Our last day at sea looked promising as we sailed towards San Diego. Although the skies were overcast, the temperature was not cold. As it usually does, the clouds broke up and eventually the sun appeared. This is typical fall weather off the coast of California.
Those of us that are continuing onward from San Diego, were required to perform a mandatory antigen Covid 19 test today from 9 to 9:30am according to a notice delivered yesterday. As we were enjoying watching some dolphins from the Pinnacle Grill at breakfast, Captain Friso came on the speakers, asking us to go to our rooms. We would receive the "complimentary" test kits, with a complete set of instructions on how to "self-test". The printing was so small, even we had a difficult time reading it. Having done this test numerous times while on the N.Statendam, we knew the drill. The only difference was that it was not done by a medical team, nor was it proctored. Our room steward kept the door unlocked, and once we completed the test and waited 10 minutes for the results, he came into the room and verified them. The results revealed a negative finding for both of us. Now when we will do this test again is not exactly known. We expect it may be before our arrival to Hawaii. Then it will be determined by the countries we visit. If there are a lot of guests and or crew with Covid, no one is saying, and we have not asked.
Since we are not allowed to have plastic water bottles anymore, we opted to buy a metal drink bottle from the Photo Shop. We do have one at home, but forgot to bring it. At the time we bought it, we did not have it customized, but this time we requested a photo that was taken at the Mariner's Recognition Event. The manager said they would locate it, put it into the system, and we could order from there. So this morning after our mile walk, we went to figure out their computers. Not sure how they operate, one of the photographers offered to help us. Once our room key was scanned, the photo came up. With his help, he cropped it, leaving just the two of us in the picture. For the backside of the thermos, we chose a whale tail, which will remind us of Alaska. It should be ready by dinnertime, and will make a useful item for under $20. Once we get to the warmer climate, we will pack water with us in the ports. Having canned water would not work as there is no way to seal it. So maybe, there is a method to their madness?
The day had begun with overcast skies, but slightly warmer as we headed south. By the early afternoon, the skies cleared and we had sun. We think the days of wearing long jeans are behind us. It will be shorts from here on out. Relaxing on our veranda, we spotted a few whales in the distance. There were at least two humpbacks, perhaps a mother and baby. The blows are the give-away, and there were plenty of them. Since they were not diving deeply, we only saw one tail submerging. During the following hour, we saw another half dozen, but really far out. Even though our speed was about 11 knots, once these whales are spotted, they are gone pretty quickly. What helped was the fact that the seas were fairly smooth and calm. Sometimes on this coastline, it can be much rougher.
We had pizza for lunch for a change, which was fun. Compared to the pizza we had on the N. Statendam, we prefer this style better. It has a thicker crust, and is never soggy.
Those of us that are continuing on the next 45 day voyage, got a letter describing the disembarkation process tomorrow. This was much different than what we had to do in Canada. It does not appear that there will be a zero count, since there is a large number of us staying onward……like 600 passengers. The letter stated that we are free to go ashore between 7:45 to 9:30am. We would not be allowed to re-board until after 10am. For those who had no plans to go ashore, we they would be allowed to remain on the ship. If this was Ft. Lauderdale, if we chose to remain on the ship, we would be required to go as a group to see the customs and immigration officials. Furthermore, we would not be allowed to leave the ship again. That was not necessary in San Diego. To make sure we were reading this correctly, we paid a visit to the front desk to verify this. Obviously, no one else had asked this question, because the receptionist had to make a few phone calls to give us the correct instructions. All we would need were our room keys and a government photo ID. This is good because we did not want to have to get up too early, and leave the ship at 9:30am.
Dinner had some new entrees we have not seen for a while. One was cheese enchiladas, and the other was blackened tuna, which turned out to be ahi tuna. These days, the tuna is so expensive, and hard to come by. Maybe that's what made it taste even better. The dos frijoles soup went well with the Mexican dish too. Dessert was a slice of almond fruit cake, served with vanilla ice cream, and shared of course.
The Billboard Onboard, the Rolling Stones Lounge, and the Lincoln Center Stage were in full swing tonight. The Mainstage show was Daniel Bouchet, the Latin crooner once again. No dance performances on this 5 day trip.
Our friends board tomorrow, and it will be nice to see them. Bet we will see some more of the regulars that always take this particular cruise. Our previous travel host used to call these folks his "palm tree gang". Hmmmm, that sounds familiar….
Bill & Mary Ann
PS Thanks to everyone that did the research on the mystery movie. We shall follow up with finding those books that were written.
