
The daily newsletter has been simplified. Missing on the front page is the sunrise and sunset times. It was near impossible to get it right on our last voyage, so it has been eliminated. The best place to find this info is on the TV on channel 40.
The "good evening" cards that were left on the bed every evening are no longer given. However, last night we did have the reminder to turn the clocks back.
We thought the money conversion card that has been so helpful had been stopped, but we discovered that our deck did not receive them in Santa Marta. How rude, they must have run out of them. Tonight, we had one card for tomorrow's port in Costa Rica. One card for the two of us is better than no card at all.
Think we already covered the elimination of the true Sunday brunch, as well as the absence of the gala night chair covers. Also, no more dinnertime BBQ's or lunchtime Mongolian cookouts. The folks we have talked to are not happy about that, as it was a break from routine. Have to admit, it was one heck of a mess during and after the events.
More info to follow tomorrow.
Dinnertime found everyone present at the table. Barb and the two of us stopped briefly to chat with Susie and Woody, who we have not seen since last Wednesday. Gosh, we have been onboard for a week already. Funny that our paths have not crossed, since we must be doing totally different activities. We promised to hunt each other down to catch up with several years of news.
We tried different entrees…….one BBQ chicken salad, and one spaghetti with duck. Sure was not what the description sounded like. This is where we miss the display of entrees in the Lido at night. If we had seen the spaghetti /duck plate, one of us would not have ordered it. Oh well, they all can't be a winner. There was room for strawberry yogurt and a peach crisp with vanilla ice cream. Slam, our waiter, still brought jello for Martha and me, and one extra for the table. Kind of turning into a joke now, but we are happy.
We lingered after everyone left, chatting with Maureen and Jim. Seems they have been on many cruises as well, and remembered us from previous world trips. We are learning a lot about Vancouver and Canada, because that's where they are from.
Tomorrow, we will be in Costa Rica.
Bill & Mary Ann
