Hardly a day goes by where there is always something to do onboard the ship. Today there were two things……one was an invitation to Behind The Scenes Galley Tour. And the second was the passport collection for French Polynesia.
Beginning with the Galley Tour, we were invited this morning at 10am to view what was behind the walls of the lower dining room….namely the kitchen. The only requirement was that we wore flat, closed-toed shoes. We were told that both decks six and seven were invited today. So we thought be better go at least five minutes early to line up at the dining room entrance. Well when the elevator door opened, we barely had room to enter the lobby. The line of folks went up the stairwell already. We figured that the gloomy overcast weather outside and the fact that there was no 10am lecture in the World Stage, most guests were free for the tour.
By 10am, we were led in groups of 12 to sit in the dining room and wait for our turn to enter the galley. It ended up being a 20 minute wait. Thanks to a visit from Glenn, the hotel manager, the time went by quicker. We have been on many galley tours in the past, mostly while sailing on the Amsterdam. In those days, we were simply led past the various stations, like in one door, then out the other. One of the best tours took place for a rather large group of President's Club members on a grand voyage. It was turned into a special event by adding some of the most delicious canapes at the other end. Of course, this was well before Covid hit. Since then, no tours were offered…..until today.
There were five places in the kitchen where we had one of the staff greet us and give detailed info on how the kitchen operates. Even the head chef, Javier, was a speaker along the way, as was Eli, the food and beverage manager. His job was to explain this new and huge machine they call the Digester. It can turn all table scraps and other discarded food trimmings into a very small amount. Some items cannot go into the Digester like coconut, squash, celery, or anything too fibrous. We got to see some of the kitchen workers busy with their jobs such as the pasta girl who has a machine to make fresh pasta, and the soup and sauce makers who follow standardized recipes. There were some crew members that came from other countries and specialize in their cuisine prep. According to Javier, everyone who works in the kitchen has to speak and read English well. Towards the back end of the galley, we saw where room service trays are prepared, the breads and pastries are baked, and the salads are created. Lots of prep work there. One interesting fact is that only 5% of the items are purchased frozen. Everything else is made from scratch. Finally it was Maria's turn, the Pinnacle Grill chef. She showed us the special double grill for cooking meats, which resembled a big waffle iron. The temperatures can reach 500 degrees, cooking the meat on both sides at the same time. No wonder it is so good. The entire time for the tour was an hour and we learned a lot more than we knew before.
Then we had 15 minutes to turn in our passports. Tables for collection had been set up on every passenger deck and we had from 10 to 12pm to do it. We were handed receipts that will be used to retrieve the passports on November 14th. This will save us all from having a face-to-face inspection with the French Polynesian officials. With that job completed, we went off to the Seaview Pool to relax in the overcast skies. With some drizzles added. The sun never fully appeared, but it was still quite warm.
We still have rather rough sailing on this stretch from Tonga to the Cook Islands. The sea swells are now in the 11- foot range, and the wind was been strong enough to keep the ship pitching a lot. The speed does not help since at 8 knots, the stabilizers are not as efficient. Today during his noon talk, Captain Paul reminded everyone to be most careful walking, especially up and down stairs, and watch the closing doors where many fingers have been getting injured. Even walking the promenade deck takes a toll on the joints as you are constantly trying to correct your stride. Most all of us can handle the motion of the ocean, but now we are concerned about tendering in the upcoming ports in the Cook Islands. It can be dicey in Rarotonga even on a good day. We have seen what can happen to a tender boat that suddenly found itself on top of a coral mound with some good holes gouged it in. On average, that port has been cancelled as many times as we have gone there. Time will tell.
Around 6pm, we always go to the promenade deck to catch the sunset, especially when it is not on our side of the ship. With all of the heavy cloud cover, there was no good sunset. The mornings have not been that spectacular as well. Funny that we remember some of the best sunrises and settings on this South Pacific cruise. Luck of the draw we guess.
This evening we had dinner in the Pinnacle Grill. It was the usual wedge salads with the tasty clothesline bacon. With some fresh warm bread, we are always happy campers. We added one filet mignon, and one ribeye steak. Small baked potatoes and mushrooms on the side made the meal perfect. Since we have not ordered the Baked Alaska on this extended trip yet, we decided to share one tonight. Our nice waiter, Dede, mentioned that it had been down-sized a little bit, which was better for us. There was plenty even sharing it.
On the World Stage was Game Night, call my bluff with The Biddys, a group of three very funny ladies. It seems that we are always finishing our dinner when the show begins, and not wanting to be rushed, we do not attend. And tonight, the clocks went forward one hour. How rude it that, we all joked?
Bill & Mary Ann
