Saturday, February 14, 2009~~~En Route to Miami Happy Valentine's Day!

Our stop in Tortola yesterday was terrific! We researched the beaches and the general consensus was that Brewer's Bay Beach had the best snorkeling and was quieter and more private than the others. We took a taxi over the island to Brewer's and the ride over was a bit of an E ride at Disneyland. Narrow roads, sheer drop-offs, hair-pin turns and everyone driving on the opposite side of the road (for us)! But there were also magnificent views of the island and the Symphony at dock. There were probably only a half dozen people at the beach and we were able to rent lounge chairs. The water was crystal clear and turquoise with a soft, white sandy bottom. It was the quintessential tropical beach with white, white sand, palm trees and other trees for shade and even some beach glass and shells. We stayed for about 4 hours and then our taxi came back to pick us up. I think we really could have stayed longer.

Last night Jane Self, the Crystal Society Hostess, entertained David and I and Jim Frazier (also from Memphis) for dinner in Prego. It was a lovely dinner with lots of wine and good conversation. Jane is leaving Symphony and will be based on Serenity very soon. I'll miss her when we sail Symphony. This morning we received a photo from Jane of all of us posed at the table.

After dinner we went to the show. Mark Merchant was hot, hot, hot last night! Zelda Rose was his puppet for the evening and the audience just loved Zelda and him! In one of his jokes, he mentioned cabin 7116--our cabin, as an inside joke. This morning he is proudly wearing a Valentine's
Day button that he says is from his wife--"This button is sent by the World's Greatest Lover"--but I think it's really from his dog, Nixy!

Michel Bell performed for the second half of the show and he was wonderful, as usual. His voice is amazing and he did songs from "Porgy and Bess." He's an all-round nice guy, too, as is his wife, Catherine.

This is our next to the last day of this cruise, so I guess we are on day 69 of our wonderful, wonderful voyage! It is going to be so difficult to say goodbye to Symphony and our friends on board. These are just a few of the people who made our stay so wonderfully special: Our stewardesses Veronica and Sonja; our crazy, crazy waiters, and my 2nd and 3rd sons: Goren and Darko; our great head waiters: Pietrv, Ivo and Vlada, our Maitre d' Remy, Seiji, the Chef de Cuisine of Silk Road; Slavka and Willy, the wonderful head waiters of Prego and Silk Road; Norbert and Paolo, the Maitre d's of Prego and Silk Road; Thomas the bar tender in Starlite; Scott Mitchell, the pianist in Crystal Cove and Trivia host extradordinaire; Scott Peterson, the best Cruise Director in the business; Jasmine, the lovely, lovely librarian and my friend; Jane Self, the Crystal Society Hostess; all the Lido Deck waiters: Allen, Lester, Joseph, Clarry, Chester, Charlie, Jeoffry, Sherwyn, Leo, Jonathan, Inan, and others I
know I am forgetting; Arnold, the Trident Grill Chef who shows grace under pressure and is one great guy; Gene, Micheal, Julie and Crimena, the wine stewards; Eva and Florent, the Bar Managers who did a fantastic job with the Cruise Critic Cocktail Party; Gareth, Benita and Anne Marie
from the reception desk; my wonderful Art at Sea Instructor--Kristina Nugent, Ryan in the Casino and so many others. Service is what makes Crystal stand out above all other cruise lines!

I did manage to pack 4 suitcases, so I feel like I've got a handle on packing. I hate this job, partially because it represents the end of the cruise.and partially because it is a drag. As I look at the souvenirs from South America, it seems like so very long ago.

This morning we went on a Bridge Tour. There were only 4 of us and Maro, the First Officer, explained all the controls and equipment. They do have an excellent view up there.

We took a break and entered the Slot Tournament where I came in 4th and won a t-shirt and a $10 slot coupon. I couldn't repeat my lucky win!

This afternoon was a special Valentine's Day Chocolate Tea and we stopped by to take a few photos and sample some goodies---and we actually only sampled! Afterwards we chatted with Jay and Carol Wolff. Jay's lectures are always excellent. Last year they sailed for 9 months and Jay
lectured on Crystal and Holland America.

Tonight is the Captain's Cocktail Party and the last formal night. It's so hard to say good-bye!

