ON THE ROAD TO DAKAR, SENEGAL - DAY 2 OF THREE SEA DAYS Today marks the 100th day of our adventure. Time sure goes fast when you are having fun. Last night we felt a thud as we crossed the Equator and moved from the Southern to the Northern Hemisphere. This occurred close to 8:00 PM. Well the crossing occurred but not the thud. LOL. There was a commemoration ceremony at 5:30 PM as King Neptune commanded all guests, be they Polliwog or Shellback to attend this rite of passage. Before dinner we enjoyed a pre-dinner drink at the Palm Court. We selected Palm Court as it is on the same deck that Silk the Silk Restaurant is located on; Deck 12. We enjoyed a pre-dinner drink at the Palm Court. We selected Palm Court as it is on the same deck that Silk the Silk Restaurant is located on; Deck 12. While we were at the Palm Court the Crystal Quartet was performing. The Ambassador Hosts were on-hand to dance with the solo ladies. Crystal Cruises is one of the few cruise lines with Ambassador Hosts who are on-board for each cruise. Since the Palm Court is located at the bow (forward) of the ship if the sea swells are strong you can feel lots of motion in the room. The sea swells were very calm so there was no motion to be felt. The views of the ocean were beautiful through the bay windows and where we enjoyed a panoramic view. These are the dinner menus from Waterside We dined at Silk which is the Chinese Specialty Restaurant with friends Stacey and Jeff. Stacey is the World Cruise Hostess. In this role, Stacey is the point person providing assistance to those on the guests, running Team Trivia, teaching Zumba and performing a wide range of other functions. This is Stacey’s ninth World Cruise. This is the menu from Silk. This is the fifth time we have dined at Silk since boarding Serenity and sixth time overall having dined at Silk on-board Crystal Symphony in 2018. On our last visit we figured out those items that appealed to us, the right quantity of items and how to pace the meal. As we did last time after we placed our order we spoke with the waiter to discuss the sequencing of each course. We used to do the same at the former Tastes dining venue. The menu is designed to share items which are served family style. We ordered items the two of use shared and Stacey and Jeff ordered items which they shared. We had: Tempura Prawn Salad Dim Sum Sampler of Scallops, Truffled Wild Mushroom and Duck. Spring Roll which changes daily. Three entrees which we shared; Kung Pao Chicken, Our Signature Stir-Fry Beef Tenderloin and Mongolian Style Lamb Chops. Seasonal Chinese Vegetables. Shrimp Fried Rice. For dessert we had Fresh Fruits. We had an absolutely wonderful dinner between the outstanding service, delicious food, the overall ambience of the Silk Dining Venue and non-stop conversation with lots of laughs. Nat explained the extensive list of wine available which total 10 choices of wine plus champagne. Mixed drinks are available from the bar as is other items such as beer. We slept well as we continue to sail to our next port of call. The sea swells continued to be relatively calm allowing for the gentle rocking of the ship. The morning began with an early morning workout for Keith followed by coffee and breakfast in our room. Keith returned to the Fitness Center after breakfast for personal training with Fitness Director Melanie. Less than an hour after the workout, Keith went to the Salon for a Sports Massage with Natasha. Natasha is a certified physical therapist and a certified Massage Therapist who has been certified for close to fifteen and ten years respectively. Her mission is to get those knots out of Keith's neck, to eliminated knots in a few other areas and to address his hamstrings. This is one of the challenges when one works out a lot. As Natasha says before she works each area; "you will like me......."you will hate me....... At the same time Anne Marie walked inside the ship. Keith played Paddle Tennis with fellow guests shortly after getting back from his Massage. The weather outside ranged from hot and humid and sunny to cloud cover and a breeze. There was lots on the program today including three lectures. Ken Rees spoke about Senegal and Cape Verde which are our next ports of call. As usual his talk was informative with Ken providing historical information combined with suggestion for touring. Ken also makes the talks interesting with wonderful photos and a great sense of humor. World Affairs lecturer Eugene Robinson spoke about A Nation of Minorities. In the afternoon David Drewry spoke about Oceans and the Mediterranean. We are enjoying a wonderful afternoon on-board Serenity. We had lunch at Marketplace. During his noon talk from the Bridge, the Captain noted that there were some rain showers and that they would try to maneuver the ship to keep them from impacting the outdoor areas and at the time we are posting this they have done a great job on this. There was just a short sprinkle while Keith played Paddle Tennis. Anne Marie walked after lunch. This afternoon we plan to catch up with the lectures we missed. The daily Reflections Program follows. Cheers, Anne Marie & Keith
