At Sea

We had a nice day at sea playing games and enjoying different views from the decks. For dinner we decided to go back to Izumi for an ala carte dinner. It ended up costing less than one regular priced menu! I wasn’t very hungry today since I overate yesterday. I had a delicious soup with shrimp/pork wantons in it. Stuart had the Izumi Ryu Futomaki Roll. After dinner we went to listen to Emma sing. However, some guy has become her groupie and talks and talks between songs. It gets old fast. We saw that Vortex Bar was playing Abba Music so we left Schooner’s and went up there. It is a DJ but loved the music and they have a very entertaining bar tender named Feri (he says call him Freddie). We left just before closing to get some sleep for Nanortalik tomorrow! Excited to finally set foot on Greenland!

At Sea

We played games most of the day. There was a memorial for 9-11. Stuart was contacted by a friend from high school, tell him that another friend was on this cruise. Stuart talked with the woman Robin and husband Paul and we met them for dinner at Chops Grille. It was an enjoyable evening. We didn't get together with them again but we did see them around the ship. 

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada today. Sadly, we did not get off. I awoke with my back hurting. I have been to Halifax before, but Stuart hasn't. He didn't care to get off either. We finally left the cabin for lunch and then played Phase 10 until almost 4p. It is raining outside, they said there would be thunder storms but we don't hear that happening. Now it is back to the cabin to each do a few things on the computer and we will head out for dinner about 7:30 or 8p in hopes of avoiding the chaos. First we stopped for a drink before dinner and then on to Tides Restaurant. Our timing more or less worked because the lines were much shorter at 8p. It was Mexican night and pretty tasty. After that we went to Schooner’s Bar and listened to Emma again, then off to bed.

Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada

Today we are in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada. We had a lovely day walking around and had some delicious fish and chips at the Governors Pub and Eatery. We sat outside with a nice view of the water before us. It is high 60's but when the wind picked up, it was pretty cool. When the sun came out from behind the clouds it was very comfortable. It is a nice port with shops and many things to look at. Sail Away is 4:30p so it was back onboard and playing Phase 10 before getting ready for dinner tonight. 

We thought that avoiding the MDR (main dining room) until day 3 would be helpful in avoiding the chaos that usually happens the first couple of days. Not so much! There were 2 long lines. One for seating for 2 and one for larger groups. If you have a reservation, it doesn't matter since you have to stand in the very same line as everyone else. It makes no sense. Several things on this ship could use a bit of organization!

After dinner we went to the show. It was a production show called City of Dreams. It was very good with excellent singing and dancing from the entertainers. We followed the show by going to the Schooner Bar to listen to Emma again. We stayed up just past midnight... the thought was to get up at a decent hour for Halifax but we will see. 

No photos as the internet is too slow to post them. 

At Sea

Our first full day, it is a sea day. Certainly, time to relax, sleep in, and get our bearings. Stuart got up before me and ate a small breakfast. The seas were a bit rough, rolling mostly. I was not feeling great at first but I took some Dramamine and got better pretty quickly. By the time I was ready it was time for lunch. We had a couple small pieces of pizza from the Solarium Cafe. It is a tiny cafe with just a few things besides pizza. They have the makings for a roast beef sandwich today, a small salad bar, some fresh fruit, and a dessert display. We found a place to sit and eat that, then we went on to walk around the ship a little bit and see the shops and a few other things. After that we found a table and we played Phase 10 until dinner time. 

Sadly, there was a medical emergency and we headed to Halifax for the acute passenger to be taken to a hospital. WE didn't dock but they sent out a boat to remove the ill person. It does not change our times at all. I guess the captain can adjust a little bit. 

We just ate in the Windjammer Buffet for dinner. It depends on what you choose if you enjoy dinner or not. Some of the food is not hot enough in my opinion. It was French Bistro night, but there weren't too many French selections. Anyway, we had plenty to eat. After that we headed to the show, which was a Beatles tribute band of sorts. It was pretty good and we enjoyed that. We went to the early show, so now we were in search of a venue to listen to some easy listening music. We wandered to the Schooner Bar and we did have a surprise! There we found Emma and Zack (now called Rose) at the piano. It was great to see them and they played Africa for us. They were playing 2 pianos at the Billboard Onboard when we were in the Zuiderdam. It wasn't quite the same as Emma is playing and Rose just sits there. I'm not sure what that's about. Off to bed. We want to get up at a decent time to enjoy Sydney tomorrow. 

Let's Get Onboard!

Before leaving for the ship we walked across to the bowling alley again for DW Brewpub. We had wings that weren’t very good. On our way to the port, we saw a lot of people enjoying the beach and many sail boats. It was a pretty quick ride to the cruise port but oh brother, what a LONG line! The ship had their annual Coast Guard inspection and therefore, things got going late. It took 1 hour and 15 minutes to check in and get to our cabin! No welcome champagne, and I will say the dock workers were not very friendly. They kept screaming “keep moving” which of course we were doing. I suppose they were frustrated about the delays as well.

Once we dropped things at our cabin, we walked around the ship to see where things were located. They had a lively Sail Away party, which a few people participated in, we watched and had a beverage, and received our free beverage package cup. We were surprised to see the Holland America Zuiderdam in port. That was the ship we spent 73 days on circumnavigating Africa last year, we watched her sail away. After that it was back to the cabin to unpack and get ready for our specialty dinner at Izumi. 

This Izumi Restaurant did not disappoint. It is nice to be able to avoid the main dinning room on the first day or two, until things settle in and crowds dwindle. 

Getting to Boston

We arrived in Boston with no delays. It took some time to get to the hotel because it was a bit after 4p and it was rush hour traffic. After settling in we walked across the parking lot where there was a bowling alley. There was a restaurant in the bowling alley called DW Brewpub where we split a tasty burger and a huge number of fries we could not finish. Back to bed. Stuart paid for a late departure so we don’t have to get up too early.