All for now,
Sad to Leave Symphony

Thursday, February 12, 2009!~~~St. Barts

Wow! I forgot to tell you all about he hole in the hull! We were 5 hours late in leaving Aruba because they had to repair a hole in the hull. Although it wasn't very big, it did take them all day and into the evening to repair it. Needless to say, we were glad that they noticed it and took care of it. Poor Captain Giske, just add one more thing to his list of woes!

St. Maarten yesterday was a shopping day. I needed to get a gift for my mom and one for my mom's caregiver, Hattie. David was supposed to go on a shore excursion, Discovery Scuba for Non-certified Divers, but it was canceled at the last minute due to high winds and murky water. Poor David, he was really looking forward to that.

I did manage to get one suitcase packed---only 7 more to go! I ended up talking to Lennox for far longer than I intended yesterday and used up all our phone minutes, but how can I hang up on my grandson who says "Wait Kiki! I have one more thing to tell you!" I really, really miss the
boys and can't wait to see them. As Lennox says, "Kiki, I know what you're going to do when you see me. You're going to give me thousands of hugs and kisses!"

Last night both of the couples at our table had dinner reservations elsewhere, so they moved us to a table for two next to the Captain's table. The dining room was so empty that at one point we had three wine stewards and our waiters hovered around the table, bored because they had so little to do. Cremina, the wine steward said that the crew who didn't know us were going to ask if we were celebrities since we attracted so many staff. She said she was going to tell them we were really famous people and that she wasn't allowed to tell them our name!

We were supposed to tender in and go to the beach in St. Barts this morning, but we ended up sitting on 11 aft and talking for 2 hours to Mark Merchant. Lovely setting and great conversation! As the day wore on, we decided to stay on board and enjoy the pool. The shops close in St Barts until about 3 pm, so it was fruitless to go ashore. We are glad we decided against it. The wind picked up and the tenders were rolling around in the sea like toy boats. We watched them come up to the ship from deck 7 and people were having a great deal of difficulty exiting the tenders. Shirley told us about one guest on a previous journey who had slipped between the tender and the ship and fractured his leg. It could
have easily happened today. The weather has definitely impacted our plans on this trip. St. Barts is truly a beautiful island, even from afar.

 I can't believe we sailed at 6 pm yesterday to sail 14 miles. I wonder why we didn't stay later in St. Maarten? There is a Silversea ship anchored near us, a 400 passenger ship, as well as a Yachts of Seabourne ship. What a relief after the huge mega-passenger vessels that were docked in St. Maarten yesterday! Between passengers and crew, there had to be close to 20,000 people in town. Docked were: The Crown Princess, the Carnival Liberty, and the Royal CaribbeanIndependence of the Seas. We looked like a tender next to those giant ships.

Tomorrow is our last port, Tortola, and we are definitely planning to go to the Brewer Beach. There is supposed to be excellent snorkeling there.

Caio for now!
Ricki

Tuesday, February 10, 2009~~~En route to St. Maarten
Yesterday was a great day in Aruba! The weather was perfect until the late afternoon's rain storm, but by that time we were back on board Symphony. We got up early and took a taxi to the Hyatt Hotel and enjoyed the beach and pool there. The ocean was really beautiful and both of us floated around in it for a while. We didn't bother with shopping since tomorrow we will be in St. Maarten.

Last night we had dinner with Shirley in Silk Road as her guest. Seiji, the Chef de Cuisine of the Sushi Bar pulled out all the stops and made us some spectacular food that was not on the menu. Shirley has a standing reservation in Silk Road and Prego anytime she wants and only eats in the dining room on formal nights. After dinner we went to see our friend Mark Merchant who did a very funny show! He's so very talented!

Today, although the seas have calmed down, it has not been smooth Caribbean Seas. We participated in Team Trivia and did the Library Quiz. You have to do something on board a ship this long to prevent your brain from turning to mush! It was also the Gala Buffet today and I think I'm
finally "fooded" out! I walked through the entire buffet and nothing appealed to me, even though I know it is excellent food. I settled for some fruit.

Tonight is the Crystal Society cocktail party and a formal night. We've special ordered Indian food and are really looking forward to it.
xoxo
Ricki

Sunday, February 8, 2009~~~Somewhere on the way from Panama to Aruba OK, OK, enough is enough! We are having very rough seas (from the TV display) with 54 knot winds hitting the ship head on (the equivalent of 60 mph). This has been going on since about 10 pm last night. The movement on the ship is so bad with heaving and shuddering and yawing and the occasional pot hole that I got very little sleep last night. Although the winds are not as high, I think the movement is greater than when we went through Drake's Passage. Per the Captain at 9 am, we can expect this to last until the evening. As I said before, I think weather has become Captain Giske's personal albatross!

