Wednesday, March 24, 2010
We had a very nice time on the Serenity last evening as we sailed to our next port of call at Aqaba, Jordan.
There was open seating in the Main Dining Room so we went to the Prego Italian Specialty Restaurant. We began the meal with an appetizer that the chef prepared for each guest. We then enjoyed a wonderful salad that we like to have each time we dine at this restaurant. We each had the fish special of the day which was a delicious Halibut. We concluded our meal with a fruit plate and Anne Marie had decaffeinated coffee while Keith had green tea. We had a waiter who we have often and enjoyed a wonderful conversation with him about his home town. We also spoke with others such as the Maitre d’ (Antonio) and the Head Waiter (Enzo) and it was just a wonderful dinner for us.
After dinner we stopped by the room for a few minutes and our butler, Alexander, came by with the wine that he had removed from our room prior to our visit to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The good news is that Jeddah was the last port where this procedure of removing and locking up alcohol will be required.
Later in the evening we attended a Carnival that was held around the indoor Neptune Pool area from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM. The event included an evening of fun, food and games. There were a variety of carnival like games set up and guests who won a particular event would win tickets, which could be turned in for prizes. This is an event that is usually offered one time on each World Cruise and we enjoy it a great deal. There is a certain excitement in the air and its nice to see the little boy and girl if you will in each passenger no matter what their biological age is. We did win a nice prize; another stuffed animal for the collection. We spoke to many fellow passengers and crew. Various dessert and other snacks were served along with wine, beer, ice cream and other items. We had a lovely evening.
Before we went to bed we turned the clocks back on hour as we sail into yet another new time zone.
As we reflect upon yesterday that we only got a small glimpse of Jeddah and of course the country. We had very little interaction with the people other than with the tour guide and a few merchants; many who could speak limited English. Therefore, we do not want to draw any conclusions. We are happy to have had the opportunity to visit this city and country and suspect that Crystal Cruises will sail here again in future years.
After a day in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia it was nice to spend a day at sea as we sail to our next port of call at Aqaba, Jordan.
We awoke early this morning and Keith enjoyed another nice workout at the Fitness Center. He worked out on the Elliptical Machine. One of the other regulars was up at the Center much earlier because he and his wife forgot to set their clocks back one hour last night. This happened to us on a previous voyage. As Keith does almost every day after the workout he stopped by the Lido Café for some coffee, which he brought back to the room to enjoy. Anne Marie worked out on the Treadmill and like Keith she too brought coffee back to the room from the Lido Café.
Alexander delivered our breakfast to the room at 8:00 AM and we enjoyed a nice breakfast as we watched the Crystal Cruises Daily Morning Show. They showed highlights from last evenings Carnival and it reminded us of all of the happy faces we saw last evening. The carnival does bring out the child in each of us.
Keith did call into the show to answer correctly one of the trivia questions.
During Captain Glenn’s morning talk from the bridge he noted that we were ahead of schedule for tomorrows arrival to Aqaba. He noted that we are sailing in the Red Sea with Egypt on one side of the ship and Saudi Arabia on the other side.
We loved his daily thought of the day which was “If you don’t have anything good to say about someone then you don’t know them well enough to say anything bad.”
Today was another fun and busy day on the ship as we sail to the next port of call.
There were three lectures today; two in the morning and one in the afternoon.
Destination Lecturer Professor Jean-Pierre Isbourt presented “All Roads Lead to Petra – A virtual tour of the amazing sights of Petra the leading city of Roman Arabia and the terminus for caravans from the East, bearing the luxuries for the villas of rome’s upper classes.”
The next lecture was given by interest Lecturer Dinesh D’Souza who presented “Is America the Problem?’ His lecture focused on America’s role in the world, with special attention to the consequences of American foreign policy in the Middle East. Dinesh D’Souza offered what he considers to be original, workable solutions for improving America’s security while also improving conditions in the Muslim world.
What we have learned from the lectures such as the one given by Dinesh is that there are a variety of opinions on what to do going forward. In our opinion, no one should think that his or her solution is the only right one. In fact, sometimes there is more than one solution or sometimes the solution that works for one problem is not the same solution for another similar problem. What has become clear to us is that finding the solutions to many of these issues is going to be a large challenge. There are some who say how come there can’t be agreement in the Middle East by all of the countries involved and why can’t all of this be accomplished without emotion. Well, just look at the debate in the United States of America on various items including health care. Somehow the topic of healthcare went from a rational discussion to an emotional discussion and the same applies to other items that our internal to many countries around the world. In many countries around the world there is not consensus on various items and sometimes these discussions become quite heated. So, this is yet another challenge that we face in the Middle East and Asia given all of the countries who come into play.
After the lectures, we enjoyed a nice lunch. We went to the Nuevo Latino Luncheon Buffet where we each prepared our own salad entrée.
Another couple who is on this leg of the World Cruise sat with us and we had a very nice talk with them about each of our observations from yesterday’s tours of Saudi Arabia.
We learned that our tour of Israel was canceled due to lack of participation. L That tour was called King Herod’s Tomb and Jerusalem, which turned out was part of the Signature Collection of Crystal Tours. We took some time to figure out a replacement tour and then went by the Shore Excursion Desk. Before they can issue us tickets they must have the permission of the Israel Local Authorities and this should occur but will take a couple of days. In 2007 we took a great tour called Eternal Jerusalem so the one we decided to add today is called Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Hopefully, we will get this tour. We also have the World Cruise event that evening and we turned in an RSPV card indicating we will be attending that event. This will be a very long day between the tour and the event but one that will be very memorable.
In the afternoon Professor Jean-Pierre Isbouts gave another lecture and presented “Luxor, the Triumph of the New Kingdom.” As part of this presentation he talked about the great upheaval of the Hyksos Revolt.
Anne Marie took a nice long walk on the Promenade Deck in the afternoon while Keith read, wrote and spoke with some fellow passengers. Keith also played paddle tennis.
This evening we will dine at Silk Road. We will dine with Japanese Guest Relations Officer Keiko Osugi and her husband Lecturer Rex Ziak.
We also plan to go to a variety show which will include Juggler Niels Duinker and Comedian Mike Goddard.
Tomorrow we will arrive to Aqaba, Jordan and look forward to visiting the Lost City of Petra for our second time.
TODAY’S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY…..
“Every real new idea looks crazy at first.”
Keith and Anne Marie
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