Monday, May 8, 2017

Report #128 Sailing Towards Cabo San Lucas, Mexico May 7, 2017 Sunday Partly cloudy & 81 degrees

Today was sort of repeat of yesterday, only quite a bit cooler.  Usually, as we sail up the coast of Mexico, the temperatures do not drop until after we leave the sheltered bay of Cabo San Lucas.  Even though the predicted temps today were in the eighties, we noticed it never went beyond the high 70's.  Not that we're complaining.  The ship has had problems keeping the air-conditioning on a level temperature, especially in the kitchen area.  We could feel the humid heat billowing out of the escalator exit on deck five in the dining room. The kitchen (galley) has to be a horribly hot area in which to work recently.  So the further north we go, the better it should get for everyone.

 

Many things were happening onboard to keep the guests busy.  One huge activity has got to be the art auction, which has appeared on this cruise.  They were totally not here on the grand voyage.  So they are making up for lost  time.  Passing by the Ocean Bar this morning, we found hundreds of paintings set up for a lightning fast art auction.  Usually when these art shows occur, sparkling wine is served.  That really attracts the crowds. 

 

Barbara H has been giving lectures on Mayan history and Aztec myths and legends.  In between these talks, she has given port talks like always. Then later in the afternoon, she talked all about flags, one of her passions.  Working together with the shore excursion team, she helps entice people to book tours.  From the looks of the number of buses at each port, she has been doing her job well.

 

And of course, there are tanzanite jewelry, diamonds, gemstones, and watch sales.  Spa specials have been advertised daily, as well as shopping ashore lks given by the Port Shopping Ambassador, Jules. 

 

Trivia still happens at 1pm and 7:30pm, and tea at 3pm, but in the dining room, not the Ocean Bar. And movies are being shown in the Wajang, although most all of them are repeats from the world cruise.  One of the best ones we saw was on today…..Lion.  Highly recommended.  And Microsoft classes continue to keep the folks lining up to get a spot in the Digital Workshop. 

 

We had a special invitation to a cocktail party in the Crow's Nest with Captain Fred, Bart, our hotel director, and Erin, the cruise director. Lucky for us, Leslie and Handler were saving seats for us, or perhaps we happened to get there at just the right time.  Once again, we arrived at 7:15pm, and most all of the guests were already there with drinks in hand.  Nice appetizers were served, as were drinks of our choice.  Captain Fred joined us for a while, followed by Peter, the head chef.  He loves to discuss his job of keeping us all happy with the cuisine.  He has done such a good job this trip, that we will all have to shed a few pounds when we get home. 

 

Dinner was in the Pinnacle Grill for us.  We both had the tomato soup, 10 ounce filet mignon steaks, a half baked potato, creamy mashed potatoes, and a bowl of mushrooms to share.  All of the food was excellent, served by the nicest waitresses on the ship.  The new manager, Ary Ketut, has been most gracious also. 

 

That'll Be The Day: A tribute to Buddy Holly and the Crickets was the show for this evening.  The performers were a group of fellows by the name of Rave-Ons.  Sure brought back a lot of memories hearing those tunes from the past.

 

Tomorrow will be our final port of this back-to-back cruise.  And also one of our favorites.  Last year, Cabo was cancelled, so we are looking forward to going back.

 

Bill & Mary Ann