Last night we had a fantastic dinner in Silk Road, as usual! Mark Merchant, the ventriloquist joined us for dinner and the three of us managed to finish off a prodigious amount of sushi and sashimi! Hyperion Knight, a pianist, was the entertainment, but we skipped it in favor of a quick opportunity to visit my money in the casino.

Today is the Asian Buffet and the day before yesterday was the Nuevo Latino Buffet, we've stopped going, just too much food! It also seems like everything is so compressed in these 11 day cruises.
Tonight we have dinner in Prego with Cornel and tomorrow is Aruba.

If I could stay on longer, I definitely would, so I'm not eager to leave the ship. But I miss Samantha and the boys: Lennox, Alex and Julien and my mom. So I am beginning to think about packing and winding down our wonderful, wonderful journey.
love,
Rock and Roll Girl

Tuesday, February 3, 2009~~~Transiting the Panama Canal
For those of you who are freezing your tushies off, we are steaming! The air weighs heavy and drips with moisture. It is actually raining a little and as the speaker from the Canal Authority says, anytime it rains in Panama, it is a blessing. We are actually crossing the Continental Divide at this moment. Although we have been through the canal before, we got up at 6:30 AM to be up in the Palm Court for the entry into the Gatun Locks. Well 6:30 wasn't early enough! All those farmers aboard from Oklahoma, Kansas and Iowa must be used to getting up with the chickens, because the Palm Court was packed! Outside on deck 12 was packed! I finally found a good spot on deck 7 forward, while David went up to 8. Luckily, Cornel, our friend and the ship's doctor, was standing on the bow in the crew section. He graciously took my camera and got great photos of the locks for us. I'm not sure that most of the passengers on this cruise can read. They kept going into the crew section, demanding that the crew move out of the way so that they can get their photos. Jane, the Crystal Society Hostess, had to play policewoman until security came and escorted them out. It clearly says CREW ONLY, but they ignored the sign.
One of the Holland American ships, the Z....dam (I can't remember it's full name) docked in the lake after the first set of locks and tendered passengers in to the museum. I don't think they continued to the Pacific, rather turned around and went back to the Caribbean.
4:20 pm~~~We are just leaving the Miraflores Locks. The last time we went through the canal, two years ago, the ships were lined up waiting to get in. This time, we've seen very few ships. I wonder if it a fluke or if the economy has cut into the shipping business, too. We did see two huge NYK container ships, and there may have been more before or after us. Can you imagine what they pay per day in fees to the Panama Canal???
This cruise has been a wind down after all the excitement and fun of the South American segments. The lecturers have become less interesting and even the lectures on the Panama Canal sound almost verbatim from the documentary on the canal that has been running non-stop on the TV. The woman who teaches the art class is very nice, but each session is a "stand alone" class and not as interesting as Kristina Nugent's classes. In her defense, this is a much shorter cruise and there isn't the opportunity to build skills.
Sunday night we dined in Silk Road with Cornel. The food gets better and better. The chef prepared a special appetizer of white fish tempura with a vinegrette sauce that was incredible! It was so light and not greasy at all! The ship did a big super bowl viewing party in the Starlite with hotdogs, nachos, popcorn, etc. It was really well attended. We passed through on our way to dinner. Mary, thank you for your tip on the Rum (?Rom) Strudel dessert. We special ordered it last night and it was outstanding! I have to say that on this entire cruise we have only had one bad meal--the veal a'la Mama. Otherwise, everything has been excellent. We started out with good intentions to eat like Keith and Anne Marie, but obviously lack the strength of character! Keith, your discipline must be incredible!
Last night was the Captain's Farewell Cocktail Party and the last formal night. We went to kareoke afterwards and there is a real drop in talent! Mary and Christie--where are you?? Seiji, the Chef de Cuisine of the Sushi Bar, sang two songs, one in Japanese and the other in English. He has an incredible voice. Also, the Captain's assisstant, Sabrina sang and she, too, has a lovely voice. Otherwise, it was mainly drunk passengers. Judith, you will be proud of us--David and I came in positions one and two in the Library quiz! I can't say that is true for Trivia. There is one team of repeat trivia-playing passengers and they have creamed us every time but one!
I can't believe that we are almost at our last segment. It's like looking through the wrong end of a telescope when I think about the start of the cruise, way back in December. But if I think about it, it's how fast it all has gone.
Judith, they are offering the shore excursion that you created on 6230 for intransit guests: mangrove cruise and bird sanctuary. They don't know if it will go since there are only 99 passengers intransit.
We've just passed the city of Panama. I wish the ship used it as a port. It would be interesting to see up close. As it is, it rises out of the jungle with even more skyscrapers than in 2007.
We had a following sea yesterday, with high waves, but little motion on the ship. The Captain warned us that it wouldn't be a following sea on the return trip and we are in for some high seas. But, hey, we have our sea legs since Antarctica! Truly a "Baptism by Fire!"
Off now to make some reservations in Prego and Silk Road for the last segment.
Caio for now!
Canal Girl

