We have all agreed that a few days at sea have been well-earned. If we had stayed a week in Singapore, it still would have not been enough to see it all. If all goes as planned, we will be visiting Singapore again next year and looking forward to exploring further.
We are currently heading northwest in the Straits of Malacca, one of the longest straits in the world, if not the longest. Situated between Indonesia and Malaysia, it is another busy body of water for commercial ships. Today we are seeing many vessels as they pass by on the horizon going both ways. We happened to spot two old-style fishing boats from either Indonesia or Malaysia. They were wooden and built similar to those we saw while in Vietnam. Comparatively speaking, the waters are shallow and we were lucky to have smooth seas and very little swells. And we had a really nice breeze going all day, which helped to cool things down. Yes, it is still hot and humid, but nothing like in Singapore.
This morning while waiting for the Pinnacle Grill assistant manager Dhana to open the doors, we noticed a crew member who we have not seen for a week or so. He appeared today, and mentioned he had been quarantined with Covid for a week. He seems to be on the mend, but that is a sign that this nasty virus is still around. It is a reminder to all of us to continue the hand washing and sanitizer. Usually we are more conscientious of that when we leave the ship, but the real culprits could be right here onboard.
Most of today was used processing an enormous amount of photos taken over the two fabulous days in port. Who can resist the Orchid Gardens and the gorgeous flowers we saw? It was a feast for the eyes. It was time well spent after what seemed like walking for miles and miles the last two days. And we will be talking about our travels in the city for days to come. And half of the fun comes from shared stories of our friends as well. We all did something different.
We were so involved with working, that we sort of forgot lunch. Sometimes it is nice to have a few snacks instead. Taking a deck walk around 6pm, we came back to the room in time to get sunset shots. When dinnertime came, we were hungry. There were good appetizers of pork and shrimp spring rolls with a BBQ sauce. Salads came next, followed by pork and veal-stuffed cannelloni and one order of lamb chops, slightly under-cooked. Sharing , one of us took the rarest chop and traded one cannelloni. That worked just fine. A dish of a sliced banana with a touch of chocolate sauce was even better than the sticky sweet desserts.
There were several folks missing in the dining room, so we bet they went to the first pop-up of Morimoto By Sea, the new contemporary Asian cuisine that has replaced Rudy's Sel de Mer. There are always Morimoto items on the every day dinner menu, but this meal is probably more complete. It should be for $55, which is among the most reasonable of the pop-ups.
A new entertainer joined us by the name of Rebecca Kelly. She is a comedy vocalist with a powerhouse voice with amusing tricks of the trade.
Two more days at sea to enjoy are on the way.
Bill & Mary Ann
