Day 22 Santo Thomas, Guatemala

1/2/2025

Before dinner last evening there was a sing-along starring Neal Fullerton who played the music and sang the lyrics from several Beatles songs. Keith and a friend had seen Neal practice on Tuesday. Neal is the second person we have seen who holds his guitar like Paul McCartney. Neal is a lefty. Bravo to Neal.

We dined at Waterside for the third consecutive evening.

These are the menus from last evening.

In years past we used to special order some items from time-to-time for dinner. In general, we no longer do this because given the diversity of the entrees on the menu we stay with the menu offerings. We did make an exception last evening and decided to special order the kosher chicken since this was the last evening of Chanukah. We enjoyed other items from the menu including the appetizers, salads and desserts.

Food was delicious including the Kosher Chicken. Service was wonderful between the Waitstaff team of Head Waiter Jacques, Waterside Senior Waiter Marcin, Waterside Waiter Nitish and Waterside Sommelier Mila. They are not only professional, attentive, warm and friendly but they also have a great sense of humor, so we enjoy lots of good laughs. Head Sommelier Jiri passed through providing support for his team so we had the opportunity to talk about what???? Yes, wine. Waterside and the other dining venues are led by Restaurant Manger Leo who is sets a great tone for his team to follow.

There is no question that we have learned and expanded our knowledge about cuisine and wine because of our many cruises with Crystal. This comes from the personnel and from the cuisine and variety of wine available on Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony.

Following is the daily Reflections program.

This is our first visit to Santo Tomas, Guatemala. The seaport of the city was built in 1976 and is one of the busiest in Central America. A cruise ship terminal was completed in 2004 and has been a tremendous boost for the Guatemalan tourism industry.

Tourists enjoy many activities including waterfall hikes, rainforest explorations, birdwatching and tours of UNECSO ancient Maya cities. This country has over 400 species of birds.

Unfortunately, we had a great deal of rain and some of it very heavy.

Our morning also included each of us having appointments at the salon. One of the nice things going to the salon and/or spa on the ship is no need to drive and park the car. Just a walk from our room towards the back of the ship and up two flights of steps and it is right there.

Due to the rain, Cruise Director Raphael announced some additions to the program including Team Trivia, Bridge and the showing of the Sugar Bowl in the Galaxy Lounge this afternoon.

Cheers,

Anne Marie & Keith

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