Monday, January 26, 2009. On board Crystal Symphony en route to St. Maarten
This marks our 4th segment on Crystal Symphony this cruise. It was very hard to say good-bye to all the friends we met on our cruise around South America. After everyone disembarked by about 10:15 am, it was so empty on the ship that it felt as if we had the ship to ourselves. We managed to get 2 loads of laundry done without any difficulty.
At about 10:45, we cleared customs and were picked up outside the terminal building by our friends, Pat and John Delaney from Ft. Lauderdale. As we were driving past the buildings, John said “Boy this neighborhood is really going down hill, look at those 2 bums over there!” and he pointed to the right side of the road. There standing with signs that said “Memphis or bust!” were our friends Brian Bell and Gary Sundburg from Walnut Creek, Ca. I couldn't believe what I saw and it took me a few seconds to put it together and then I started screaming! I couldn't believe it! I had no suspicion that they were going to be in Florida! Evidently, Pat, John, Brian and Gary put this together as a huge surprise for us! They kept such a good secret, it was thrilling to see them! Pat and John and Brian and Gary are friends we made on Crystal Symphony Cruise #6230, December, 2007, transiting the Panama Canal. That cruise was the absolute best we have taken for making friends and having incredible laughs! We have made such enduring friendships from that cruise: Brian, Gary, Pat, John, Mary Mc Kee, Patty Wong, and her mother Ann, Judith and Larry Morrison, Carla and Lane, Pam van Gordon, and others I know I'm missing.
What a special day we had! We all crowded into the Lincoln Town Car that Gary rented and John gave us a tour of South Beach. We had lunch at the mansion previously owned by Versace. It is now a private club, hotel and restaurant. On the steps of the mansion was where Versace was killed. Evidently, people were lining up with magazine photos of Versace and were dipping the photos in his blood on the sidewalk. What possesses people??? We dining outside under umbrellas and had a really lovely lunch thanks to Brian. Afterward we toured the downstairs of the mansion. The private dining room is covered with mosaics made from china and tiny pebbles. The ceiling is an incredible mural of cherubs and shells. There is a gorgeous mosaic pool and a very interesting bar. The bathrooms have showers and bidets and beautiful stained glass. There is a lovely center courtyard, also.
We walked around South Beach and really enjoyed the art deco architecture of the old hotels and apartments which are now being refurbished.
We all came back to the ship around 3:30 and went up to the Lido deck for champagne. (Pat had secretly arranged for Brian and Gary to come on board as our guests---without giving away the secret to us!) The Lido deck stewards were all happy to see Pat and John who thoughtfully brought bags of Philippine treats for the deck guys. Our reservations for dinner in Silk Road were for 6 pm because all visitors had to be off the ship at 8:30. I had only made reservations for 4 people, but Willy, the headwaiter, was able to seat two more people and we had a great round table. Before dinner, we all went back to our cabin and took turns changing clothes. Let me tell you all that it is possible to have 6 people in these cabins---we had it all figured out: 4 of us could sleep on the bed, Brian was willing to curl up on the loveseat because there is no mattress inside and one unlucky person was going to have to sleep on the floor! We showed our friends some photos from the previous segments and photos or our new friends. We went up to Silk Road on time and had a marvelous dinner of Nobu special sushi dishes—my favorite is the yellow tail tartare—and then a magnificent assortment of sashimi and sushi. We all had entrees that were great: Wagu beef (like Kobe beef), bento boxes, rock shrimp, etc. We managed to consume 3 bottle of delicious wine that Pat, John, Brian and Gary brought. Norbert, the maitre d of the specialty restaurants and Slavko, his headwaiter in Prego came by as we had previously arranged. David and I, at Pat and John's request, had taken portrait photos of Norbert and Slavko without saying why, and Pat had framed them as gifts for them, which they really liked.
All to soon, it was 8:30 and we had to say good bye to our friends. It was an absolutely perfect day and gave us an incredibly warm feeling that Brian and Gary would travel all the way to Florida to surprise us! We sure feel loved! Luckily, they are coming to Memphis to visit on March 6. Unfortunately, Pat and John can't come up that weekend, too, because of business commitments.
Today is the first full day of cruise 9202. The ship is primarily groups: over 200 college alumni travelers, another 400 health and wealth group and a third that we don't know. Everyone is walking around with tags around their necks. We are left to see whether these large groups change the dynamics of being on board Crystal. Previously, Roberta's Bridge Groups have created a terrible environment, but I'm trying not to pre-judge.
The sun has finally come out at about 4 pm, so it wasn't a pool day. We've got moderate seas due to strong winds. David and I listened to Jay Wolff's talk about the choice of Panama for a canal. As usual it was very interesting. We had a team of 2 for Team Trivia and made a respectable score, but were edged out by one point. We also did our first library quiz. After lunch at the Trident Grill, we listened to a lecture on the beginning of the Disney empire. I went to art at sea while David entered, and failed to win, the free slot tournament. Our new art at sea teacher is Hope Freedland, and she is no Kristina Nugent. We did a small watercolor painting, but the atmosphere is not nearly as creative or as encouraging as Kristina's class. Tomorrow we are making a picture frame with some kind of clay and painting it. I'm not sure I'm going to stick with the class. Kris, if you are reading this, Hope said that you mentioned me in an email to her! Also, she said they had never had the art closet left in such an organized condition. I told her that you had worked on the closet for over 2 days!
Our entertainment on this cruise includes some old friends: Michell Bell who boards in Tortola, and Mark Merchant who also boards later.
Tonight we will meet our tablemates for the first time, but it will be very hard to match our previous tablemates who were wonderful! We are still at Cornel's (the ship's doctor) table.
Our first port is Saint Maarten the day after tomorrow.
By for now!!!

