Report # 116 Day at Sea Tuesday - April 12, 2022 Mostly overcast & much cooler 78 Degrees

Well, our first day at sea after leaving the mighty Panama Canal, turned out be to much more comfortable.  Gone was the high humidity and heat to match.  And that was fine with us. 

With the time change, there must have been a dozen suite guests lined up outside the Pinnacle Grill for breakfast this morning.  We suppose the staff opened the doors for them, because when we went down shortly after 8am, our usual window table was occupied.  Not a problem, as there were plenty of tables left. 

We had lots to keep us busy today, with the thousands of photos and research, it would take much of the day to finish.  Off and on, we took breaks for lunch, which happened to in the Lido for salads and another great pizza.  We have to make up for lost "pizza" time while on the N. Statendam.   Have to admit we do miss the grilled ham & cheese sandwiches with those excellent fries at the Grand Dutch Café.  This class of ships do not have that venue.  We did read somewhere that the Zuiderdam will be adding that café to their ship sometime prior to the world cruise in '23.  Sure hope that is correct. 

Spending some relaxing time on the veranda, we kept an eye out for sea turtles or dolphins, but they never appeared.  Maybe tomorrow, when we get closer to Costa Rica.  We did have a large number of brown boobys following the ship, diving for flying fish.  Always fun to witness.

Not much on the dining room menu looked good to us, so we made reservations in the Tamarind at 8pm this evening.  Starters were spring rolls and tempura shrimp.  Following that, we had one ramen soup and one Thai beef salad.  One of us ordered the wasabi crusted tenderloin and the other had the Mongolian lamb chops.  Every bite was excellent, leaving no room for dessert.  We had to stifle a laugh when the young waitress asked how we would like to pay for our meal.  We did not know there were choices, other than if we each had separate shipboard accounts.  Some couples do keep their expenses separate.  Well, we explained that we were President's Club members, and the dinner was technically on them. To tell the truth, we are not certain she knew the term "President's Club".   She had not been advised, nor had their managers.  Within seconds, the head manager came over and apologized for the slip up.  He reassured us the dinner was compensated properly.  Then our waitress also apologized, but it wasn't her fault.  Funny that the Pinnacle Grill staff knew our status, but then we dine in  that venue daily.

We watched an older movie in our room, Big, with Tom Hanks.   Gosh he sure was young in that one.  Before dinner, we watched The Princess Bride, a comedy with many good actors.   

Tomorrow's port is Puntarenas, and not Puerto Caldera as the itinerary indicated.  Good thing, since Puerto Caldera is a commercial port and nothing is there except buses and taxis.

Bill & Mary Ann

NO Pictures