Cruise post Jan. 16

Friday Jan. 13^th

 

Off to a good start. We were processed in less than half hour at the cruiseport, and seated in a holding pen for another 30 minutes until RC had the ship ready for boarding. No access to our room for another hour, so we headed up to the Windjammer (Jammer) on Deck 11 for the welcome aboard buffet.

A faulty sea-door on Deck 2 briefly delayed our arrival to cabin #2015. Julie explored while I took a brief nap. Spent the rest of afternoon reading and playing Wizard of Oz slot machine on my Kindle.

Dinner at 6 p.m. in the Reflections dining room on Deck 5 was delicious. I had the sirloin steak while Julie had Atlantic salmon. We then headed to the theater for the comic musings of John Knight with a brief intro number by the RC Singers and Dancers. Never heard of Knight, but he was very funny with a deadpan style of delivery. The usual fare … farts, colonoscopies, and an airplane joke involving a blonde woman. He also had fun with some people in the audience and where they were from. After that, a turn on promenade deck … quite windy, and we were not even allowed on front end of the ship. Then to the casino for me where I lost $9 on the craps table. No blackjack because there were no $5 tables. Probably will be $5 BJ later in the cruise when gamblers start toting up their loses and looking for lighter stakes!

 Good night’s sleep. Our room steward, Derek, separated our beds, got Julie a couple extra blankets, and left a bucket of ice for me for bedside ice water.

Saturday Jan. 14. First full day at sea. Gave Derek a fin for the good service.  Breakfast the Windjammer, starting with bran muffin and fruit, and moving to eggs and bacon. Tried a crepe, and wasn’t very good – the strawberry filling was not fresh strawberries. Spent of most of day in the Solarium, the adults only pool deck, reading Clive Cussler’s “Havana Straits.” Lunch at the Solarium deli of two roast beef sandwiches on hard rolls. Yummy. Vacated my deck lounge chair at 2 p.m. which was instantly snapped up by another cruiser. This is prime real estate today because the outside pool deck is very windy.

Showered and shaved in the cabin, then went in search of coffee and a snack. Stopped by guest services to see if they knew anything about this onboard ship credit I was supposed to receive by booking through Expedia. Sure enough, Julie and I each have a $75 onboard credit to spend any way we want. So Expedia did come through in spite of piss-poor communication with me.

Now updating the trip log in the cabin because battery power is low on the Surface tablet, and I can’t find any frickin’ power outlets in the public area. Waiting for Julie, who I presume is still on the pool deck. Can't wait to give her the good news about her $75 credit. I’m sure she will spend that in the gift shop, while I spend mine on booze!

Prime rib for dinner at Reflections. Won $80 in the casino tonight. Hurrah! Show tonight by the RC Singers and Dancers in a tribute to music from the '50s to the '90s. Very entertaining, but surprising how many fairly recent entertainers are no longer with us, including George Michael, Michael Jackson, and three of the four Gibb brothers from the BGs. Finished a Kindle novel, "Einstein's Prophecy," in bed before nodding off.

 

Sun. Jan. 15. second full day at sea. Good night's sleep. The rocking boat seems to put me to sleep. Breakfast at the Jammer of bran muffin, fruit, and Denver omelet. Spent almost all day at the Solarium, including a refreshing dip in the salt water pool and a cool rinse off in the fresh water shower. Finished Havana Straits by Clive Cussler ... thanks (friend) Mario for loaning that one to me and started a second Kindle novel ... Split Second. Roast beef sandwiches again for lunch. Atlantic salmon for dinner, OK, but mine (homecooked) is better! Won $70 at the craps table ... I'm on a roll, hope I can keep it up. Show tonight was comedian Etta May, a sort of southern corn pone version of Rosesanne. Lots of redneck humor, hilarious in places, kind of flat in others. Her best joke was about how her hubby got her some edible panties from Fredericks of Hollywood. You have to understand Etta is large woman, especially in the hips. Anyway, her joke was that there were still leftovers from the edible panties, and we were all invited over to her house for sandwiches.. Guess you had to be there.

 

Mon. Jan. 16. MLK day back home. We pulled into Tortolla BVI about 8:30. We left the ship about 10 a.m., handy being on Deck 2 for debarkation. Small shopping area right off the dock, but from there things get kind of sparse. We wandered the more "local" area for a while ... wanted to check out grocery prices at the local "supermarket." Prices not bad, but most folks here probably don't  make a whole lot of money. I guess the big draw here is pristine beaches and snorkeling. Funny this island isn't more developed, as it has quite a colorful history being a big pirate hideout and supposedly Robert Louis Stevenson's inspiration for "Treasure Island." Likely many of the locals (at least the wealthy ones) would just as soon keep thinks low key. Looks like the dock can only accommodate two cruise ships. This BBQ joint is certainly low key. I'm the only one here save for the proprietor. But that is fine. The Carib is cold (just ordered by second one), and all the noisy cruise rats are down by the pier.

Hoping for some fresh caught fish or shellfish for lunch. The only thing I see up the street is a sushi place, but they might have some other fish as well. Julie already went back to the ship; nothing of interest to her here. BTW, she watched a good part of the Packer game yesterday; it was broadcast several places on the ship and lots of folks on board are happy that the Pack won against Dallas, although I guess it came down to field goals at the end. I'll likely head back to the ship after lunch. Check in with you all later.

 

Bruce