Day 127: At sea

At this point in our winter, after more than four months of travel, these closely spaced sea days are saving us. Not that we're not sleeping well (we are), nor that we're not feeling well (we are...as soon as I purchased a box of Puffs Plus lotion tissues at Walgreens two turnarounds ago, all signs of a cold instantly stopped), it's just that these days are allowing me to sit in the Piazza drinking decaf coffee and reading and people watching and G to do whatever he does all day (talking...lots of talking). Plus, we're spending a considerable amount of time thinking -and talking- about what we'll be doing next winter. That's a conversation we'll be having, with increased intensity, throughout the spring and summer.

So, with a long day stretching out in front of us, we slept until 8am. G immediately threw on clothes and left to get hot chocolate, but I dawdled a little, taking time to shower and sort through the paperwork that inevitably piles up on the first day of every cruise. Our on board statement that I thought had been straightened out is not, exactly, and so I made a list of notes on the final statement from last cruise of the errors (new ones) and omissions and dropped it off at the Passenger Services Desk. 

Still not hungry, I went to the International Cafe to get a cup of coffee and carried it over to the peace of Vines wine bar right next door. I could see out the window how pretty the day was, but considered myself lucky that I didn't feel the need to be a slave to the sun. It's amazing how much time that has freed up in my days. 

I sat there, drinking coffee and reading a book on my iPhone. One disadvantage to being at sea is that my books- ebooks on my Kindle apps on iPhone and iPad and audiobooks on Audible- are not instantly synced. How did we ever survive without cloud syncing?? Cruise staffer Lucy from Brazil MC'ed the fruit and vegetable carving demonstration for this cruise starting at 10am, and the Piazza briefly filled to overflowing, but then it half-emptied again, back to the normal level of activity. 

Much can be said about these shorter cruises, but I can't disparage them at all. Of course, the passenger demographic is different. There are many first time cruisers on board, and still more first time Princess cruisers. On this particular short cruise, falling over a holiday weekend, there are plenty of kids. An intolerant person would find lots to upset him- shorts and baseball caps in the dining room at dinner, dishes left in the hallways and elevators, chair hogs everywhere on the open decks, kids in the adults only pools- but it would be foolish to book these cruises expecting it to be different. The fun part is viewing the excitement with which these passengers approach the 'same old, same old' cruise activities such as fruit and vegetable carving and last night's production show. It makes it more exciting for us, too. It's kind of like seeing Christmas through a child's eyes.  

I met G in time for lunch in the DaVinci Dining Room. Our waiter, Worawut from Thailand (I think I spelled that wrong the last time I mentioned him) is a wonderful guy. G and I ordered only salad topped with chicken breast, but Worawut brought three types of dressing...and a plate of blue cheese crumbles to go with. We both looked at each other and said, at the same time, "Spoiled". We are so spoiled by certain members of the crew. Worawut took some time to tell us about the camping trips he takes in Thailand with Suttipong and the other Thai waiters we know when they have their vacations together. If we can't have Sutti, Worawut is an excellent substitute. 

With no plans for the afternoon, I went to the fitness center to do weights and some cycling, and use the steam room. When I returned to the cabin about 4pm, G was changing to go to a hot tub. I changed too, and followed him, but was deterred by the 26 people sitting around the edge with their feet in the hot tub. No thank you; I returned to the cabin for some quiet closet time.

We were meeting Chief Roddy at the Crown Grill at 7pm, and after I was showered and dressed for the evening, I got so hungry waiting for G to finish that I was ready to eat the only food we had in the cabin:  breath mints. It was nice to go to dinner with an appetite. I had scallops and salad and a filet mignon. And several lobster tails, of course. :-) Accompanied by a nice Pinot noir, it was a wonderful meal. Three and a half hours later (none of us are exactly shy and quiet types), we returned to our cabin. It had been a wonderful meal and a good day. 

We had missed all entertainment tonight (there was a mentalist performing in the Princess Theater), but I am quite content tonight to finish reading about- well, you know what- in the the latest issue of Sports Illustrated that I had downloaded on my iPad on turnaround day.  The afterglow continues... ;-)