Saturday, March 27, 2010
We had a wonderful time at dinner with World Cruise Hostess Stacey Huston. This is her second year as the World Cruise Hostess and during other times of the year she serves as an Assistant Cruise Director on the Crystal Serenity. She always has a nice smile and a nice laugh. Like us, Stacey focuses on the glass being half full rather than half empty. We truly believe that all of this is quite positive and very contagious as Stacey is able to make those around her laugh and smile and she brings out the very best in others. We had a wonderful conversation with Stacey as we enjoyed another delicious meal at the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant. We had sushi and sashimi (Keith) followed by wonderfully prepared entrees.
The chef was trying out some items last night so we dined at the right place at the right time. With many guests either on the overnight shore excursion to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings, or other guests on a one day tour of Luxor which did not get back until fairly late last evening, there were far fewer guests dining in Silk Road and Prego last evening.
Before we ordered sushi and sashimi we enjoyed a trio of three different items that were more of a tasting. This included a lettuce wrapped chicken salad, a square of tofu with a special topping, and a seasoned Japanese Vegetable. All three were terrific. A little while later one of the Sushi Chefs stopped by the table to ask what we thought of the trio and we told him how much we enjoyed it. We ended up also having a couple of other items that he made for us. One was a small plate of seared salmon, very thinly sliced, with a horseradish sauce that we shared, and later on we each enjoyed a lobster dumpling.
This reminded us that sometime during this voyage we plan to sit at the Sushi Bar, which we did one time last year on the Crystal Symphony. When one sits at the sushi bar they can just let the chefs know that the would be happy to try whatever the chef wants to prepare and this provides the opportunity to taste a variety of items. For Keith that works well as he is willing to try Sashimi. For Anne Marie she normally sticks to the Sushi rolls. J
We had Alberto as our Waiter last evening with his wonderful assistant, Sonny. Another Waiter also helped out from time to time (Walter) who we have known for many years. There are so many other wonderful waiters who we enjoy and work at Silk Road.
Alberto knows us so well that when he came by the table to ask what sushi and sashimi we wanted we just asked him to order what he knows we enjoy so he took care of that and then Stacey ordered those items that she likes and it was brought out on one sushi platter that as always looks like a work of art.
We also enjoyed the Hot Soba Noodle Soup and Anne Marie had fruit plate and decaffeinated coffee while Keith passed on the fruit and had Green Tea.
Once again we were having such a wonderful conversation that we ended up dining for two hours and thirty minutes.
In our fast paced society it is unusual to dine for such a long time as many times one goes to a restaurant at home on land where the dining experience moves rapidly. When Keith used to travel internationally for business he remembers that in certain places around the world (France is a perfect example) one sat down for dinner and they essentially had the table for the entire night.
It’s been nice to have a few leisurely dinners from time to time to enjoy the cuisine, the ambience, the service, and the conversation.
Just like a fine wine, sometimes we all need to take a step back and enjoy the texture and savor the tastes of the different foods.
On a related note, one of the very nice aspects of the World Cruise is the time it provides to get to know others so very well. This includes the bonds that we are developed with the crew of the Crystal Serenity, several members who are part of the enrichment and entertainment staff, and with many fellow passengers. On top of this the bond deepens because of all of the memories that we share together as we sail to so many interesting places. The diversity of places that we are seeing this year is extraordinary given that the itinerary has includes places as diverse as the Caribbean, South America, Africa, Asia, The Middle East and Europe. It is a truly amazing itinerary and as we have mentioned from time to time it has been the best of the World Cruises we have taken.
We began today as we do each and every day on the ship with another great workout in the Fitness Center. Keith was up first and as he walked up three flights of stairs he spoke with a few members of the Crystal Cruises Night Crew who each evening are busy cleaning all of the public areas of the ship. Just a few minutes after Keith arrived our friend John also arrived. John and Keith spoke for a while from their respective Elliptical Machines and then they each caught a portion of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Games and then Keith caught up with some news. From time to time we have been able to get a television station that provides sort of a combined look at new and world events and includes PBS News and even C-Span so Keith was actually able to catch both programs during his workout.
Afterwards, he stopped by the Lido Café for some coffee to take back and enjoy in the room. As he approached the coffee machine not one, not two, not even three, but the team of the four Lido Deck Stewards approached Keith. This includes Nat, Clark, Richie and Glenn and the four of them took charge and had Keith’s two cups of coffee prepared in seconds. Then Keith spoke with them for a while. Since the ship had an overnight they took out the Basketball Hoop last evening so some of the crew could shoot baskets. These overnights are really nice for both guests and staff.
