First, to Ervin and Patty for a very sweet email sent over a month ago that still makes me smile when I read it. Thank you guys! I needed that!
And to Bob and Donna, for a funny email speculating that the Pacific Princess was late sailing from Port Everglades two days ago because we had not gotten off the ship yet. They figured we were being kept hidden by the Entertainment Staff and might be disguised as dancers in the production shows. I read that out loud to G and we laughed and laughed (because we may know their routines by heart but knowing and doing are quite different things).
To Tarrell Dean for the excellent iOS advice. It takes a village to allow us to cruise as we do, and thanks for being part of the village.
To Pam for her email of a few days ago bringing me totally up to speed on the NFL season as well as any sports analyst could. I would have used all 250 minutes of allotted internet per cruise to get that same amount of information on the ship and I read the email three times to take it all in. Thank you!
To those who offered seasick remedies during The Crossing...they were all appreciated and I tried many of them but I think the best remedy is to not cross the North Atlantic on a small ship in December. :-)
And, finally, to all who sent Christmas greetings. We had the best cruise Christmas we have ever had!
Two observations: there are only about 40 feet distancing our new cabin to the midship elevators. I had left the cabin this morning to join G in the Panorama Buffet on Deck 9 and, before I reached the elevator, I had been greeted by name by crew and officers six times and had a brief conversation with Hotel General Manager (our Nice hero) Leonardo. I was telling Mom about this aspect of small ship cruising when I was in Fort Lauderdale last turnaround and I said there's no place like the Pacific Princess- and here we both said at the same time- except where you (Mom) live now. Both have the same intimate and friendly feeling.
And my brief discussion with HGM Leo this morning was about the weather. I can't believe these two days we've had! We've made the journey from Fort Lauderdale to Aruba many, many times in the past and have never had weather this perfect. There is not a bump in the water, and the weather is sunny and warm. Leo observed that wouldn't it have been great to have had this weather for The Crossing, and I have decided Leo is the master of understatement.
All this and I haven't even started to cover our day yet. Yep, it's definitely a sea day. ;-)
As I said, I went to join G in the Panorama Buffet, but as soon as I walked in there, three waiters descended on me to let me know G had just left, deciding instead to go to the Club Restaurant. But by the time I arrived there, it was just after the closing time of 9:30am. I was offered breakfast (of course), but declined. I knew the galley was shutting down. Instead, after G finished eating we trooped back up to the Panorama Buffet where I had a slice of toast and cottage cheese. It was nearly 10am by then and I knew lunch was only a couple of hours away.
I walked on Deck 10 and listened to an audiobook while G went to the veterans get together, and then we met up in the Atrium to make a poster to show when we are photographed going through the Panama Canal. I was surprised G wanted to participate...but maybe I shouldn't have been. He's been doing a few things (such as making Christmas decorations for our cabin door) against character lately. We worked quickly together...I used the provided stencils to trace the letters and when I finished with the top half, he started using a marker to color them in. I then glued on two flag photos, one of the US and the other of Panama and helped finished the coloring the letters on the bottom half and we were done just in time for lunch. Go us! G used some magnetic clips we had been bequeathed by friend Sally when she disembarked and hung it on our cabin wall until we need it. I like it!
Lunch was simple and fast; I had a salad and calamari and skipped dessert, because I wanted to get to the 1pm lecture by Christian and Caroline Heim on Chopin, his life and love. In fact, today it was a performance with Caroline, an actress, portraying writer George Sand reading her letters to Chopin while Christian accompanied her playing Chopin's music on the piano. He played more familiar pieces, including a Polanaise that eludes me because it has a different tempo for the right hand than the left hand and my brain just won't do that (though I left inspired to try again). They received a well-deserved standing ovation at the end. For an afternoon lecture. Really. They are simply that good and are performing to a very appreciative audience.
Finally, I was determined to spend some more time outside on this glorious (and I mean glorious) day. I sat in the shade in a lounger on the Promenade Deck and continued to listen to an audiobook...and fell asleep. That's becoming a sure way to take an afternoon nap. G came looking for me after his guitar lesson (and proudly announced that he can now play When the Saints Go Marching In which I recall learning to play on the steel drum so it must be a beginner staple) because he had left his key card in the cabin. I'm glad he did or I might have kept napping; I needed to return to the cabin and start gathering clothes and jewelry for our 107th formal night of the season.
G attended a Cruise Critic Meet and Greet in the Pacific Lounge at 4:30pm, though we were notified today that we will have a formal one announced in the Patter for tomorrow at 10:15am in the Club Restaurant. We went to dinner at 5:15pm, actually feeling a little hungry, which is a nice thing on a sea day on a cruise. At 6:45pm the Captain's Welcome Aboard Party and Champagne Waterfall kicked off in the Atrium. We watched Maitre d'Oscar's antics at the waterfall but didn't stay for the introduction of officers (since we've already been introduced ;-)) and instead got good seats in the Cabaret Lounge for tonight's tribute show to the Rat Pack called, appropriately, The Pack. They were quite good, especially the vocalist who portrayed Sammy Davis Jr. We had wanted to go to Flags of the World trivia after the show but G was already nearly asleep (because he didn't get an afternoon nap) and I didn't want to go without him. However, it's a very clever idea for a trivia at the start of a World Cruise, isn't it?
Tomorrow is another day at sea. I don't believe I've ever been on a cruise that spent three days at sea to reach Aruba, but the extra day combined with the spectacular weather is allowing the the Pacific Princess to slowly cruise on a mirror smooth sea, and these are the easiest sea days we've had this season. Maybe that's why they've been so much fun.
Life is good. :-)