Happy Valentine's Day ( a day early for most of our readers)! The message for the day was: May this Valentine's Day be filled with love, understanding, and contentment as you journey through life with those you hold dear. That applies to everyone everywhere.
The day began with very cloudy skies, warm temperatures, and mostly flat seas. That would change later on. With the time change last night, we think many people we know slept in later, not going to the Pinnacle Grill breakfast. Better for those of us who show up on time as we get the best service and the hottest breakfast.
Besides the numerous activities, there were some talks today of what to see and do ashore, which is tied to shore excursions. The lecture by Nyron included all of the Hawaiian ports as well as Guam and Saipan. When we do watch it, we will have to fast forward to Guam. Too bad we cannot access the other talk about Guam and Saipan by the guest lecturer. Understanding Japan's dolphins was the second talk in the World Stage. This happens to be the best time to walk on the promenade deck, since many of the guests are in the show lounge. Makes walking a whole lot easier.
Captain Frank mentioned in his noon talk that we have 1580 nautical miles to go to reach Guam. That will take three more days. The Pacific Ocean is so large it is hard to even imagine that we are truly in the middle of nowhere. The biggest miracle of that is the internet, and the fact that it is still working. A few years ago, we would have been in a blackout zone. Anyway the sea swells were 7 feet and the sea and air temperature was 84 degrees. And this would change.
One of us was due for a haircut, so an appointment was made easily this morning. The appointment was at 2:45pm, and by then, the spa was not busy. The morning was crazy with the ladies getting hair-dos for tonight's Valentine's Day dinner and dance later on. And the haircut turned out quite nice by the way.
Later in the afternoon, we took our usual walk, noticing that the clouds had become darker on the horizon. There was the smell of rain in the air, and eventually, we could not avoid the clouds, and it did rain rather hard at times. Lucky for us, our walk was over and we discovered that our veranda was not wet. The winds were blowing towards the starboard side this time. Just as the Captain advised, the swells were deepening, and we were in for a change in the weather. And a change in the seas. The swells became a problem and the ship was rolling quite a bit by dinnertime. Bet some folks will be seasick.
Formal was the suggestion in the dining room, of course, as it was Valentine's Day. Lots of folks dressed in red, including the waiters with red bow ties. Something odd took place around 8:15pm. Several guests sitting near us left their tables, and we wondered if that many people would have gotten seasick. Why else leave all at once? We found out that they had decided to get the first dance in the Crow's Nest when the doors opened at 8:30pm. Goes to show us that all of these special events are skewed to the early diners. Anyway, the group came back ½ hour later, and resumed their dinner. And yes, some folks did get seasick unfortunately.
The menu had some of the usual formal appetizers and entrees. We still ordered the Caesar salads with one surf and turf (without the lobster) and one alternate steak without the gravy. The alternate was by far the tastier of the two mains. Dessert was one triple chocolate mousse and one hot fudge sundae. Once again, we noticed that the gormandizes of chocolates were not served. And maybe we missed it, but when we dined in the Pinnacle Grill for dinner, we don't remember if we had chocolates there either.
There was a Valentine's Day Dance , as we have already mentioned, from 8:30 to 10:30pm tonight in the Crow's Nest. Good luck with that…. with the ship rolling around like it was, there would be little dancing on deck 10. Nyron from Shore Excursion was the DJ for this event, one of the jobs he had while the ships were not sailing after 2020. Rene, the spa manager, stopped by and visited with us before she left for the evening. Hosting a table nearby, she was on her way to the Crow's Nest for an obligatory visit with the guests. Or not.
Back in our room, we found an elaborate towel design with two swans and a pile of special chocolates (Seattle's Best). Also, there was a note to turn our clocks back another hour. Now we will be on Guam time.
Bill & Mary Ann
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