Our third day at sea found the seas less active and the temperature rising. Later in the day, we even spotted land, we assume near Albany. This was always a place we stopped on our way to Fremantle, but we guess there was no time for that port this time.
It was another lazy day for us with an earlier lunch. We had the invitation to the 2020 Get-Together at 2pm in the World Stage, and had to check it out. Sparkling wine was offered, but we declined. They did offer to substitute sodas or water, but again, we said thanks, but we had just eaten lunch. Nice they asked.
Sitting on the deck three balcony, we watched as the show lounge filled with the rest of the 480 or so guests that had actually been on the Amsterdam in 2020 when we were all sent home. On the screen were some photos of the officers and crew during their longer stay on the ship, having no place to go, and no easy way to get home.
Captain Friso gave a short talk about what had happened, then introduced Henk, the Hotel Manager, who was on the ship during that fiasco. Ian joined him in a Q and A, amusing at times, regarding what it was like surviving such an unprecedented incident. After the initial shock, the officers and crew took on the task of getting all of the guests off of the ship in a two- day period. Talk about stress on both ends.
Then with the help of several select officers and crew members, each one told a personal story about their experience and their feelings of sadness watching passengers leave into the unknown. By the time they all got to their homes around the world, they were out of jobs for who knew how long. Deeper sadness. In time, the sailings began to resume, and those that received calls to come back to work were happy again. Sadly, in the interim, many of the highly-skilled crew members had left the company for jobs on other cruise lines. It was a matter of survival for them.
The presenters came on the stage, had flutes of sparkling wine handed to them for a toast to everyone's well-being and sailing together again. Henk mentioned that the entire event would be televised and shown on our TV's later on for everyone to watch. We noticed that there was no mention of the man responsible for the entire successful operation onboard, and that was Captain Jonathan Mercer. In our humble opinion, he deserved more than a mention, and more than a short clip of the line of officers waving goodbye to all of us. But once again, what do we know?
The very overcast and cloudy day eventually turned into a sunny afternoon with sun on our deck, once the ship rounded the corner, so to speak, and headed north. The Captain announced that the next two days in Fremantle/Perth will be nice and warm with temperatures in the 80's.
Dinner found us all present where we discussed the special event today. Greg mentioned that some folks sitting around him were moved to tears listening to the crew members share their stories. One of Barb's and Susie's favorite entrees was on the menu this evening……..liver and onions. It was promised to be cooked medium to medium rare, but when it arrived, it was very over-cooked and dry. Oscar, our head waiter (or assistant maitre'd) agreed the liver looked bad, and insisted on bringing some freshly-cooked slices. Glad he offered it, because when it arrived, it was perfect, according to Barb and Susie who ate every single bite. We ordered one entrée of beef ribs (no bones), and a salmon dinner. Both tasty and just enough. Tomorrow the ship should be getting major deliveries, so we hope to see our favorite items come back.
In the World Stage tonight, was a combo magician and comedian by the name of Adam Dean. Half of our tablemates were going to see him for a change.
Looking forward to exploring Fremantle for the next few days.
Bill & Mary Ann
