HEIMAEY, VESTMANNAEYJAR ISLAND, ICELAND & SCENIC CRUISING - DAY 16

Many of the photos we have posted from The Bistro were taken in the early morning before the food was put out.  These are photos Keith took before yesterday's tour of the bridge with food out.

We know some of you enjoys Portuguese Tarts including one friend who loves them.  LOL.  So these are for you.
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Before dinner we got a preview of the new Solarium which will include a pool, two level venue for Market Place and other areas to relax and a retractable ceiling.

It was great to see the Solarium yesteday. Over the next several days it will only look better as the accompanying items are placed inside. The pool is retractable and will be open when in use. The ceiling is also retractable. There are a couple of photos with lounge chairs in an area off from the main room where guests could lounge indoors. There is a jacuzzi. There are a couple of sections for Marketplace. Some of the artworks in the tiles may be hard to see in the photos. There will be another area where you can go from there which is where the equipment for the water will be located.

It is two tiered so people can eat or sit on at either level.

I believe seating is for 100 people at a time which is great when you consider the ship can hold up to 200 people and people come and go at different times and there are other venues for breakfast and lunch includng Waterside and The Bistro.

I understand hours will be longer for Marketplace given the start and end times for tours. For example I believe for lunch it might open at 11:30 AM and stay open quite later in the afternoon. On this voyage we have had days where we visit two places in a day or places where we are there all day but tours are avaialble in the morning and the afternoon. ​

We saw Eva-Linn before we dined at Waterside.  She is an amazing member of the crew and an all around wonderful person.

Today's Daily Activities Program.

Waterside dinner menus from last evening where we ate.

Dinner at Waterside was amazing.  Ahi Tuna for Keith as an appetizer and the Mushroom Taste for Anne Marie.   Caesar Salad light on the dressing for the two of us, Salmon for both of us and a very small portion of the Venison for Keith.  A dessert for Anne Marie and Cheese for Keith and as we often say some wine for the two of us.

​Everything was outstanding and a big shoutout for the amazing Waterside Waitstaff.

We began today as we do most days when we cruise with an early morning workout for Keith followed by breakfast in our room.  Butler Daniel mentioned on the last cruise as we got close to docking you could smell fish and the smell was not all too pleasant.  We experienced the same things.

We then watched our approach to our final town of this voyage; Heimaey, Iceland.  When Keith toured the bridge yesterday the Captain explained the approach.  In short as we first arrived we turn completely around and we backed into the area and at one point turned around again and pulled into the to dock.  The rocks and foliage have lots of beauty to them.

We had a tour planned for this morning which was a hike but we decided not to do the tour as we had our Covid-19 test this morning and also wanted to pack.

After getting the test Keith ventured out and walked for quite a while making a loop around the town and walking several side streets.  A few minutes from the pier and he saw many nice homes whose exteriors are painted in all different colors similar to what you might see in places such as Greenland recognizing there is very little daylight in winter.  There was a very large school and a church and some stores including two of the grocery stores we showed at while in Reykjavik.  

Once back to the ship Keith stopped by the Medical Center and picked up copies of both our test results which were negative.  Again, we are both positive people but so it goes.  LOL.  

A few additional photos as we made our way back to sea.

Cheers,

​Anne Marie & Keith