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ON THE ROAD TO DAKAR, SENEGAL - DAY 1 OF THREE SEA DAYS Gilly thank you for your very nice comments. They are most appreciated. Let us begin by saying our thoughts go out to the passengers and crew on the Viking Sky whose ship encountered significant issues sailing off Norway. It is a reminder that safety at sea is the most important priority for every cruise ship and why it is taken so seriously by all ships personnel. It is a reminder to the guests to be equally vigilant when attending the muster drills and to pay attention to the instructions provided to us. We began our evening with a pre-dinner drink at the Crystal Cove. We returned to Waterside after having been away for three days. We were joined with friend Ileen who we have dined with a few times during the World Cruise. We met Ileen many years ago when she sailed individual segments of the World Cruise. We have also sailed other full World Cruises with her along with the Northwest Passage epic voyage. As we mentioned before one of the aspects of cruising we enjoy is the opportunity to meet people, and share experiences and to form friendships. We both had the same meal. Maybe this is why we have been married for almost 43 years. We think alike. We began with a Seafood Crepe Appetizer, followed by Salad Nicoise. For our entree we had the Three Pepper Crusted Salmon. We were happy with each selection. Food was delicious. The salmon arrived very hot as Senior Waiter Claudia brought it directly to the table from the galley. We enjoyed non-stop conversation with Ileen and a lot of laughs (that might be an understatement) along with a wonderful dinner. The evening entertainment included two performances of the Jump & Swing-A-Mania Show and also Liars Club. Liars Club is held on selected cruises such as on long cruises and the key is to have the right participants. You have to be a good liar. LOL. Rick Spath hosted the event. The panel was comprised of Rabbinical Liar Morrie Hershman, Comedic Liar Steve Stevens and Journalistic Liar Ken Rees. Live music was played in Crystal Cove, Palm Court and the Avenue Saloon and Pulse had music played by the DJ which included a Latin Hour and a Late Night Dance Party. The 2018 movie At Eternity's Gate was shown twice. The movie features a look at the life of painter Vincent Van Gogh during the time he lived in Alres and Auvers-sur-Oise, France. We slept well last night as we are sailing to our next port of call in Dakar, Senegal. All we could feel was the gentle rocking of the ship. We began our day as we always do with a workout for Keith at the Fitness Center followed by coffee and breakfast in our room. There was lots on the program as there always is. We wanted to highlight the lectures. Tim Severin spoke about The Brendan Voyage. This was followed by Tom DeFrank whose topic was All About Leaks which focused on leaks about the White House. After breakfast we both walked inside the ship. Keith also played Paddle Tennis before lunch for ninety minutes. This felt like the hottest day of the cruise because of the humidity and the fact that we are getting ready to cross the equator. We should cross the equator at 8:00 PM this evening. Keith drank three bottles of water in between games to stay hydrated. We enjoyed lunch at Marketplace as we always do. Keith played Paddle Tennis while Anne Marie walked. As we post this we are enjoying a leisurely afternoon on-board Serenity. This evening we will dine at Silk with two friends. Silk is the Chinese Specialty Restaurant. This is the daily Reflections program from today. Cheers, Anne Marie & Keith WELCOME TO GEORGETOWN, ASCENSION ISLAND (WELL ALMOST - MORE IN A MOMENT) Doris...Thank you very much for your very thoughtful comments. Barb... Thank you so much for your comments including the celebration of your 50th wedding anniversary. Sophie...Thank you for your comments. It was indeed a lovely dinner and so glad to hear you are enjoying the Blog. Bette...Thank you for your thoughts and for sharing what makes Crystal Cruises so very special and unique for many of us. Last evening was Black Tie (BTO) Optional on-board Crystal Serenity. We wanted to begin by thanking those of you who have reached out to us with comments on the Blog (we love reading your comments and questions), comments via the contact form, along with comments we have received by e-mail and via Face Book. They touched each of us. We attended the Crystal Society Party last evening. After you complete your first cruise you are part of the Crystal Society. If you enter the room on the left hand side Crystal Society Hostess Alissa, Captain