We woke up to a much warmer day this morning, as the ship headed north-westtowards the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. For much of the afternoon, our veranda was in the hot sun. Could have fried an egg on the chaise lounge in fact. We did relax out there, but kept it at a minimum.
Running into friends Susie and Woody in the Orange Club, we promised to go early to this morning's Mariner Society Recognition Event. That way we would have time to visit with them. Sadly to say, they were supposed to be on this ship for two months, but had to cancel due to health reasons. We have been friends and tablemates for many world cruises ever since 2007, so when they announced their Sunday departure, we were all sad. Since they are sailing with family members, they have a table for eight right now. The plan was to switch to a table for five when Barb comes onboard this coming Sunday. Oh well, life happens, and it is not always the way we expect it. And we always feel that things happen for a reason, making it easier to accept it.
One other President's Club member had fallen in her room last night, and broke her wrist. She had planned on boarding the Rotterdam Sunday, but now has to have surgery on her wrist. You just never know what is around the corner, do we? We wished her well.
So at 11am, we congregated in the Ocean Bar for the event where a few members received their medallions. Once again, Captain Noel gave a nice speech, admitting he had to make it different from a week ago, because there were several of us that had been on last week. He was quite pleased that we had all trusted HAL enough to be traveling again, helping him and his staff to keep their jobs. To the best of his ability, he promised to keep us all safe.
Today on the news, we heard that some cruise ships have reported a higher Covid level, and the CDC was recommending folks not to cruise. If there is a problem on this ship, we have not heard about it at all. Never before have we witnessed so much cleaning and sanitizing happening inside and outside. Most all of the passengers wear their masks, with a few exceptions of the younger crowd. Every crew member wears the R95 masks....some with a regular mask under that. So we figure that is how the Captain is keeping us all safe as humanly possible.
Anyway, we all got a turn getting our photos taken with the Captain and Hotel Manager, and once again, the photo showed up in our mail slot. The four of us spent some time with Jonah, the Event Planner, who answered more of our questions. Then we went to Susie & Woody's handicap room on deck eight. We believe it is the same category as our room, but much larger to accommodate his electric scooter. Too bad they will not be staying long enough to really enjoy it.
Our biggest job of the day was picking up the aluminum water bottle in the Photo Shop we had custom-made yesterday. That brings up the subject of plastic water bottles. Knowing we read the restrictions somewhere, we found the info on page 11 of our boarding pass and contract. Under Alcohol Policy, it is written that plastic water bottles are not allowed. It was
not explained any further here, but you can go to their complete alcohol policy online at hollandamerica.com or in the online Know Before You Go section. One thing for sure is that the disposable plastic water bottles are no longer sold on the ship, but you can buy a 16 oz. aluminum bottle for
$4.50 plus 18% gratuity. You can re-use the aluminum water bottle if the cap is put on properly. Or else, it leaks.
Lunch included a stop at the pasta bar. One of us ordered linguini with marinara and Bolognese sauces topped with shredded mozzarella cheese. A homemade bun made the dish perfect. It is nice that we still have many food choices after 2pm. We have yet to go to the main dining room for lunch. In fact, we may have mentioned this already, but on port days, there is no lunch served in the dining room, Orange Club, or the Pinnacle Grill.
It may have been a good day to go to the pool, but we have not done that yet on these trips. Today we would have burned for sure, and the last time we walked to the Seaview Pool after lunch, there was very little space left. And we are still a little afraid of crowded spaces with unmasked folks. We do have another Covid test coming up Saturday, we think.
Dinner was back in the main dining room, where we found out that on the next cruise beginning January 2nd, the upper dining level will be closed. There will be only 1000 guests onboard, a drop of 600 compared to this 7 day trip. So we agreed to moving downstairs to a round table for six for the following 10 or 11 days. There will be only three of us (unless Barb cancels), then we will have room for guests if we wish. With the new scare of Covid being on cruise ships hitting the news, there may be some last minute cancellations. Nobody knows yet.
In our mail slot, we did have a map of Cozumel, which is a good sign that we will be going there, and will be allowed off of the ship. Will let you all know.
Bill & Mary Ann
