We did not think it could get hotter, but today’s predicted temperature of 75 degrees was way off. Right now, at 3pm, it is 86 degrees (in the shade) with 91% humidity. Making it feel even hotter, the wind is clocking in at 6 knots. Barely nothing. But then, we recall this is Darwin heat this time of year. Unreal.
Going to breakfast in the dining room is always fun. Of course, we always have customized meals, compliments of our waiters, which are always good. But the fellows are better entertainers than the nightly shows. We are enjoying getting to know them better, as they like to share some aspects of their lives onboard the ship, as well as at their homes. One of those aspects was apparent today when we spotted many of the guys with new haircuts. Gan explained how their ”barbershop” worked in the crew quarters. Each section of their hallway has one guy that has the talent for cutting hair. And they take turns opening up shop to give their friends $5 haircuts. Gan says it is territorial, and each group respects those boundaries. Most all of the guys get the same type cut, with the sides and backs almost shaved, leaving the top a bit longer to put in the gel. Feri, our assistant waiter, says the guys all look like pineapples! We all laughed with his remark, except for his friends, who jokingly chased him with their knives and forks. Anyway, the fellows are getting ready to look “cool” for their families as we approach their homeland of Indonesia.
Wonder why the promenade deck was mostly empty this morning? Must have something to do with the heat. Two times around the deck, and everyone is soaked through and through. It’s probably worse for the workers who have to wear overalls while scraping and painting. We asked Caspar, our dinner guest last night, about how many independent contractors were working onboard the ship right now. His answer surprised us when he stated about 30 guys are working, but mostly behind the scenes. Guess it takes more work than one would expect to keep these ships operational. And it is no surprise that the ships routinely need dry docking to get the maximum repairs done all at once. This one is due for a dry docking after the 2020 grand voyage we understand.
While many folks were attending talks in the air-conditioned lounges, we went to the Seaview Pool with no water. Two workers under the direction of an officer, were fixing the places where the leaking was suspected. If it is a hit-or-miss thing, then this might take a while. We sure hope not. Since it was so hot out there, we left an hour earlier. Once we finished our quart jugs of ice and Crystal Lite, we were out of there. Even friends, Bill & Leta, who visit us back there often, only stayed 15 minutes. There have been a few times that the sunburn appeared after a short time. Today would have been one of those days.
Lunch was a light one in the Lido with a new salad server behind the counter. The regular fellow went home, and he has been replaced with one of the younger waiters, who happens to serve coffee in the dining room at breakfast. He proudly told us that he was recently promoted to salad server, and he looked forward to seeing us there soon. Well that was today, and he was so happy to do his job. There sure are a bunch of nice fellows (and gals too) in this crew.
Today there was a notice on the front page of the daily newsletter regarding our stop in Komodo Island. It stated that the entrance to Komodo Island would be restricted to only those who were on a pre-arranged tours, either through Shore Excursions, or privately. The remainder of the guests would be denied leaving the ship. We already knew this from previous visits, but unless we missed something, this is the first warning we have read. It wasn’t so long ago that everyone was allowed to tender over to the island, and pay a local guide a fair amount, like $25, for a 2 hour tour to see the dragons. On the way back to the tender landing, people had the chance to purchase souvenirs under the tents. Now it runs about $96 per person to do the same thing. So far, we are leaning towards staying on the ship, but who knows….we may change our minds.
We happened to be across from the Ocean Bar when another session of Special Edition Sip & Savor or wine with appetizers was held in the Crystal Terrace, deck 5 atrium. The draw is the price of $5 for a glass of wine, which normally runs $9. Today, the entire area was full of sippers and tasters. They have created a winner here.
The sun set around 7pm, so we went to deck six forward to get some photos. Not promising to be a great one, it slowly developed into a pretty nice one. We had just enough time to make it to dinner on time. Tonight there was meatloaf on the menu. Even though it is not considered fancy cuisine, it sure tasted good for a change. So did the everyday chicken noodle soup. The shaved beef salad was refreshing on such a hot day, and sharing a pumpkin muffin with chocolate sauce was even better.
There was a variety show with comedian Jim Short and musician David Meyer. With all the sun and heat today, we decided to turn in early, since tomorrow will probably be another hot one in Darwin.
Bill & Mary Ann
Wednesday, March 13, 2019
Report # 54 Day at Sea March 13, 2019 Wednesday Partly sunny & 75 degrees