Birger, Hotel Director Scott and Cruise Director Rick are on hand to greet each guest. Those choosing to bypass the greetings can enter from the right hand side. The party includes live music, and dancing. Ambassador Hosts are on hand to dance with those women traveling solo who wish to dance. As part of the party some guests are recognized for reaching a certain milestone with respect to completed sailings. Five people were honored. This included: A woman who achieved her 100th Crystal Society Milestone on this voyage. She began cruising Crystal Cruises with her late husband. A couple who we first met on World Cruise 2007. They each have over 100 cruises and achieved the 100th milestone a few years ago. Along with some other guests we were invited to a cocktail reception they hosted at the midway point of the World Cruise where they announced that this would be their final cruise due to health issues. It was very nice that they were recognized last evening on the final segment of the World Cruise and their final cruise. This is another reminder to us how life goes by very quickly and that we should appreciate each and everyday and do our very best to not let the little hiccups bother us. We were honored at the party for reaching our 100th Crystal Society Milestone. Crystal Society Hostess highlighted why we love to sail with Crystal Cruises (for us the major reason is our affection and appreciation for the entire crew on-board each vessel. This includes officers and the entire staff who comprise each and every department on the Crystal vessels we have sailed. We were presented with flowers (Anne Marie) and a boutonnière (Keith) by Alissa and Captain Birger. Each month each ship recognizes an employee of the month and once a year an employee of the year. As part of the recognition they are recognized at the Crystal Society Party. This includes people that are visible to guests and also those who guests might not know as they work in areas behind the scenes on the ship. Last evening the person recognized is someone who is visible to many guests as he is the drummer in the Crystal Showband. Congratulations. This has been a special three days for the two of us. It began Wednesday night when we hosted a special event, continued Thursday evening when Crystal Society hosted us for a special Vintage Room Dinner to celebrate our 100th Crystal Society Milestone and last evening when we were recognized at the Crystal Society Party. These are the dining menus from Waterside. We dined at Umi Uma with Cruise Director Rick. Our waiter was Anthony who took great care of us whom we have known for many years. We enjoyed wonderful service, great conversation and delicious food. We'll let the photos do the talking of much of the food we enjoyed with the exception of the Hot Soba Soup (Kieth) and Lobster (Anne Marie) along with a couple of other items we had. We slept very well last evening. Having been up fairly late and up early the past two days it was easy to fall asleep. The sea swells were relatively calm. We began our day as we often do with an early morning workout for Keith at the Fitness Center followed by coffee and breakfast in our room. The scheduled port of call for today was Georgetown, Ascension Island which was a maiden port of call stop for Crystal Cruises. The island has 800 permanent residents. The irony is that no one is considered as officially from this remote British territory. This is because the U.K. government Denis the "right to abode" here, and they allow people to reside only with written permission from Her Majesty's representative. Please not that the right to abode means you're allowed to live or work in the U.K. without any immigration restrictions. 200 of the 800 residents are U.S Air Force who operated the military base which was originally built to support the Space Shuttle Program. The remaining 600 people living on the island are Britons and citizens of St. Helena. Ascension Island is a Volcanic Island. It is located 1,000 miles from the coast of Africa and 1,400 miles from the coast of Brazil. It is part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena. The island is named for Ascension Day based on its recorded discovery on 1501 by the Portuguese. Because it was dry and barren it was not claimed by the Portuguese. Over the years it had lots of strategic value. This included providing a safe location and coaling station for mariners and during World War II where it provided antisubmarine warfare based in the Battle Of The Atlantic. Major attractions include: Green Mountain National Park which was the country's first national park and is home to animals and plant species. It has hiking paths where hikers can see local wildlife such as turtles. Fort Bedford & Jubilee View which was constructed between 1903 and 1906 and is the most modern of three naval forts. The forts were decommissioned after World War