Day two at sea happened to be a busy one starting with the King Neptune Ceremony at 10am in the Lido Poolside. We are certain that the staff did a great job once again with the pollywogs and shellbacks, but we have seen so many of these wild and crazy shows, that we figured it would be a great time to take our morning walk at that time. And unless you get to deck nine or ten early, there would be no chance of seeing anything, let alone take photos. And we were right, there were a total of 21 folks on the teak lounges and about 10 of us walking. Perfect.
One thing that drives us nuts is the fact we have lost the internet completely. We did have a letter about a week ago warning of possible interrupted service, but not a total shutdown. The projected dates were from March 8 to 20. There has been no explanation of why we lost the signal. In fact, last year we sailed in the same area we are now, and we did not have any interruptions. Go figure….. We suspect that the system is shut down for servicing, however, this is something we will never know. Tomorrow should be the test, since we will be in the port of Victoria, Seychelles where we always have internet on and off of the ship.
Captain Frank said at his noon talk that we are currently maintaining a speed of 20 knots using three engines alternately. The sea depth is 14,000 feet and the air and sea temperature was 83 degrees. Rather comfortable with 8 knot winds. We still have a 5 foot sea swell that has kept the ship in a slow roll from side to side. The stabilizers are being deployed to aide in the motion of the ship. The Captain expects to be picking up the pilot at 9:45am, and be docked and cleared by 10am. The weather is a mixed bag with some sun, clouds and a possibility of rain – 60%. Lastly, he said that there will be a lunar eclipse where the earth, moon and sun line up for 65 minutes causing the eclipse. It is called a Blood Moon since it may have a red circle around the moon. Unfortunately, we will miss it, but it should be visible to those who live in the US and elsewhere.
Yesterday we got a flyer advertising a licensed medical doctor that specializes in advanced facial rejuvenation treatments. He is from Turkey and recently joined the ship to offer his services. This is something we have never seen before on a ship. Heaven knows, there are hundreds of possible takers for this type of injections to improve facial lines, wrinkles, and crow's feet around the eyes. It was suggested that it may take a series of 1 to 6 treatments to work. And for sure, it will be lots of $$$.
At 6:30pm, we were invited to a cocktail party called President's Club Casual Social at the Retreat. When we arrived, we estimated there were as many officers and staff members as there were President's Club members. We were greeted by Captain Frank and his wife, Alexandra, who were busy trying not to blow away. Many of the guests had taken shelter under the tents, but it was impossible to escape the wind. A buffet was set up with tons of crab and freshly-cooked shellfish. Drinks of our choice were in our hands within minutes. It's too bad that the food was not advertised because many guests had already eaten dinner early, or like us, were eating after the cocktail party. We learned that there was supposed to be a seafood boil event in the Lido tonight, but only 12 people had signed up for it. So it was cancelled. Now we think some of the seafood was directed towards our party. We visited with some of our buddies, officers we know, Kimberly, and Chantall for one fun hour, then headed off for dinner a bit on the late side.
Tonight we had reservations in the Pinnacle Grill where we ordered two wedge salads, clothes line bacon to share, and mains of savory lamb chops….cooked to perfection. Our side dish was French fries, but not the usual ones. These were freshly cut russet potatoes that were hot and crispy without a lot of oil. According to Tina, they have experimented to come up with better tasting and not limpy fries. They have succeeded. We shared a dessert that closely resembled the chocolate volcano of the old days. Good thing we shared it because it was one of their larger desserts. Three little macaroons were served on a tray, but we only ate one. We have spread out the rest of our complimentary dinners until the end of the cruise in May.
Kimberly said we needed to see the new group of singers on the stage tonight called The Flyrights. She guaranteed a spectacular performance of some the world's favorite tunes.
Tomorrow we will be in another country of the Seychelles…..a lovely place to visit.
Bill & Mary Ann
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