Sunday

Crystal Serenity in Road Town, Tortola 12/18/07

After so much sleep last night; I feel like I’m in a fog. Good thing I had no real plans today. It’s another gorgeous day, this time in Tortola. Opened the drapes to find my view blocked off by a huge ship, the Aida “Vita” (a European promoted cruise line). I’m so used to seeing these ships in the Med. w/ the brightly colored murals painted on the sides of the ships; but not normally in the Carib. This morning I’m staring at this great big eyeball on the face of a mermaid like creature. Unless, like “Dorothy”, I woke up in & I’m not in Kansas (Caribb.) any more.

I was thinking about Eggs Benedict; so I rushed so as to get to the D.R. before 9:30. I make in time only to find out they are closed (9 am on port days). That’s what I get for falling asleep before reading today’s Reflections, or else I would have known this. So, next option would be the Lido café, which I have not eaten in yet. So, I choose a made to order ham/mushroom/cheese omelet (very good), sausage links & Maplewood bacon (way too greasy). I had stopped in the Bistro to fill my cappuccino mug. I’m sitting there digesting the grease when I see Larry walk by. He asked me to join he & Leslie by the pool café while they ate breakfast. They wanted to walk into town; but not before staking out a place close to the pool for some shady afternoon reading. So, we asked the deck stewards, “which way will the sun set”. We got 3 different answers. So we had them move lounge chairs to what we thought was a good spot.


They went off; & I came down to the cabin to type the diary & check e-mail. (I didn’t check yesterday; & I had 67 pieces in my spam folder.) I took so long & half expected them to be sitting there when I went up; but they weren’t back yet. I settled in; & pretty soon the sun starts creeping over into “our space”. So I had the steward move everything. It wasn’t long after they came up that we had to move again. This went on all afternoon. I had a massage appt. scheduled for 3; & didn’t want to eat a big lunch. So, we had a cup of the gazpacho (better today than it has been the whole cruise); & off I went.

My massage was great. I had him do deep tissue (lots of elbows) on the back; & Swedish on the rest of me. It hurt so good. When I came back upstairs the Aida ship was gone. We heard that they were going to have to give up their berth, anchor & tender in the rest of the day to make room for another arriving ship. Pretty soon Holland America’s Zuiderdam comes pulling in next to us. She looks so massive next to this mid size ship. They made an announcement that they were going to close off the pier to us for 15 mins. while they disengorged their passenger load. And before you knew it, it was almost time to sail. They had a “sailaway party” from 4:45-5:30. One of the bands came up & played “elevator style” Carrib. music; & the complimentary drinks flowed freely.

I’m so glad they had the courtesy to stop playing when Crystal’s sailaway music came on the PA system. One last chance to hear “A Wonderful World” & the classical piece “Out to sea”. Being our last sailaway, I found the music more moving than ever. Tears rolling down my cheek; people thought I was crazy. L & L jump out of their lounge chairs to go to the top deck as we pulled away; & Leslie proceeds to fall off the chair while reaching for her shoes. She hit her shoulder; & later said she had a tingling sensation down that arm. She’s going to wait til tomorrow to see if it’s any better before paying a doctor’s fee.

We decided on a casual dinner at the poolside café at 7. I had a great mixed green salad tossed w/ caramelized pecans & walnut vinaigrette. Around the edge of the plate was slices of fresh pear fanned out w/ little balls of goat cheese rolled in chopped chives. An interesting mix of flavors & presented beautifully. My main course was a half lemon maple basted rotisserie (baby sized) chicken w/ a fabulous thick maple sauce. I had sides of sautéed baby leaf spinach w/ garlic & rosemary roasted potatoes. I traded Larry my white meat for his dark; & we were both tickled w/ our selection. For chicken, it was divine. Even though my quantity of food was less, I was just as stuffed as ever (what a sin). I had a single scoop of banana sorbet (a first for me) for dessert.

L & L told me I HAD to go to the show tonight because they had enjoyed these same entertainers earlier in the cruise. A wonderful magician/comedian opened the show. Then the Cruise Director/ Ventriloquist closed it. Gary Hunter has the heaviest Georgia accent I've ever heard; & he managed a 3-way conversation w/ 2 puppets. Made it look so easy. I laughed so hard; was glad I went after all.

When I got back to the cabin, there is the dreaded disembarkation packet. How sad. But I hope to have 2 quiet, relaxing days at sea. We’re expecting force 4 winds (half of what they were in the beginning) & only a slight chop. I’m sure that’ll make a lot of people happy. Tonight I’ll have to use my imagination to be rocked to sleep.

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