Sorry for late posting!…Too much fun!…Update on posting while cruising…Cruise itinerary…Making new friends aboard the ship…

Please excuse the blurry photos. I’d accidentally changed the setting on the camera effecting the quality of some of the photos. Also, with the weak wifi signal on the ship, our formatting and line spaces may be inaccurate.

Tom’s miniature lemon meringue pie for dessert at last night’s dinner.

Over the next number of days while cruising our daily posts will be arriving a few hours later than usual, although we’ll continue to post every 24 hours or so. Once we arrive in Australia on June 11th and get settled, future posts will be available every 24 hours.

My breakfast this morning.

With the upcoming crossing of the International Dateline, we’ll be losing a day having experienced multiple time zone changes. We’ll cover more of that later as the time zone changes.

Last night, Tom at the bar, enjoying his unlimited cocktails, wearing his white dress shirt for dress-up night.

The reason we’ll be running late in posting is a result of our having too much fun! What can I say? These 1400 Aussies and 200 Americans on board are the most fun group of people we’ve ever encountered on a cruise. 

They’re everywhere, ready for sharing a good story and having a good laugh. How did a nation of people have friendliness and good humor in common? Maybe we’ll figure it out over the next few years.

I ordered a small salmon plate and received this extra-large salmon plate.

We’ve discovered that we have a lot of language nuances to learn and are making an effort to pick up everything we can in the hopes of “fitting in” into the Aussie homeland.

My view while working out on the elliptical machine.

In an effort to avoid germs and have better service, for organizing my breakfasts, which I do have when cruising, it’s easier to order my specific meals from the helpful dining concierge, Cecelia, who’s in charge of all the passengers with special diets who dine in the main dining room. She’s got mine figured out. There’s no such a service in the Windjammer Café, the buffet-style venue.

Although the Windjammer has a specific “gluten-free” buffet area, it has a few items that work for me when many are high carb gluten-free baked goods and sugary items none of which work for me. Last night at dinner, I ordered my breakfast and tonight’s dinner in advance, giving the chef ample time to make the items suitable.

More equipment in the fitness center.

This morning we had breakfast in the main dining room. Thus, in the future will avoid the Windjammer buffet entirely. Tom was able to order what he wanted both in choices and portions and my choices worked out perfectly.

The theatre where seminars and shows are performed.

However, while dining at a “shared table” which we always do, it’s impossible not to become friendly with our table mates. The lengthy delay in posting today and most likely on most days going forward as we continue on the cruise. 

We’re out to sea with no land in sight in any direction. An announcement was made that there will no access to satellite TV for the next several days from the ship will be too far out of range. We don’t watch TV anyway while cruising. We stay out every night until we’re ready for bed, exhausted from loads of fun. 

Cruise ships often have peculiar décor.

During the day we only go to the cabin to change clothes, put away our laptops or grab an item we may need.  Today’s a busy day. As I write this now, it’s 1:30 pm. At 2:00, Tom will head to a history seminar while I visit the fitness center the second day in a row.

Having lost a degree of fitness in Kauai after being sick for a few weeks, I’m finding that working out is helping me restore my former self. Over the next few weeks I’ll continue to improve and then, when we arrive in Trinity Beach I’ll join a nearby health club for the three month stint which I’ve already contacted for rates.    

Cha cha lessons in the centrum.

Today, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm Tom will attend a men’s group called “The Shed,” an Australian tradition where guys get together and shoot the breeze over cocktails. This morning Tom explained that in Minnesota, its comparable to “Garage Logic” (his favorite radio show, which he still listens to each day when we’re on land).  I’m thrilled that he gets to do this and tomorrow he’ll fill in the details in the post.

While he’s in “The Shed” I’ll sit by the pool and read a book on my phone. Wow! This is the life! No wonder we love cruising.

It was fun to watch the dancers carry on.

When we meet back at the cabin at 5:15, I’ll be showered and dressed for dinner and Tom will do the same. Shortly afterward, we’ll head to the bar for happy hour and later in the main dining room for more lively banter and fun. We haven’t yet been to an evening show. 

We seldom find the arranged activities and shows quite our cup of tea instead, preferring to meet up with our new friends for happy hour, breakfast or dinner. 

This towel character, an elephant, was sitting on our bed last night when we returned for bed.

One more item regarding posting while on the ship: we will only be able to post eight to ten photos each day. Although we have an unlimited data wifi package, photos take too long to post, often almost two hours for more than a dozen photos. With fewer photos, we can upload the post in a more timely fashion, albeit a little later each day while cruising.

Have a terrific Tuesday! See you again soon!

                                             Photo from one year ago today, May 26, 2014:

The ocean view from our house in Madeira where we lived for two and a half months, having a fabulous experience. For more details, please click here.