DAY 15

DAY 11 CRYSTAL SYMPHONY  -SEA DAY

These are the Waterside Dinner menus from last evening.

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We began our evening at the Avenue Saloon.  Since it was Pink Night (LOL) Keith had a Pin Flower Cocktail.  

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We enjoyed dinner at Waterside.  Keith tried the Opakapaka Snapper Ceviche as an appetizer.  It was delicious and Anne Marie had the Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail.  We each had our standard salads.  The entree was amazing.  We both had the Grilled Hawaiian Striped Marlin which is part of the Swordfish family.  It was delicious.

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After dinner we attended the Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle Party.  By the time we arrived eight other people were there including our next door neighbors and two people who Keith takes indoor cycling with.  Lots of great conversation and the Hotel Director came by.  

Now the bad news.  Are you ready.  Are you really ready?  Yes, we had to forward the clocks by one hour.  It is payback time.  LOL.  

We enjoyed coffee in our room after waking up.  While we waited for breakfast we watched the Symphony Today with Weather Updates hosted by Cruise Director Paul McFarland.  This was the first time we watched the morning program since we boarded.  The weather update is something that is not done on Serenity and we thought this was very good information.   The program is live at 6:00 AM and rebroadcasted on demand.

Paul interviewed the Master Photogropher who is on-board for the sailing.  He noted that Symphony is a great vessel to take photos on the ship because of the beautiful design of the public areas.  Paul mentioned that the Vice President of design is on-baord the ship so it will be easy for him to pass along the feedback. We saw her on the first day and have chatted with her a couple of other times.  We mentioned how much we like the new Seabreeze suite and that Anne Marie adores the washer/dryer.  The challenge was in locating one that could work with the on-board voltage.  It is not as simple as going to the appliance store to pick them up.  LOL but very true.  

As part of Memorial Day, Paul also showed a documentary about the "soldier".  It was not about a specific soldier but it was about each and every soldier. 

This was followed by Breakfast in the room.  We continued to go with a simple breakfast similar to what we have at home.

Shortly after breakfast Keith met with some of the fellow guests and led them in an indoor cycling class.  One couple also cycled with Keith the other day and as it turned out they had also attended the Cruise Critic meet and mingle.  Anne Marie walked for an hour on the Promenade Deck. 

Two of the spouses who worked out with Keith the other day didn't make it.  One was not feeling well and the other had too much to drink the night before.  LOL, but not making this up.  One new person worked out for about fifteen minutes but had another appointment.  
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Today market the first of five consecutive sea days so there was lots on today's program.  The program included three lectures.  Since today is Memorial Day it was appropriate that the first talk was given by retired Brig. General Joe Scaefer sho spoke about those who fought in the Pacific in World War II.  Later in the morning Dr. Jay Wolff spoke about the Great Migration which focused on the Polynesians and the islands in the Pacific which were the last habitable lands on earth to be populated by mankind. The afternoon included the final lecture given by Special Interest Lecturer Jim Jimirro.  

On long voyages the culinary team on board the ship prepares a Grand Gala Buffet for lunchtime and the Waterside Dining waitstaff sets up all of the tables in the Crystal Plaza where all of the food items are placed and assists guest to the tables and clears the table after they have eaten.  It is an amazing display of items from salads to entree to dessert.  

Fifteen minutes before the start of the buffet guests may take photos of the food items.  This is followed by an introduction of the leaders of the culinary team by the Senior Head Waiter of Waterside.  At the conclusion of his talk from the Bridge the Captain had Cruise Director Paul McFarland say some words about the significance of Memorial Day followed by one minute of silence for all the brave men and women who lost their lives in war fighting for our freedom.   You could hear a pin drop.  It was followed by a playing of taps by a member of the showtime band.  

There was also a Memorial Day Veteran's Day Get-together hosted by General Nick Halley at the same time.  

​Following is the menu from the Grand Gala Buffet.

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Keith took photos a bit earlier of many of the tables with food on them.  There were also several tables with heating trays for the hot food items which were not open to take photos of.

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While the Grand Gala Buffet is truly amazing we prefer a simple lunch and went to Marketplace to enjoy lunch.  We made our usual salad entrees.

In the afternoon Keith played Paddle Tennis. Since it was windy he played singles with one other person who is one of the dance Ambassador Hosts as other who play regularly decided to pass.  He also walked inside the ship with Anne Marie, wrote and chatted  with fellow guests and crew.  Anne Marie walked and and also chatted with others and even found a dress that she admired that was on display today in the window outside on of the on-board stores.    We both enjoyed another sea day on board Crystal Symphony.

This evening is Black Tie Optional (BTO) around the ship.

Anne Marie & Keith