Hello from Barbados! Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Here we are in the Caribbean, but the weather today is not cooperating for us to enjoy this beautiful island. It's overcast with rain and thunderstorms. Also, today is a public holiday—Errol Barrow Day—so everything is closed up tight. We have a sea day tomorrow, then Grand Turk. We've got a shore excursion planned to snorkel and then feed the Stingrays, so hopefully we will get to enjoy the warm Caribbean waters in Grand Turk.
Yesterday was Inauguration Day---our 44th president: Barack Obama! There was a real sense of excitement all day and everyone was talking about the presidency. The inauguration was available to be seen in the Hollywood Theatre and the Starlite Club. We choose the Hollywood Theatre and it was packed! I was amazed at the cheers that Obama received considering the demographics of the average Crystal passenger. I couldn't stop weeping, I was so moved that he made it and was elected. I have great confidence in his ability to straighten out the mess we are in and to bring our troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan. He has warned us that the economy will get worse before it will get better, but I trust him to get us on the right track again.
Earlier there was a South American party for those guests that had sailed all three segments of the Grand South American Voyage. As usual, Crystal did it up right with decorations, the entertainment staff in costumes reminiscent of Rio, music, complimentary drinks and South American style food.
It is hard to believe that the most interesting part of our cruise is over. We've traveled so far (2/3 of the way around the world if you can believe the Captain), seen so many amazing, moving, distressing, beautiful, majestic sites. We've met people from countries we've only dreamed about and learned about cultures that are long gone, but were so advanced. We've survived hurricane strength winds trying to cross the Drakes Passage and were treated to the majesty of Antarctica after our second attempt. We've made terrific friendships that we hope will endure. We've been pampered and indulged. They say that travel is broadening and after eating the wonderful Crystal food, I can attest to that! We've been entertained and enlightened by the performers and the lecturers. I've read lots of books and have created some watercolour and paste.
Continuation now January 24, 2008, En route to Miami
Hello loyal blog readers, sorry but I thought I posted in Barbados, but it was lost in cyberspace, so sorry for the delay!
This is the last day of the 49 day Grand South American Voyage. It is incredible that 7 weeks have passed. The time passed so quickly and now we are saying “good-bye” to friends with whom we have had such wonderful adventures: Natalie and Rod from Colorado, Mary from Texas, Georgina from Australia, Marilyn and Henry from California, Penny and Barry from California, Nelly and Edwin from Switzerland, Toy and Oddy from Thailand, Christie and Terry from Florida, Sally and Frank from the UK, Kristina and Larry from California, Urara and Taka from Japan, Gerry and Morry from California,, Charlene and Vic from Canada, and so many more. We've enjoyed the casino, karaoke, bingo, the library quiz, the Team Trivia, the pools, the shows, etc. and are thrilled that we have 22 more days of this luxury, but we will miss our friends. There are only 8 people from this cruise going on for the next segment.
To bring you up to date~~~~
Thursday night was the last formal night for this segment and you know what formal night means....karaoke! Natalie, Hobbs the lion and I did “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” very badly. My best performance was with Marilyn Brook doing backup form for Mary McKee when she sang “Stop in the Name of Love.” I must admit, our movements looked choreographed!
