We had a different type of sea day, because we needed to have a ceremony to insure safe passage for our vessel and the officers, crew, and her passengers. Of course, we are talking about the King Neptune Ceremony, which was held in the Lido Pool at 10am this morning. Guess it will count as we will not physically cross the magic line until later this evening.
Anyway, an average amount of passengers showed up, taking the seats around the pool. We always go directly to deck nine, where we can get the best over-all shots of the happenings down below. Considering the heat of the day, many folks who are already “shellbacks”, or frequent sailors, passed on the show, or like us, stayed for only part of it. We may have stayed longer, but a rude man was stepping on our heels trying to get photos for himself. Funny, there was room at the railing, but he must have thought we had the best spot. Go figure…..
In the old days, a willing group of passengers were the prisoners to be slimed and dunked. These days, with the danger of accidents happening, only crew members participate in the festivities. And besides, who else really wants to kiss that big old ugly fish? When we got back to our room later in the afternoon, we had nice certificates affirming that we are truly initiated into the Royal and Ancient Order of Shellbacks, which gives us all freedom evermore to cross the Equator. Yes, we are good forever.
Despite the winds blowing a force 5 on the Beaufort scale, we went to the Seaview pool, and relaxed in the warm sun. It has been a while since we were back here, and with two days in port coming up, it was a good day for the pool time. Many passengers we have not seen around the ship were coming to the back and taking pictures. We suspect these folks may be leaving in Singapore. Not sure of how many are going, but this will be the halfway mark, and the end for some.
We discovered that our assistant room steward was headed home in Singapore. His contract is up, and he will have a 4 month break. Then our head room steward will be leaving in Amsterdam. This will be the first grand voyage that we have lost both of our guys. Once again, in the old days, the majority of the crew began the world cruise at the beginning, and stayed until it ended or beyond. Now they are required to leave exactly the day their time is up.
Today we were required to pick up our passports at the Explorer’s Lounge between 1 and 3 pm for our stop in Singapore tomorrow. The landing cards we signed will also have to be taken along to be checked by the Immigrations Officials on shore. We did not see that notice in the newsletter until 3pm, so we were able to get the passports at the front desk. Actually, it was easier. Once we come back to the ship on day two, we will turn these back in for the onward ports. And while we were there, we bought enough Singapore dollars to purchase our MRT tickets for two days.
Lunch was a light one in the Lido, because we had reservations in the Pinnacle Grill at 8pm. We did take the time to watch the sunset, in hopes it would be great. But with no high clouds in the sky, there was little color. The best thing was we always seem to meet up with Susie and Eddie, who also film every sun set that happens. Sure enough, they popped out at 7pm, and watched until they realized it was not going to be super special. Visiting with them was special anyway.
So for dinner, we ordered Caesar salad, but asked for the dressing to be made the old way. That is…..using a lot of garlic, tabasco, and a hint of Lea and Perrins sauce. Finally, they got it right. One of us ordered the lamb chops and the other had a seven ounce steak. Both came perfectly cooked with sides of mushrooms, creamy potatoes, and fries to share. Dessert was the best…..the berry sabayon stack. The last two days, we have been deprived of all fresh berries for breakfast, so we knew they were holding out, and saving some for this venue. There happened to be a special dinner happening in the back room, but it did not affect our service.
By the way, we have learned that one of the antennas is broken for the internet service. The second one is still working, but when the ship’s stacks get in the way, it interferes with the signal. Hopefully the parts to fix it will arrive in Singapore tomorrow.
We are SO looking forward to the next two days in Singapore….a most wonderful city to visit.
Bill & Mary Ann
Thursday, March 21, 2019
Report #62 Day at Sea March 21, 2019 Thursday Partly sunny & 82 degrees