I. Shortly after the start of World War II, Fort Before was rearmed. The fort remained active until 1953. Ascension Island Heritage Society Museum which was founded in 1966. Its purpose is to educate the visitors about the geography, history, natural history and architecture of the island. Long Beach which is therein nesting ground for hundred of Green Turtles. Fort Hayes which was commissioned in the 1860's. St. Mary's Church which was built as the Naval Church in the mid-19th Century. At around 8:30 AM, Captain Birger spoke with the guests from the Bridge. He noted that while today's weather was very nice the sea swells at the tender drop off made it unsafe for tender service to operate. They had attempted to land the first tender over ashore with Crystal personnel including the first officer and when the first officer got off the tender the water was up to his knees. While disappointed we know that the number one priority is for the safety of all guests and crew. Keith took some video and photos of the island from the ship. At 9:30 AM, Cruise Director Rick spoke to all guests and said that since we would now make today a sea day that an updated program was on the way to each guest room with activities added to the schedule. With lots of lecturers on-board Serenity two lectures were added to today's program. They also added a morning classic movie to the schedule which is Breakfast At Tiffany's. We both walked inside the ship. Keith got in a morning round of singles Paddle Tennis and Anne Marie stopped by one of the on-board stores and caught up on some writing. Today was Crystal at its finest. Received the update daily activities program as Cruise Director Rick said we would. Lots of activities added including: Yoga, Three Levels Of Bridge, Knitting, Golf Clinic, Breakfast At Tiffany’s movie, Lecture by Robert Caskie, Yamaha Music Class, Live music by Carlos, Lecture by Joshua Young about some famous comedians, Dance Class, Art Class, along with some additional Yamaha Piano, Bridge and Golf Classes. Kudos to the Entertainment team for creating a sea day within an hour of learning that we had missed the port. We enjoyed lunch at Marketplace. After lunch Keith played Paddle Tennis while Anne Marie walked. As we post this we are enjoying the rest of the day on-board Crystal Serenity. A few of you have written to us asking about more information on the just announced World Cruise 2022. We are posting a copy of the brochure which we received yesterday. There are five choices for the World Cruise with opportunities to begin and end the cruise in the same city in the USA and opportunities to end in Europe. There are several unique stops and Crystal is returning to some areas it has not sailed for a few years. Right below the brochure we have included todays Reflections Daily Program. Cheers, Keith ON THE ROAD TO ASCENSION ISLAND. Emily thank you so much for your very nice comments. Gilly thank you for your comments and we hope that one day you will be able to experience St. Helena. These are the menus from Waterside from last evening. We deviated from our pre-dinner drink last evening because of a special dinner we attended. The dinner was in honor of our 100th Crystal Society Milestone dinner which was held for us at The Vintage Room. When one achieves 100 Milestones Crystal Cruises arranges a Private Dinner at the Vintage Room Dinner along with with a few additional amenities. The dinner was organized by Crystal Society Hostess Alissa with consultation with Captain Birger, the Head Sommelier Jiri, and the Executive Chef Werner and a couple of other lead chefs. Alissa asked for our input on the food portion of the menu. We could invite up to 14 people including ourselves. We kept this number to 8 people including the two of us, the Captain, the Cruise Director, the Executive Housekeeper, the Restaurant Manager, the Future Sales Consultant and the Crystal Society Hostess. Each person who attended is very special to us. We each received a Platinum and Diamond Society Pin. When we opened the door to leave our room, we were pleasantly surprised to find Butler Rao waiting for us. Rao was very kind to escort us to the Vintage Room where we were greeted by everyone. The photos do not do justice to the food. We enjoyed: Lobster & Caviar Kingklip Fillet Butternut Ravioli Grilled Wagyu Beef Selection of Artisanal Cheeses The final course was Warm Valrhona Chocolate Soup with Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Executive Chef Werner Brenner and Pastry Chef Harald Neufang entered the Vintage Room after the waiters placed the special dessert in front of each person. Yes that was gold in the soup. The wine was equally amazing. We began with Charles Heidsieck Champagne and Captain Birger and Crystal Society Hostess Alissa toasted us. The White Wine which was an amazing Burgundy; Etienne Sauzet, Chassagne-Montrachet, "Les Enceigneres" was