Another day at sea was appreciated by everyone we know. It took us most of the afternoon catching up yesterday's events. Like we described yesterday, one thing after another went wrong with the fuel bunkering process, and we had to leave later than expected. Good thing the Captain said we still had leeway to make up that lost sailing time.
Usually when we exit the Panama Canal, the Pacific Ocean side is a bit cooler and less humid. We sure did not feel that when walking the deck this morning. There must have been a following wind that made the temperature seem much higher then the 80 or so degrees that it was. And we had the company of a flock of brown boobies flying around the ship. We did not see flying fish, but these birds were diving for something. There may be small squid or similar size fish they were scooping up. Later in the afternoon, the waters smoothed out, and we kept watch for possible dolphin sightings. Never saw any though.
Hoping for more of a breeze on the Sea View Pool deck, we discovered it was just as warm and sticky back there. The funny thing was that when we first boarded the ship, there were more deck attendants back here who offered you beverages, whether they be ice water or beers for instance. The last two weeks, we have not seen that happen with any of us back here between 10 and 12 pm. Perhaps these servers have been re-assigned to busier venues. There is a self-service drink station in the Lido, so it is not a problem getting our own drinks. If we were traveling on a different ship and a different cruise line, we are sure we would be bombarded with drink offers like every 5 minutes. We will never see that happen here.
Between reports, photos, and posting the blog, the afternoon evaporated. While having a light lunch, we listened to the port talk about Quepos, Costa Rica. This will be a new port for us, as we always stop at Puntarenas going in this direction. From what we have gathered, this town is a nice change from Puntarenas, and is a place for beaches and national park tours. The photos of the marina look really nice. This will be a tender port because there is no dock.
This evening we were invited to a cocktail party with our travel hosts in the Crow's Nest. The early diners would go at 4:30pm, while the second and late seating group would go at 6:30pm. Since this trip began, we have only been to the Crow's Nest once to book a free tour. So tonight, we were pleased to find a nice bar with high top stools….so much better than the very low chairs they have in the rest of the lounge. This party was well-attended and had many key officers such as the Captain, his wife, Henk, Christel, Shiv, Maja, Michelle, and many other staff members we have met. Twinkle, the assistant beverage manager always takes care of us with our drinks. Some canapies were passed around, and a few short and sweet speeches were delivered. Talking to Captain Frank, he discussed the problems we had yesterday with the fuel delivery. The main question of the day seems to be….where are we going on this cruise? And when will we be told the itinerary changes? The answer we seem to hear was an announcement was coming soon…like within a week. We are betting that that itinerary will include Africa.
Dinner was good with appetizers of spring rolls, a spinach and mushroom salad, and mains of prime rib. The meat was cooked perfectly and was tender as well. Good thing we saved some room for dessert, since the birthday cake from last night was here for us. We each had a slice of the cheesecake part, and we do hope our waiters will enjoy the rest of it. To top off the evening, the clocks went back one hour. We are on central time now.
Bill & Mary Ann
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