Well, partly sunny was partly right if you count the early morning hours we did see blue skies and sun. But by the time we went to the dining room for breakfast, it had turned totally cloudy, and actually dark. So much for planning on a day outside in the fresh air and sun.
Walking outside we found it to be extremely windy and damp. It wasn’t long before we were going through showers, making the decks slippery. We did see a few more flying fish and clumps of algae, which has been floating by the ship for several days now. On the leeward side of the promenade deck, the folks with lanai rooms could use their lounges. But on the windward side….forget it. Everything was soaked.
There was a notice in today’s When & Where concerning mobility assistance service in Ft. Lauderdale. The word was out that unless you used such assistance during the Grand World Voyage, then you could not request it. Yes, we have seen this happen more than once for some anxious guests to debark ahead of everyone else. And HAL is wise to the practice.
Sales in the shops continued, as well as lectures, and games. For those who had earned a lot of DAM Dimes, today was the final chance to redeem them for Amazon gift cards. And we suspect the liquor store will be busy today for the folks that like to buy duty free bottles to take home. They advertised up to 20% off of premium brands too.
We met Barb for lunch, and although she has been experiencing a hoarse voice, she felt much better today. Hopefully, the room service chicken noodle soup will help. The center section of the lower dining room was full of singles and solos, the farewell lunch for that group. It has happened many times when singles have kept in touch, and actually became couples later. One thing they all have in common is their love of traveling…..it’s a good start.
By now, the rain was coming down in buckets, and when we went back outside, there was thunder and lightning. It lasted for quite a while.
The special event this afternoon was the Filipino Crew Show at 3pm in the Mainstage. A smaller group than the Indonesian crew, the participants came from guest services, the beverage department, the food servers and prep workers, the Greenhouse Spa, and the Station Band. They had nine acts, which were similar to ones they have done in the past. This time the invitation card had explanations and origins of each act, which was more informative. The audience was huge once again.
We watched another movie, The Mule, with Clint Eastwood….another fairly new flick. It was pretty appropriate to this crowd of guests age-wise. After that, we went to the Ocean Bar to find a newly-boarded solo pianist had taken the place of the Ocean Quartet. His name is Pavel, and we recognized him from previous trips. We bet he will be on for the Panama cruise and beyond. His music tends to be more on the jazz side, and not for dancing.
At 6pm, there was an early show of the Runaround Kids, UK’s group of kids singing tunes from the 50’s and 60’s. Right up our alley. They repeated it at 8pm, because at 9:30pm, there was a Top of the World Party, which we heard was the Ocean Quartet doing something special.
We had dinner plans with friends Bill & Leta, and joined them for the last time this cruise. All of us have so much fun visiting, we barely remember eating dinner. One thing that was unusual was seeing filet mignon on the alternate menu selection. The theme of the meal tonight was Chef’s Grand Farewell Dinner, which really means……cleaning out the pantry. All of the wait staff wore aprons and chef hats.
The best news of the day had to be our friends, who won the $1810 final snowball jackpot bingo (Rosie and Randy…you may know them!) Talk about excited, what a way to end a cruise!!
One more full day at sea, and we will be in Ft.Lauderdale. Some are happy, but most are sad.
Bill & Mary Ann
