Day two at sea began much the same as day one at sea. The temperature might have reached 79 degrees with 78% humidity, but the winds of 15.4 mph helped cool the air off. The skies were mostly overcast, and the sea swells were significant, although the Captain did not mention the wave height. He is maintaining a speed of 17 knots which might contribute to the excess spray we are getting on the portside of the ship. Our veranda remained damp all day and is getting salt-crusted.
Our special breakfast mornings are coming to an end soon, and we will really miss being spoiled every day. We have not missed a single day ever since we boarded back in early September.
Our buddy Nancy stopped by to share info on the upcoming Mariner Recognition Event that will take place tomorrow. Yesterday, we did receive an invitation in appreciation of our loyalty as President's Club members. The ceremony will be held in the World Stage, deck 4, at 11:30am using the portside entrance. We found it odd that there was no mention of a lunch to follow. Truth be told, we are not big fans of the lunch , so it would not make a difference to us if there was none. When we were on the 7 day Alaska cruises, there were no guests getting medallions, so there was no ceremony at all. Then when this legendary voyage began, a Dutch couple got inducted into the club, and we did attend the pinning which was held for 11 of us in the Crow's Nest. Short and sweet. A dinner for the group was held in the back room of the Pinnacle Grill at 5pm, but at the time, one of us was not feeling well, and we did not attend. So much for parties…..
Today was a good one for photo work….like over 1000 pictures to sort and choose. It would take the better part of the day, and the reports will be arriving soon. It was a good time to research another Polynesian subject and that is the art of the Dance. Tahitian dance to be exact. As soon as they can walk, the kids of Polynesia learn to dance. It is in their blood and will use any excuse to express themselves. There are hundreds of dance schools with students of all ages. It is a celebration of their culture, power, pride and ways to express love and war.
In July every year, the Heiva i Tahiti, is a festival in Tahiti that brings hundreds of dancers and musicians together for a parade with an explosion of color, music, and dance. Locals will wear magnificent costumes decorated with flowers, feathers, and even pearls. High energy singing, dancing, and percussion with drumming makes it a wonderful and significant event. Even the tourists are invited to join in the fun parade we heard. Well worth seeing if you are ever visiting in the month of July.
It also took part of the morning to begin packing some of the little stuff in the hanging shoe bag and sorting through used prescription bottles and the like. It is starting to look better with some of the things that we have used and containers we no longer need. Perhaps we will not have overweight luggage after all.
The Captain came on the speakers with his daily update, informing us that we did cross the Equator last night during the wee hours. We are now sailing in the North Pacific. We are currently in the middle of nowhere far off of the coast of Mexico and a tiny island occupied by a handful of Mexican soldiers. We have traveled 840 nautical miles from Nuku Hiva and have another 1984 nautical miles to reach San Diego. He is keeping our speed between 18 and 20 knots to put us ahead of schedule a bit. He claims the waves are 6 – 7 feet, but it feels like much higher than that. Walking the promenade deck this afternoon was not so easy as the ship was rocking and rolling. One side is wet, and the other dry. Fewer people were using the teak lounges.
The usual suspects were the activities today, although they are getting heavier in the promotions. There was a "swim the Equator" event at the Seaview Pool and we are sure there were some participants. There was a lecture by Dr. Beeman at 2pm all about how humans arrived in the South Pacific, but we have already briefly covered that subject. Trivia remains the most popular activity onboard we think.
There was a different type of menu this evening with it titled Chef's Menu. Not the Culinary Menu they used to have, just different items. For starters, we had two types of salad, one crab patty and a bowl of minestrone soup. It was tasty, but not exactly the type of minestrone that comes thicker with macaroni. Mains were one halibut dish and a 16 ounce? ribeye steak. Had to try it but also knew it would not be the same as what they serve in the Pinnacle Grill. Regie our waiter said as much. This steak was half the thickness, still tender and covered with gravy, which was actually good. The ones they serve in the Pinnacle are enough for the two of us. Desserts were one lemon tart and a few slices of fresh pineapple, like that is different.
There was a choice of a movie, Gladiator II in the Wajang at 8:30pm or the show in the World Stage with Jocelyn Ng with her electric violin playing rock and modern hits, promising a thrilling finale. And so much for day two at sea.
Bill & Mary Ann
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