NOTE: We posted two pictures from last evening, which was informal night on the ship. One was a pictures of us taken before dinner at one of the lounges and the other picture was taken of us by our senior waiter where we are standing by our dining room table.
We also posted two pictures from this evening which was formal. One picture from the Crystal Cove Area outside the Main Dining Room and the other one from Silk Road.
We wanted to recap last evening. We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner in the Main Dining Room. The food, service and the overall ambience of the dining room are superb. We really enjoyed the Brazilian Red Snapper. We spoke for awhile with our Headwaiter Agusto about his approach to eating while on the ship and also talked about how we approach a long voyage. On our way out of the dining room we spoke again with Augusto and Mario. Mario rotates during the year from Maitre d’ to Senior Head Waiter to Headwaiter and runs often and is the one who ran the equivalent of a Marathon the other day. Anne Marie has been teasing Keith that he is as thin as Mario. So, we tried to figure out how tall Mario is and his weight. The challenge is that we refer to height and weight differently between the two countries so at this point we are not quite sure how Mario and Keith compare. J
We appreciated that last nights show began at 7:45 PM given that we wake up early in the morning and we thought the show was terrific. We had seen this singer perform in 2008 and thought that this show was even better. She sang a variety of songs but those that she did from various operas were fantastic. We also are enjoying the wide range of entertainment on this voyage. Crystal recognizes that the interests of its passengers are indeed diverse so by officering a wife range of activities and entertainment there is always something for someone to enjoy.
We also learned from our Cruise Director Rick Spath the times that both NFL Championship Games will be broadcast this Sunday. We will likely be able to catch portions of the first game which we believe is the AFC championship and possibly just a little bit of the second game. It is more challenging for us since we not only get up very early in the morning but we are now on a time zone that is three hours ahead of the East Coast Standard Time. It is nice that Crystal pays the associated fees to get these live feeds of special events for its passengers to enjoy.
We began our day as we do most mornings with Keith getting up very early and beginning his day at the Fitness Center. He enjoyed a great workout on his favorite Elliptical Machine. Fellow passengers Brian and John also worked out on the Elliptical Machines arriving at different times of the morning. Anne Marie also worked out on the Treadmill. We are both also using the Weight Lifting Machines frequently.
A little while after Anne Marie finished her workout it was time to for breakfast, which we enjoyed in our room. Keith also managed to get to loads of laundry done. It’s always good if you can multi-task, which Keith find easy for him to do. We find that this is a good time of day to get the laundry taken care of along with late afternoon.
During Captain Glenn’s morning talk he noted that we are on schedule to arrive in Rio. We were running on four engines and averaging 16.5 Knots an hour. Captain Glenn’s thought of the day was, “Everything has its beauty, not everyone sees it.”
Today is another sea day as we continue to cruise over to Rio. Like many of our fellow passengers we love the sea days, as there is so much to do on the ship.
We finally tuned in for The Crystal Morning Show, which is hosted by Cruise Director Rick Spath and the World Cruise Hostess Stacey Huston. Keith new the answer to the first Trivia Question but was working on the photos so couldn’t call in. Anne Marie called in during the third and final question and she got the answer. We enjoyed the show and will try to catch more of them during this voyage.
So after breakfast we enjoyed several activities throughout the day.
We began our day by attending Rap With The Rabbi. Once again we enjoyed the discussion. We always feel that we learn something that we did not know from each of these sessions and enjoy listening to not only the Rabbi but to our fellow passengers.
As this morning the crew had a fire and lifeboat drill we did not have a 10:00 AM lecture. At 11:00 AM Destination Lecturer presented “Sun, Sand and Samba- The Brazil Story.” He talked about how a remote colonial outpost grew into one of the world’s most exciting cities. He also covered why Brazil could be the world’s fifth richest country by 2050 and what to see and where to go in Rio de Janeiro. We have thoroughly enjoyed each and every one of Ken’s talks. He will be on for a portion of this adventure, then get off for a portion and then be back for another portion. Several times Ken and his wife have attended Rap With The Rabbi and have provided information related to the ports of call we visit.
Once again, we enjoyed our lunch at the Lido Café. We also enjoy having lunch in the Main Dining Room but with the weather so nice we have enjoyed having lunch on the open deck right outside the Lido Café. It’s always good to get fresh air and to enjoy the ocean that is all around us. Each day we make up our own Salad Entrée. During the course of the lunch it also gives us the opportunity to talk with the wonderful Lido Deck Stewards and others who also work in other areas of the ship.
In the afternoon, Keith continued his playing of paddleball. He is really enjoying learning this game, and playing with fellow passengers and from time to time members of the crew. It’s providing him with a nice opportunity to get to know certain passengers who he might not get to know so well.
At the same time Anne Marie took a long afternoon walk on the Promenade Deck of the ship. We think this is the best Promenade Deck of any ship we have ever been on. This one is wide enough so two people can walk side by side while another person can pass them by say if they are jogging and it goes completely around the ship without having to go up or down and stairs. The other two nice features is that there are no lifeboats on this deck as is the case for many ships and there is very little furniture so it is quite open. They used to have shuffleboard set up on the promenade deck but that was moved in 2008 to another area of the ship to make this a nice wide-open areas. This is a nice feature of the ship.
Another nice feature that many passengers enjoy who are towards the aft (rear) on the various passengers decks is that if they go out the back door there is some public space with chairs and lounge chairs and many times it has the feel of being on a private yacht. We know several people who book rooms in the aft location of the ship for this reason. Of course, no matter where you are located you can walk to this area of the ship. On many ships this feature is not available since many times that areas becomes the verandah area for many of the suites.
This evening was formal night on the ship and also represents the last formal night for those passengers departing in Rio.
We went to Silk Road on this evening and since this was a formal night Silk Road was not very busy as many passenger’s prefer the Main Dining Room for Formal Night. This was the first time we have gone to Silk Road by ourselves since boarding the ship in Miami.
After dinner, we went to the Captain’s Farewell Reception. Of course for us this is not a farewell but represents the continuation of our adventure. We do realize that at some point all good things come to an end so we know we will indeed go to a Captain’s Farewell Reception in April, which will mark the end of our adventure.
TODAY’S THOUGHT OF THE DAY……
The following quote is from Anne Frank. This any many other quotes along with our own and the experiences of others reinforces our view which is to see that glass as half full and to make each and everyday count as much as it can.
“Whoever is happy will make others happy too. He who has courage and faith will never perish in misery.”
Keith and Anne Marie
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