By the time he got back to the room Anne Marie was just minutes away from taking the same path as Keith did up to the Fitness Center where she enjoyed a one hour workout on the Treadmill. Like Keith, she brought back coffee to the room after her workout. Keith did some laundry while Anne Marie was working out and also did some reading and writing. Keith has started a book called Googled by Ken Auletta and is already enjoying that book.
We enjoyed another nice breakfast in our room, which was served by Alexander. We spoke with Alexander for a little while talking about our upcoming plans for Alexandra, Egypt and for Ashdod, Israel. Ashdod will be a very busy day as we have an all day shore excursion, which will be followed by a World Cruise event.
The ship remained in Safaga, Egypt until around 12:00 Noon today. Those guests who took an overland program to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings returned late morning. As was the case yesterday, we just stayed on the ship today as we did not have any shore excursions planned. We didn’t take the complimentary shuttle into town because we did this a couple of years ago and there really is not much to this town. There is a hotel and just a few stores and none of them really interest us so this has been a nice time to take advantage of the ship.
Safaga is a small-populated town of only around 35,000 residents and is situated on the Red Sea Coast.
From time to time people will ask what are the requirement when you visit certain places around the world and the requirements for this country is an example of how requirements can change from year to year. When we first visited Egypt in 2007 we had to fill out a landing card and on that card we were asked to note the model number(s) and the value of each piece of electronic equipment such as cameras and video cameras we were taking off the ship. Likewise, we were asked to note the total currency we were taking into the country. In 2008 we also filled out a landing card but it didn’t ask us to note video equipment or currency we were bringing into the country. This time around there were no landing cards to fill out but any passengers or crew member who were getting off the ship was required to carry their passport with them at all times. This is why when others ask what the process is when visiting a country we always say whatever we experienced is always subject to change.
After breakfast we took care of some items on the ship throughout the morning hours and we also spoke with some fellow guests and members of the crew. At one point we were sitting in the Crystal Cove and it was almost like a community chit chat as so many fellow passengers stopped by to say hello to us and to one another.
We enjoyed a very nice lunch in the Lido Café as we each made our very own salad entrée. We sat outside and as we got to the end of the buffet line the Lido Deck Steward team of Nat, Clark, Richie and Glenn assisted us by taking our trays and getting us all set up outside where we ate. They brought our beverages. We also saw Lido Deck Steward Ross whose rotation for this and if we remember correctly the next leg of the World Cruise is serving drinks at lunch. As we have mentioned before, the Lido Deck Stewards rotate to other areas from voyage to voyage which includes other area such as the Trident Grill and Tastes and the Pool Area and the Paddle Tennis Courts. A few of them also are assigned to serve beverages during the daytime. In the evening some of them assist in some of the lounges, in the Main Dining Room and during the shows serving wine, champagne, spirits along with drinks without alcohol. They enjoy the rotation and in addition to enjoying the variety of the various venues their start times vary depending on what rotation they are on so that is nice as well. As we have said from time to time, it is these folks who are the heart of the ship and they are so very kind to all of the guests. The way they conduct themselves and the way they interact with others is truly outstanding. They are very loyal to Crystal Cruises, who in turn, is very loyal to them. This is why so many of them have worked for Crystal Cruises for many years. This is true of so many other key personnel and in our humble options speaks volumes for Crystal and the way they run their business. Our belief is in the end it is the people who make a business successful and in the end it is the people who make Crystal the cruise line they are with the best service of any cruise line we have sailed with.
In the afternoon, Keith played Paddle Tennis with one of the entertainers, one of the fitness directors and a fellow passenger for about an hour until we decided to stop as it was quite windy on the open deck and afterwards met with a couple of his fellow passengers and enjoyed a wonderful conversation with them. Anne Marie took another nice long walk on the Promenade Deck and afterwards she sat out by the pool.
This evening we will dine in the Main Dining Room and look forward to being back at our very own table and enjoying all of the wonderful service, cuisine and ambience of this restaurant.
We will also be attending a 50th Wedding Anniversary Party for a very nice couple who is also on this World Cruise adventure.
In life, we have learned that in most instances success comes from working on a solution to a problem rather than just talking about the problem. We believe that sometimes individuals and other outlets such as the media are too focused on the problem. So, with this in mind here is today’s thought of the day. In business, Keith used to say let’s identify the problem and agree on what the true problem is and then once that was accomplished let’s work together to lay out the solution. So with this in mind, here is
TODAY’S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY…..
“The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.”
Keith and Anne Marie
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