Corner Brook, New Foundland

​Let’s begin with yesterday.  A word that could be the name of a song.  LOL.
 
We took the tender over to L’Anse aux Meadows yesterday late morning. The area is in Newfoundland, Canada. As mentioned, this area is home to a 1000-year-old archaeological site of L’Anse aux Meadows. In 1978, it was designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. 

The Norse site is located on the northernmost tip of the Northen tip of Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland.
 
It was only discovered in 1960 which is amazing. This site contains the remains of 8 buildings. 
 
The tender dropped us off at a very small pier. The walk over to the site was not too far but guests could also take a bus over to visit the site. 
 
It was a beautiful day. It felt like a Fall Day and guess what it was the first day of Autumn.  
 
This was our first time here and once again we thank Crystal for taking us to remote places like this that we would likely not see on our own.
 
 

Happy Jewish New Year.
 
On the World Cruise, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and the Holiday Cruise a Rabbi will be on board each Crystal Ocean Vessel. 
 
This is the case on this voyage and yesterday at 6:00 PM Rabbi Aaron Rosenberg conducted the evening service for Rosh Hashanah.  Since he is also on board he conducts the Friday night Sabath Service. When a Rabbi is not on board than often a guest steps forward to conduct the Friday night Sabath Service.
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On the World Cruise, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and the Holiday Cruise a Rabbi will be on board each Crystal Ocean Vessel. 
 
This is the case on this voyage and yesterday at 6:00 PM Rabbi Aaron Rosenberg conducted the evening service for Rosh Hashanah.  Since he is also on board he conducts the Friday night Sabath Service. When a Rabbi is not on board than often a guest steps forward to conduct the Friday night Sabath Service.
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​Dinner menu from Waterside.

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We dined in Waterside last evening for the second of three consecutive nights.

​As mentioned, while Waterside is not a specialty restaurant due to its size and expansive menus which change daily, for us it is truly special.
 
The cuisine is delicious along with the presentation of so many of the items served here. It’s a beautiful dining venue and we love its style with tablecloths and very nice table settings.
 
Then there is the service. The waitstaff teams are fabulous and we have a tremendous team. Remember, team is great than the sum of individuals who are not part of a team. At Crystal it is all about teamwork. 
 
Everyone is very attentive and if something needs to be done it’s done whether that is Restaurant Manager Paolo or Head Waiter Jacques lending a hand or hands to provide support and assistance to the Senior Waiters, Waiters and/or Sommeliers. 
 
If we ask something of Senior Waiter Enver often the response is “my Crystal pleasure”. It is not just words but someone who genuinely wants to make everything as special as possible.

We feel the same way about Waiter Edson and Sommelier Dusan.
 
Then there are all the little touches that add to the evening. This includes a waiter or waiters escorting you to your table, possibly taking your photo, assisting you with your chair, and placing the napkin on your lap. 
 
In very short time, your Senior Waiter brings over the menu, a waiter fills your water glass, and a waiter brings over the butter and a basket of rolls/bread and in a classy way and good for health asks you which roll you would like and with tongs places it on your plate.
 
The Sommelier comes by the table to find out if you need assistance with a drink such as wine.
 
After the order is taken, we enjoy a toast as we do each evening toasting our love for one another and then we break bread. 
 
Each course is served beautifully.
 
And then after we enjoy each course the Senior Waiter or Waiter comes by with the most important menu and that is the dessert menu and in our case a cheese menu for me. On most nights the waiter will also come around with cookies.
 
The Sommelier might ask you if you want an after-dinner drink.  
 
Often it is the two of us and usually we dine for about two hours enjoying conversations between ourselves, sometimes other guests and with the waitstaff team and we do enjoy some good laughs as well.  
 
Bon Appetit.  
 

Last evening featured Crystal's newest production show called Club Nights A Journey of Music & Dance from a Country Music Club to a London Pub and more featuring the music of the English Rock Band, The Who.

This is today's Daily Reflections Program.

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Today we anchored off Corner Brook, Canada. Originally, we were supposed to dock. We believe this changed as there was a freighter at the cruise port. It was a short tender ride, and it was just me and one guest. The guest who Keith met for the first time, and decided to walk together. A shuttle was available to take guests to and from town but given the walk was only fifteen minutes we decided to let our feet do the walking. The weather forecast was wrong calling for rain in the mid-afternoon because at 9:00 AM it was raining. 
 
The downtown area was charming but relatively small.
 
The city is located on the west coast of Newfoundland and in the Bay of Islands. This city is endeared by those who enjoy outdoor activities.
 
Major attractions include:
 
Captain Cook National Historic Site.
 
Corner Brook Stream Trail which is 1.5 mile in length.
 
Marble Mountain which is the largest ski resort in Atlantic Canada but is popular in the summer due to its beautiful scenery.
 
Gros Morne National Park which is located north of this city and shows the effect of glacial action on an area of the earth’s exposed matle rock.
 
The city was first surveyed by Captain James Cook in 1767.
 
Its population totals 31,100 residents.
 
All in all it was a nice visit. One of the many things we like about Crystal are the people and we have met several guests for the very first time on this cruise and saw others we know from prior cruises and today was another example of meeting a very nice person.  
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Another venue which we want to discuss today can be found on Deck 6 and is The Lounge. It is in the same footprint occupied by the former casino.

Since its rollout when Crystal restarted its uses have evolved.
 
Bridge is held in the Lounge with tables for bridge players to take classes and play bridge. When not in use for bridge these tables can be used for other card games.
 
There are tables that guests can use for other games.
 
There are a couple of long tables that are used for puzzles.
 
There are many chairs spread across the lounge that can easily be used for conversations with one or more people. We have used this area to get together with others.
 
Sometimes, The Lounge is used for televised events such as sporting events.
 
We see people there often including in the early morning hours where a guest or more might go by there with a cup of coffee and spread out to read a book or magazine or use their computer or just to relax.
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Cheers,

​Anne Marie & Keith