Today is November 1st, the second one, since yesterday was the same date and same day of the week. This is done by the ship's clocks being set back 24 hours. No need for us to do that. Those who had a birthday on November 1st could celebrate it on both days. However, those who had birthdays on October 22nd when we lost one day, did not celebrate their birthday. Of course, there are always people that are born in leap year, where they only have a birthday every four years. Technically. Now that we are sailing in an easterly direction, our clocks will slowly begin going forward one hour at a time.
Back for breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill, we thanked Anton for his special attentions to getting one of our dinners correct last night as far as the allergies were concerned. We understand that the same meal our group enjoyed last night will happen today for the Cellar Master Dinner held in the Canaletto for a change. The big difference is that ours was complimentary while this evening's meal pairing will cost $69. Makes us appreciate it even more.
We had a later start to the day since we had to catch up on last night's report this morning. Usually we finish our evening meal around 8:45pm, but last night it went until 10pm. It seemed that the several conversations around the table picked up speed after dinner…..maybe due to the wine consumption. All-in-all it was a fun evening.
Spending some relaxing time at the back pool, we caught up with general news with our good buddies. The weather was almost perfect with a strong breeze and 81 degree temps. The umbrellas along the sides of the deck were down…it was just too windy to use them. It is also a good place to be when the Captain comes on with his noon talk. Although this question was asked of him a week ago, it was how do the navigation team measure the height of the waves? Anticipating a very scientific explanation, he simply said that they use their old-fashioned eyeballs. In other words, they guess. Never expected that answer unless Captain Paul was joking. One aspect that is not a joke is how much the ship is pitching and rolling by doing only 7 knots. Had we not missed the stop at Niue tomorrow, that would have broken up the days at sea, and our speed would have been higher. Alas, it was not to be, so we rock and roll.
Lunch was room service Cobb salads with a shared club sandwich. For some unknown reason, the room service phone number was not working. So we had to call the front desk and they ordered our food for us. It arrived at the same 30 – 40 minute wait period served by our own dinner waiter, Risman. Our order has been complete with no surprise substitutes.
By the late afternoon, it began to rain lightly. Passing showers even produced a brief rainbow. And it seemed like the swells had increased somewhat, making our walk on the promenade deck more difficult. Perhaps this is what the Captain meant by deteriorating weather. Looking up the weather conditions in Aitutaki, Cook Islands, showed some showers but calm enough seas to be able to tender ashore there. At least we all hope so.
Dinnertime had some Mexican-themed items offered. Two appetizers were quesadillas and tortilla soup, both of which we like. Mains were one veal Weiner schnitzel and one barbacola beef dish. Not sure what that was, our waiter asked Bayu who said it was slow-cooked seasoned brisket of beef Argentinian-style. Actually, we suspect it was savory prime rib, also cooked slowly….very tender and seasoned nicely. Happy campers, we added a slice of lemon torte cake saturated with lemon juice. Really refreshing and not overly-sweet.
Two more days at sea, and we will be in the Cook Islands……hopefully.
Bill & Mary Ann