Nick Lewin was the performer for our night in Barbados. He does magic and comedy.that we really enjoyed. (Today he did a mini-lecture on mental illusion that was terrific! He handed a library book to two people in the audience and asked them to pick a random page from the book and select a word and commit it to memory. The people were asked to give Nick the first two letters of the word they chose and he guessed both of them. I'm sure he is familiar with the book and the vocabulary, but still it was a great trick. He also told us how Houdini did his chained under the water for 6 minute trick---he is only underwater for less than a minute, but the audience thought he held his breath for over 6 minutes). The caliber of entertainer on board all the segments have been great. My favorite is Rich Block---magician and comedian, and lawyer and mediator. An interesting combination!
Friday we were to dock in Grand Turk at 1 pm, and the Captain announced that we would be arriving earlier. However, when we got to Grand Turk, the Captain made 2 attempts at docking, but couldn't get the bow into the dock because of the wind. He sent a tender out to see if it was too rough to tender. The tender radioed that it was safe and so the ship used it's engines to stay in one place while tender service was offered until 5 pm. The ship was unable to anchor because the water surrounding Grand Turk is a national park and protected reef. Meanwhile, to our Captain's probable frustration, the Crown Princess steamed right in and docked without difficulty. Apparently she has Azipods that enabled her and the ship is twice the size of Symphony with twice the weight.. Captain Giske said he just didn't have the power in his engines....
Grand Turk is a port built by Carnival or Royal Caribbean. It is a limited shopping plaza, a Margueritaville bar and restaurant, a huge pool and a sand beach with chairs. Evidently, the islands are beautiful and diving and snorkeling are exceptional, but because of the winds we canceled our snorkeling and swimming with the stingrays shore excursion.
Friday night we had dinner in Silk Road with Rabbi Morry Hirshman and his wife Gerry. He's an entertaining story teller and they are a warm and friendly couple. Needless to say the sushi was wonderful!
Today is Saturday and it is such a luxury not to have to pack, yet. Our day will come! But we've been going around the ship and saying goodbyes. Several of our favorite staff and crew are also leaving: Ivo, the Head Waiter in the dining room, our stewardess Vironika, several of the Lido deck stewards, Urara, the Social Hostess and Kristina and Larry Nugent, our Art at Sea instructor.
Today was also an exhibit of the pastels that our Art at Sea class has done on this segment. The quality of work was amazing! Larry, Kristina's husband matted and framed the end projects---what a job! I have to talk about Kristina and the art classes—they have been incredible! Kristina created such a warm and encouraging environment that we felt at ease in attempting art work. She has a wonderful way of teaching and we achieved much more than we ever thought we could. I did a pastel of “The Chair” after Van Gogh and “Woman at her Toilette” after Degas. The pastels were great to work with, such deep, rich color!
Tomorrow at 6 am we pick up the pilot for Miami. Our dear friends, Pat and John Delaney are picking us up at 10:30 am and taking us to South Beach, after which they are coming on board for dinner at Silk Road. We opted first for Prego, but since the next cruise will be full, the Prego waiters are on heavy luggage duty. Norbert and Slavko are planning to stop by for a surprise that Pat has for them.
We set sail from Miami at 9 pm tomorrow evening. Stay tuned, I will fill you in on our journey to Caldera and the Panama Canal and then back to Miami.
Bye for now!
Ricki