paired with the first two courses. We enjoyed two Red Wines with the Wagyu Beef. The first was from the "old world" which was Chateau Lascombes, Second Growth, Margaux, Bordeaux, France 2010 and the second one was from the "new world" which was a Ravana Cabernet Sauvignon, Revana Family Vineyards, Napa Valley, California 2009. A dessert wine of Kracher Trockenbeerenauslese Grand Cuvee No. 1, Burgenland, Austria 2003 was paired with the Artisanal Cheeses. The final pairing was a red Henschke, Shiraz, "Keyneton Euphonium," Barossa Valley Australia 2010 wine which accompanied the Warm Valrhona Chocolate Soup. It is hard to believe that we have reached this milestone. We remember our first cruise with Crystal Cruises on-board the former Crystal Harmony (the first ship of the fleet) in 2002. We sailed Alaska and it was in celebration of a major Wedding Anniversary Milestone. We brought our son, daughter and future son-in-law with us. In very short order we were Crystalized. We sailed the following year with our children on Crystal Symphony from Dover, England to Roen, France. This was followed in 2004 with a sailing on Crystal Symphony by ourselves. In 2005, two years after the debut of Crystal Serenity, we took our longest cruise up until that point sailing on two back-to-back cruises from Rome, Italy to Athens, Greece. It was on that cruise that we decided to book World Cruise 2007 to celebrate another major milestone Wedding Anniversary. By the end of the 2007 World Cruise Crystal became our go-to cruise line. We have enjoyed many World Cruises and other special cruises since then. We consider the wonderful Crystal crew on both Symphony and Serenity and the many Crystal Cruises team members on land to be part of our extended Crystal family. We feel way about many fellow guests who became friends. We have celebrated numerous special events sailing with Crystal including anniversaries, and birthdays. Our son and daughter have sailed with us on five Crystal Cruises, and our son-in-law and daughter in-law have sailed on four and three Crystal Cruises respectively. Most recently, in 2017 we took our family including three of the four grandchildren (our fourth grandchild was born seven months later) on Crystal Serenity where we not only celebrated our 40thwedding anniversary but we renewed our wedding vows. We have grown a great deal from these travels. This includes visits to many places around the world. It also includes what we have learned on-board the vessels from lecturers and other enrichment activities, sailing with crew and fellow cruisers from around the world, the extensive entertainment as well as learning more about cuisine and wine. We pinch ourselves each and everyday never having dreamed when we first married that we would have this opportunity. We take none of it for granted and we are humbled by these experiences. We have made many memories from our travels which will last a lifetime and last evenings dinner is one of those events that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. We believe in pursuing ones passion and that includes hobbies, helping others, giving back to community. One of several passions we enjoy is travel and we are fortunate to have found a cruise line that is the precise fit for us. We have made many memories from our travels which will last a lifetime and last evenings dinner is one of those events that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Upon arrival back to our room there was a beautiful vase containing long stem roses on the coffee table from Crystal Society along with flowers and chocolate from a dear friend. A few minutes later one of the stewardesses came by with the gifts that were presented to us last evening by Crystal Society Hostess Alissa. After the second consecutive late night we certainly slept well last evening. In spite of this we were up regular time and began this morning as we always do starting with an early morning workout for Keith followed by coffee and breakfast in our room. Anne Marie had personal training with Fitness Director Charlotte and Keith took an indoor cycling class taught by Fitness Director Melanie. We both walked afterwards. There was lots on today's program including a special announcemnt. The program included two morning and one afternoon lecture. Robert Caskie spoke about the Anglo Boer War between 1899 and 1902. Later in the morning Ambassador Tony Leon spoke about Africa and America and it reenforced what we learned the other day in a talk by another lecturer. It dove into the issue of the active role that China is playing in Africa in terms of large economic investment and the delivery of infrastructure throughout Africa while the United States is shrinking its presence in Africa both economically and in its involvement. As we mentioned the other day this is a topic that does not get very much attention back home and is something