At breakfast this morning, we met the new Pinnacle Grill manager, Anton, the 3rd manager of this combined trip. Yesterday Bagus, # 2 manager, told us he was moving to the lower dining room as a head waiter beginning today. He also thanked us for the compliments we had given him, and reassured us that we would like the new man. We trust he is right.
We stayed onboard until almost noon working on the computer to keep up to date. We still have to go to the library to send the larger emails, as our room still has problems with the signal. No matter where we move the computer, the signal just isn't strong enough to send things in a speedy manner. The library is much better. On a positive note, the laundry has been delivered same day service, or in today's case, over- night service. A nice hand-written note was included with our stuff asking if we are satisfied with their laundry service. It was signed by Alex Maha, whom we need to thank for the super-fast service.
It did give one of us a chance to see the tours for Honolulu today. It surprised us that the Ho-Ho bus was $75 for 1 hour. Actually the circle they take is one hour, but you have many stops you can make if you have the time to do them all. A similar trolley with a tour guide ran $90 for 1 ¾ hour circle ride. An easy coach drive to circle the island was $140 for 8 hours, while Oahu's scenic shores was $120 for 4 hours. Pearl Harbor for 5 ½ hours was $140 and the one suitable for wheelchair access was also the same time and price. A vigorous hike up Diamond Head for 3 ½ hours was $220.
We happened to be onboard long enough to listen and watch the extensive Coast Guard drill that began at 9:30am. Today that drill included dropping the tender boats and also the life rafts. It was interesting watching the inflatable life raft open near the water. Never seen that done before. The drill continued until close to 11am. We happened to ride the elevator with Captain Paul when we returned to the ship later, and he was so proud to say the ship and crew had passed these tests with flying colors. In fact, he said the scores were among the highest ever. Nice to know we are in such capable hands if the need arises.
Today's walk was a bit shorter with our destination being the Ala Moana Center which has 350 plus stores and restaurants on four levels no less. One can get lost here without the help of a map, which are still available throughout the mall. It was not quite as warm as yesterday, and leaving a little later helped with the trade wind breeze that comes in the afternoon. And of course, we had a bottle of water to keep us hydrated.
Lunch was first on the list of things to do. We found this at California Pizza Kitchen on level 4. This is one of our favorite spots at home, and we were not disappointed with the BBQ chopped salad and the same BBQ chicken pizza. Fresh sourdough bread was served with a bowl of seasoned olive oil while we waited. For a Thursday afternoon, the restaurant was about full of customers. Funny thing was we were seated in a booth we had a year ago. Déjà vu. After a leisurely meal, we went in search of some necessities we could not get while in Hilo. First on the list was popcorn, a light snack we like for our room. Needing some other toiletries too, we ran into a Target at this mall. They had everything on our list. Once again, we were shocked to see many items in Target's section of Longs Drugs that were under lock and key. We had to request a store helper to unlock the cabinet for a bottle of Tylenol. Guess shop-lifting exists in all big cities, not just San Francisco. One last stop at a smaller Longs netted us a pound bag of Halloween Snickers. Our supply of Ghirardelli's chocolate squares are dwindling…heaven forbid. With all of our nifty cloth bags full, we headed back to the ship and arrived by 4:30pm. Sure was nice to stash our stuff, and sit back and relax for a while.
We had a sunset, but it could not compare to the one we saw last night. There were far fewer clouds, so the color wasn't as intense. Just as the sun was going down, the Le Boreal sailed out of the harbor. Originally, we had been scheduled to depart earlier, but Captain Paul extended the time to 10:30pm to give crew members more free time here. And we forgot to mention that last night, the dining room was about empty during our dinner time. What we failed to read was that there was an 8pm Drums of Polynesia local show in the World Stage. We know from experience that most all of the guests love to see the Hawaiian and Polynesian dancers that come onboard.
Dinner for us was back in the dining room with starters of one shrimp and chicken appetizers. Caesar salads followed with mains of veal meatballs with spaghetti and tomato sauce with grated cheese. Huli huli chicken was the other entrée with a bed of pineapple and macaroni salad. Different, but good. Desserts were banana frozen yogurt with sliced bananas and a chocolate-coated pudding-like treat. On the stage tonight was a gal named Annie Gong, an instrumentalist we have seen before on several cruises. She still puts on a good performance.
We will have a few days at sea now as we sail south towards Fanning Island. We will also be crossing the international Dateline, losing a day in the process.
Bill & Mary Ann
