It sure wasn’t a typical sea day, and for sure, it was not partly sunny or 75 degrees. The skies were so dark and dreary at breakfast time, it felt like dinnertime instead. Not going to be a pool day, but then, we have been lucky so far, and we were due for some bad weather. The Staff Captain had predicted exactly what happened during the course of the day.
Several lectures were offered today, and by the looks of the empty outside decks, it was obvious most folks were staying inside today. The new shop folks take advantage of this, and set up sales throughout the ship. Little by little, they are bringing out more merchandise, mostly HAL logo clothing. The line is a much better quality, but also comes at a higher price. In order to get the guests to come into the shops, they have begun having free jewelry cleaning, a beauty workshop, and an alexandrite trunk show.
Today is the end of the first segment, and we heard that about 40 people are getting off, and 50 folks are joining the ship. The shop that sells liquor and cigarettes had a sale on 3 bottles of Crown Royal Northern Harvest. But only those disembarking will be allowed to take these off. We do understand that the cigarettes can be sold to anyone at any time, but the duty free alcohol has to be stored until you go home.
It was also a good day to watch the 91st Academy Awards either in the Wajang Theater or on channel 39 on TV at 2pm. Or you could learn about New Zealand’s unique animals with the guest speaker.
As for us, we had 2 lunches today….one with Barb in the dining room, and the other light lunch at 3pm. Eating dinner at 8pm, and dealing with the rocking and rolling of the ship, we find it beneficial to eat small amounts, but more often. Yes, one of us does get a wee bit seasick. One seasick pill does help. The seas were described as confused and angry according to Captain Jonathon, probably fueled by the 60 knots winds across the decks by 4pm. When we noticed all of the fancy perfume bottles on the floor in the shop, and the lounges at the Seaview Pool stacked and lashed, we knew we were in for some rough sailing.
The cruise stats are in for the 1st segment. We will have traveled 10,761 miles so far, with an average speed of 16.1 knots. The amount of fuel used is an impressive 501,923 gallons, and for some reason, we need to know that 88,920 eggs have been consumed to date. Now that’s amusing.
During dinner this evening, we thought the water glasses and wine would flip over a few times. It’s always important to save the wine, a phrase we have heard multiple times. Most all of the ladies needed help getting to their tables tonight. And we did notice that the room was half full. Really, the most comfortable place to be when it gets rough like this is in your room. One good sign was that we saw the Captain and his wife dining at a window seat where they often sit. Waving as we went by, he did not look the least bit concerned about the motion. If all of us don’t have our “sea legs” by now, then we never will.
There was a variety show with the Sand Man and the ventriloquist, both with brand new shows. By the way, we heard from a reliable source last night, that the singers and dancers normally on all of the cruise ships will not be regulars anymore. They have always been a fun sort of entertainment, but we think the concept has gotten old hat, and it is time for new acts. But that is just our humble opinion.
Looking forward to Auckland tomorrow, and we sure hope the motion of the ocean calms down once we enter into the calmer waters of the bay.
Bill & Mary Ann
Monday, February 25, 2019
Report # 38 Day at Sea February 25, 2019 Monday Partly sunny & 75 degrees
