We slept well despite the ship’s slight bounciness overnight, particularly in our cabin location. We’re still not into “drawers sliding in and out” roughness, but we know the Tasman Sea awaits. My first thought was, “Darn (or something slightly more colorful), I am now officially two blog posts behind!” which is not a comfortable feeling. At least one of those, from Day 16 was written; I just hadn’t had the combination of time and Internet to publish it. Unfortunately, I encountered this log in screen again this morning.
Not our favorite log in message...
...but one of our favorite breakfast waiters, sweet and always smiling Nikola from Serbia
Instead we went to breakfast in the DaVinci Dining Room. Waiters Nikola from Serbia and Ricky from the Philippines (delivering pastries) could brighten any day. I had my favorite dining room breakfast, a fruit plate and smoked salmon, while G had the cardiologist’s special, I mean the Lumberjack (two eggs, a minute steak, hash browns and (I think) mushrooms) with a danish on the side. Guess who’s feeling better? It’s nice to see him with an appetite again. We swung by the Guest Services Desk afterward, to check our on board account (but really just to say hi), and that’s when we learned that Internet was down not only for passengers but for the entire ship. Still, I dedicated myself to writing the blog post from American Samoa, then writing it almost in its entirety again after I lost it (and been unable to save it online). That hasn’t happened in years.
In the midst of that frustration, we returned to the DaVinci Dining Room for lunch. Like dinner last night, hunger had nothing to do with it. I have improved, however, and just had the avocado and seafood salad. Must. Pace. Myself.
Day 18 lunch menu, page 1
Day 18 lunch menu, page 2
On the subject of being (mostly) vegan on board, it’s tough. I eat way more seafood here than I do at home, where I am 98% vegan. I also eat fewer whole grains, but, fortunately, plenty of fruits and veggies. But I remain vegan in spirit. In fact, I noticed in just the past couple of days that my Kindle content is primarily food related. It’s another case where those who can, do. Those who can’t, read about it. ;-)
It took until mid afternoon to finish yesterday’s post for the second time, and by then the Internet was working again and I could publish it. Whew, caught up again...at least for a few hours. It was also nearly time to get ready for our third formal night. I had the salad and the (no surprise) roasted red snapper without the sauce at dinner. Unfortunately, like too much of the fish I’ve had on board, it was over cooked, and when Waiter Homer asked if we were happy with our meals, I finally mentioned it. I guess it’s never going to change if I don’t say anything. But over cooked red snapper is pretty hard to get down. The couscous and sweet potatoes were delicious.
Day 18 dinner menu, page 1
Day 18 dinner menu, page 2
Day 18 dessert menu
Roasted red snapper
Tonight was the third Platinum and Elite Captains Circle party of the cruise, and we were honored to be the third most traveled passengers on board. Honored and shocked when we found out about it two weeks (a lifetime) ago. Like our Sapphire Princess cruise last year from Southampton to Rome that continued on to Singapore, we know these long repositioning cruises attract a lot of very well traveled passengers, and we don’t think of ourselves as having arrived at that level. We invited Paul and Marlene as well as new friends Tom and Nancy to join us, and had a great time.
But that was the end of our day. We missed the 8:15pm performance of production show Stardust and didn’t really feel like waiting around for the 9:30pm performance. We know we’ll have the opportunity to see it again this season. We also didn’t raid the Horizon Court Buffet for the addendum to our dinner. We must stay disciplined; a lot of cruising lies ahead.
Day 18 Princess Patter, page 1
Day 18 Princess Patter, page 2
Day 18 Princess Patter, page 3
Day 18 Princess Patter, page 4