Prepared Wednesday evening, December 18th
Today was a housekeeping day for us, but we were taunted all morning long by a brilliantly sunny sky and calmer wind and seas. Suddenly, just before noon, rain showers moved in quickly, and the rest of the day, though sunny at times, was really a mixed bag. We stayed on task in getting quarters from the PSD, doing laundry (one load for me and two for G...he doesn't trust me with his laundry either. It's a good system), writing out You Made a Difference Cards for stellar crew service, and wiping down our cabin surfaces (this we made into a two-person job: one to lift the stuff and the other to wipe). When we were finished, G put up...er, plugged in our Christmas tree. 'Tis the season, inside our cabin and out!
I had to go into our "bathroom closet" (aka my carry on suitcase under the bed) to pull out some extra toiletries from storage. Deodorant, toothpaste, loofah pouf, more conditioner..we're into the second round of several items, which highlights to me even more than the increasing tally of days that the winter is marching on. Where does the time go???
Without even a bit of an appetite, we went to lunch anyway once our laundry was done and put away. I limited myself to a wonderful salad with apples and walnuts, which I topped with blue cheese dressing, and key lime frozen yogurt for dessert (because there's always room for key lime anything).
Once lunch was over, I resigned myself to the dreaded task of coloring my hair once again. I hadn't realized how blonde I was getting until I saw our photo taken with the captain at the most recent Most Traveled Passengers party. G has all three of these photos stuck on the wall of our cabin, and it's easy to see my hair going from brown to dark blonde to light blonde tinged with grey over the course of a month. Hair coloring in a tiny cabin bathroom is a bit of a trick; there are so many opportunities for disaster. White towels, white shower curtain, off white sink and vanity. Luckily, I had brought along rubber gloves and used an old Ziploc bag to accumulate all the trash at the end. Even the shower curtain was spared any color...well, almost (but I got to it before it became permanent). I think that the sudden darkening of my hair will be noticed, but G has done his best to convince me that, frankly my dear, the crew doesn't give a damn.
I suspect he's right about that.
By the time I finished that project, it was almost 3pm and G was napping with a show called Aerial America: Virginia on the TV. I don't know how he found that, but it was the best thing we've seen so far, and it was followed by the same program about Vermont and then Rhode Island. I became quite engrossed, and actually skipped the Christmas movies available on board for our viewing pleasure (The Santa Claus on MUTS and It's a Wonderful Life in the Princess Theater). Something tells me I'll have a chance to see them both again next cruise. I never did nap, but enjoyed some quiet time on what is, frankly, my favorite sea day of each cruise. The other two sea days are punctuated with formal nights, but this is the one where we can enjoy not only being casual, but the knowledge that we have lots more cruise days to look forward to.
Freshly laundered clothes, freshly manicured nails, not a grey hair in sight, this view from my breakfast table...
(With headwaiter Antonio from Portugal)
...this view from my lunch table...
...this view from my dinner table...
and another cruise starting tomorow. Does it get any better than that?
Life is good.
OK, I should end the post at this point, but there was more Day 49 left: dinner with Darko and Komang, followed by beseeching them that, if they get moved, they take us with them (Darko assured us they won't. Get moved, that is.); listening to steel drum duo Sugar Cane in the Explorers Lounge;
and listening to New Deal playing music from the 60s in Club Fusion.
Entertainment is a bit light on this last night of the cruise (dance team Flamenco Express and the International Crew Show are in the Princess Theater), but we always enjoy listening to live music.
Tomorrow, 350 kids board the Emerald Princess. It goes from being a ship that's been running just slightly less than full (between 2900 and 3000 passengers) to one with around 3600 passengers.
Life will be good, but it certainly won't be dull.
;-)