After the Zuiderdam left Vancouver yesterday, we passed Victoria, another wonderful place to stop (not on this trip, sadly). The Captain said that the Canadian pilot got off at midnight, then we sailed the Strait of Juan de Fuca on the way to the open waters of the Pacific Ocean. It was there, that we started to feel the motion of the ocean, as the ship began to rock and roll…..not bad, just noticeable. It stayed that way all day. But the temperature eventually improved when the clouds broke up, revealing the sun and partly blue skies. We are going to miss viewing the scenery of the Inside Passage, since all we see now is water everywhere we look.
At the Pinnacle Grill this morning, we had a window table waiting for us, but by 8:06 am, all of the window seats and tables for two were occupied. This is mostly a new group of guests who know it is first come, first served here.
Since we turned in early last night, we worked on the blog this morning. Before noon, we took our mile walk on the promenade deck, where we heard people calling…..hey you two. Turned out to be fellow world cruise friends Sandy and Jack. So nice to see them, we all agreed it was like finding family onboard. We shall have to catch up with ship and people news, as they were on their way to the very first team trivia event at noon. They were meeting two friends, and creating their team for the game. We used to play on the longer voyages, but in time it became a blood sport, and we quit. We are sure to recognize more familiar faces when the ship takes on the passengers in San Diego. Among them will be Denise and Howie, great friends from home and other cruises. You may know them from Cruise Critic as dchip. And they are as much fun as you might have expected.
We ended up with room service lunch at 2pm. Soups, salad, and a shared sandwich. And don't forget the apples and cookies. Their salads from room service are made quite nicely, and our orders have been complete. They have a good team working that venue, and we have not had a wait beyond 30 minutes.
Did we mention the mandatory signs are up for mask wearing? For some reason. We did not receive a printed notice about this, but everyone we have seen so far, is wearing them. We assume that both public decks 2 and 3 require masking, as well as the Mainstage and casino. We bet this will last until we reach Hawaii….a sign that this virus is not over yet, darn.
The When and Where pamphlet has changed to The Daily Program. No longer a tri-fold paper, it is a single fold brochure with a little more detail. There are now symbols indicating if an event is hosted and also the duration of that event. These symbols are faces of a clock with 30, 45, and 60 minute time slots. Every activity that has a charge attached is labeled "Promotion". The special presentations, performances, and the Music Walk are listed largely on one page…..easy to locate. The Dining options are listed on the back page as well as Drinks and Services. We find it much better than the old format.
Dinner was in the dining room, which we found not crowded once again. These days the majority of folks dine early, many of those in the Lido. Of course, for these five days, we are down to 1000 guests. When we get to San Diego, and the real start of the Tales of the South Pacific, we will lose 400 passengers, and gain 1050 more or less.
We were happy campers to see spring rolls on the menu as appetizers. One of us could make a complete meal of these. We added Caesar salads, and one cod entrée and a rigatoni dish. Desserts were a very dark chocolatey torte (way too sweet) with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream, and one blueberry frozen yogurt.
And another new addition is having a Latin crooner, Daniel Bouchet, entertain in the Mainstage this evening. We did not have that option on the 7 day cruises.
Another nice day at sea is expected tomorrow, and according to Captain Friso, the swells should be subsiding.
Bill & Mary Ann
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