Sea Day #9

Friday – May 4

After our busy day in San Francisco, we both slept in a bit today. Stan was at breakfast when we arrived, but Danny decided he would rather sleep than eat!

I headed up to the Crow’s Nest right after eating for the coffee chat with the ship’s female officers. Each sea day a coffee chat is planned with some of the crew or officers. Coffee and pastries are available and it is a good time to learn some inside information about ship life. Bob got some walking in on the promenade deck.

Pickleball was on the schedule at 10 am so while Bob was there I did a little hand laundry in the cabin, downloaded photos and worked on my blog. Besides the clothesline in the shower, we have discovered that a good way to dry clothes is to put them on hangers and suspend them from the vent in the ceiling! I also went through the piles of paper that had accumulated over the course of the cruise and get that mess organized. I’m sure a small forest had to be sacrificed to produce all of the paper that was generated during our cruise.  All of the ads for art auctions and spa treatments immediately went into the garbage when they were delivered, but there was still lots more.  The garbage can in the cabin is divided into two sections…one of which is labeled “recycled paper.” Hopefully it really does get recycled because it seems such a waste. And don’t get me started on all of the photos that get printed on the ship only to be thrown away when they aren’t purchased. ☹

I walked up to the pickleball court around 10:45 and watched Bob play for a few minutes and then walked down to check out the shops. Most of the Panama Canal merchandise had been removed and was being replaced with Alaska stuff. There was also a Bijoux Turner section that had been added where everything was $10…purses, watches, shawls, etc. We still had quite a bit of onboard credit so I was tempted, but then came to my senses. I didn’t need any of the stuff nor did I have room in my luggage so I walked away empty handed.

I got to the theater just in time for the 11:00 lecture by Dan Benedict on “Cruise Ship Astronomy’s Top-Ten Greatest Hits”. He had slides and talked about celestial sights that can be seen from cruise ships all over the world. Bob walked in a few minutes late and joined me. Forty-five minutes later the guy had only made it down to #5 on his list so we got up and left to meet Danny & Stan for lunch. If you are wondering, some of the “greatest hits” were…green flash at sunset, satellites like the International Space Station, constellations, etc.

After lunch, we went straight to trivia and teamed up with one of the Australian couples. With 11 points out of 20 our score was less than respectable. One we missed…”which rock star went to economics school for 2 years?” Any idea? Correct answer was Mick Jagger. Afterward we spent at least an hour visiting with our Aussie friends about life down-under. We were particularly curious if they actually ate Vegemite…and yes they do and yes they even like it!

Before leaving the Crow’s Nest, I ordered a can of Diet Coke from the bar. The bartender tried several times to scan my beverage card but for some reason it didn’t work. He also tried charging me for just a glass of Coke, but even the card didn’t scan for that either. He finally gave up and just gave me the Coke for free.

It was “Gala Night” in the dining room and we were happy to see that sunchoke soup was on the menu again! All four of us ordered it as an appetizer. I also got a salad, surf & turf and almond cake for dessert.

Our waiters, Yazzir and Lala.

The dining room greeter, Andhika, with after dinner treats...figs, dates, mints or ginger.

The evening entertainment was Tyler Bruce whom we had seen on our last cruise. Tyler is billed as “One man, many voices. Comedy, singing and dozens of the most entertaining celebrity impressions you’ll ever see and hear.” And I will admit…he is good! His impressions were so spot on that you could almost believe you were hearing the actual person. He ends the show with a heart-warming story and a song in his own voice. Tyler was very well received and got a standing ovation.