Friday, March 19, 2010
We enjoyed another fun time on the ship last evening.
We had an outstanding dinner in the Main Dining Room. We each had a salad, and Anne Marie had scallops for her entrée while Keith enjoyed the Ahi Tuna Steak entrée. They were both yummy. We had lots of vegetables and berries for our dessert. We both enjoyed this dinner and thought that the entrees were just fantastic.
At a table next to us is Hugh Downs who many of you might remember as the Host of the Today Show in the 1960’s with Barbara Walters and the Co-Host of 20/20 which he also co-hosted for many years with Barbara Walters. We look forward to his lectures during the cruise.
After dinner we attended a cocktail reception that was hosted by the Travel Consortium that our Travel Specialist Lynn Segal is affiliated with. There has been one reception per leg of the World Cruise, which provides a nice opportunity to socialize with some of our fellow passengers. The reception lasted forty-five minutes and was held in one of the lounges. A couple of other of the travel consortiums held their receptions last evening in other areas of the ship. In addition to talking with some of our fellow passengers we also spoke with some of the officers who attended this reception. We each spoke in length to a few passengers including a some who have been on the ship since January along with a few who just joined the ship the other day.
We then attended the evening entertainment, which featured vocalist Karen Beckett. One of the songs she sang was the song we had selected for the first song we danced to at our wedding. The diversity of entertainers that we have had throughout the cruise has just been wonderful. We have had a nice mix of different types of entertainers and also a nice mix of those who are first time entertainers with Crystal and those who have entertained previously with Crystal.
We enjoyed another very good night sleep and the seas were very calm. Overall, we have been fortunate to have such good seas and that the weather in almost all of the ports of call has been wonderful.
Today is the first of four sea days as we make our way to our next port of call in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This will be a maiden port of call for Crystal Cruise and our first visit to Saudi Arabia. We suspect that sometime soon the women will be receiving whatever item they will need to wear. We also know that all alcohol will once again be removed from the staterooms before we arrive to Jeddah and will be returned to us once we leave.
As we do each day, Keith awoke early to start off another day with a nice workout in the Fitness Center. He was the second one up to the center. For the first time this cruise at one point all four of the Elliptical Machines were in use. While working out on the Elliptical Machine he caught one of the NCAA Basketball games while also going back and forth to catch some of the world news. After a long workout he stopped by the Lido Café to bring back some coffee to the room. Around the time Keith got back to the room, Anne Marie began her workout on the Treadmill. Like Keith, she brought some coffee back to the room.
Around the time Anne Marie arrived back to the room, Alexander brought our breakfast. Since today is a sea day we watched the Crystal Morning Show hosted by Cruise Director Rick Spath and World Cruise Hostess Stacey Huston while we ate our breakfast. During the show they mentioned that someone would be on the show tomorrow to show the ladies how to wear the special attire they will each be given to wear in Saudi Arabia.
Tomorrow all of the women who will be going ashore in Saudi Arabia will receive an Abbaya.
We listened to Captain Glenn’s thought of the day, which is an excellent one and goes like this. “It’s better to need and not have it than to have and not need it.”
At 9:00 AM Anne Marie attended Catholic Mass while Keith visited the shore excursion desk to finalize a private tour we have arranged with Crystal. When we arrive in Aquaba we will go with another couple to Petra rather than taking the group tour. This was still arranged with Crystal and they will use the same tour operator who takes care of all of the other tours in Jordan. The benefit is that once inside Petra we wil l have a private guide and we will be able to get to places that the group tour won’t be able to get to. We did this in 2007 and originally were going to pass on Petra but when we spoke with the Shore Excursion Manager in January he had a very valid point which was that many times if you visit a place such as Petra multiple times you will see things that you did not the first time around. We enjoyed Petra so much the first time around we thought that his advice made perfect sense.
At 10:00 AM we attended a mandatory guest and crew emergency drill. This drill was on top of the one we attended two days ago and was done because of the waters we are sailing given the situation with the pirates. The drill focused on those items that guests should be aware of related to the pirates.
At 11:00 AM we attended a lecture given by Celebrity Lecturer Marc Ginsberg. His presentation was titled “Al Qaeda’s Virtual Caliphate – The Internet and Media Battle for Hearts and Minds. The Ambassador has lectured on other cruises we have been on and he always gives a wonderful lecture. He has had a very solid career first serving as a Middle East Foreign Policy advisor to the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy. In 1977 Secretary of State Cyrus Vance as a special assistant for the White House appointed him. In 1978, he was appointed Deputy Senior Advisor to the President for Middle East Policy. He also worked extensively on the Camp David negotiations. When he was young he was raised in Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon and is fluent in several languages including Arabic so he brings an extensive background to the table.
In today’s talk the Ambassador discussed how Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups are using the Internet, including web broadcasts to train, recruit and radicalize those to do harm to others. He also talked about what a group he is involved with is doing to counter some of this.
After the lecture we had lunch at the Asia Café Buffet which was held on the Lido Deck. We each prepared a very nice salad entrée. Father Wilbur sat with us and we enjoyed a very nice discussion with him.
We did not attend the lecture in the afternoon as we have seen this one before. Instead, Anne Marie took a very nice long walk on the Promenade Deck and then enjoyed sitting out by the pool. Keith did reading, and writing and as he does often sat with a few of our fellow passengers to try to find common ground on various world issues.
This evening we will dine at Silk Road with another couple who we have sailed with in 2007 and 2008. Afterwards, we will be attending a special World Cruise event called the “Temple Of Xonodu”. This event will feature cocktails, canapés, dancing and a performance by several members of the entertainment team.
This evening the dinner menu features some unique items. This includes a Salad Dinner Entrée of Prosciutto Wrapped Roast Rabbit Loin, and there was also a Braised Wild Boar Cassoulet. At the same time there were lots of other items that will likely appeal to more of the guests. J
TODAY’S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY…..
“The world does not have to change…The only thing that has to change is our attitude.”
Keith and Anne Marie
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