of a concern in the years to come. In the afternoon Professor David Drewry spoke about the geological forces that have shaped the African continent over hundreds of millions of years. Keith was able to play Paddle Tennis in the morning shortly before we had lunch at Marketplace. The afternoon included more Paddle Tennis for Keith and a walk for Anne Marie. One of the highlights for the afternoon was at 1:00 PM ships time when Cruise Director Rick, Future Sales Consultant Paula Jean and Captain Birger announced the World Cruise 2022 itinerary at the Galaxy Lounge. Anne Marie went to the talk while Keith played Paddle Tennis. Looks This evening we will be attending the Crystal Society Party followed by dinner at Umi Uma. More about this tomorrow. This is the daily Reflections Program for today. Cheers, Anne Marie & Keith WELCOME TO ST. HELENA We began last evening attending a Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle Party. It was a well attended event with mostly people who boarded for this segment attending. Anne Marie with Trudi who we have met for the first time on this cruise. These are the menus from Waterside. We dined at Prego with fellow World Cruisers Connie and Greg. We met the two of them early in the World Cruise and recently set up a date to have dinner with them. This is one of the nice aspects of cruising which is to meet people when sailing This is something that happens far less when traveling on-land unless it involves traveling with a group. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner with lots of great conversation, delicious food, terrific service and the special ambience of the dining venue. We each had appetizers followed by Caesar Salad and entrees of Veal for Anne Marie and Roasted Rack of Baby Lamb for Keith. Once again, Kudos to the wonderful Prego team of Sommeliers, Waitstaff, Chefs and other personnel who work in the Galley area. We were up much later than usual attending a function with people who are very special to us. We often talk about our Crystal extended family who are very dear to us. We arrived back to the room close to Midnight. In spite of getting to sleep later than usual, Keith was up early and enjoyed a workout at the Fitness Center before we had coffee followed by breakfast in our room. We arrived to St Helena by the scheduled time of before the schedule 7:00 AM arrival time. We are including two photos taken showing a portion of the island before the full sunrise. This is a tender port. St. Helena is a one of the most remote islands in the world. It is located approximately 1,500 miles northwest from Cape Town. We were fortunate to visit the island on our first World Cruise in 2007 and twelve years later having the opportunity to visit it a second time. It was uninhabited when it was discovered by the Portuguese in 1502. It became a stopover island for ships traveling to Europe from Asia and South America. St. Helena became a British dependency in 1834. Napoleon was imprisoned and exiled to this Island by the British on October 14, 1815 where he lived until his death on May 5, 1821. Originally, buried on the island his body was exhumed on October 15, 1840 and moved to its current resting place in Paris, France. The island’s population is in decline and today about 4,500 people live there. In terms of the economy the island relies on assistance and aid from the British Government. They benefit from some tourism and they highlight that this was the location where Napoleon spent his last years. On our first visit the only way to visit the island was by sea vessel as no airport existed. In 2015 an airport was opened on the island allowing for air travel. Major attractions include: Jacob's Ladder is a staircase which was built in the 1800's leading from Jamestown and up the side of Ladder Hill to Ladder Hill Fort. It was designated a UNESCO site in 2007. Plantation House was built between 1791 & 1792 and is the official residence of the Governor of Saint Helena. Museum of St. Helen which opened in 2002 and hosts various exhibitions. St. James Church which was founded in 1674 and the present building was constructed in 1774. It is the oldest Anglican Church in the Southern Hemisphere. Castle Gardens which supposedly includes plants growing since before Napoleon's day. Longwood House is a mansion in St. Helena and was the final residence of Napoleon Bonaparte between December 1815 and his death on May 5, 1821. We took one of the early tenders over to St. Helena. We walked for close to two hours. When we got off the tender as we walked towards town we remembered the narrow street that took us to the arch where we entered the town. We walked to Jacob's Ladder and Keith walked up part of the way. He could have walked all the way up from a physical standpoint with ease but held off due to its overall height. In 2007 he walked up part of the ladder with Dr. Art Ulene who some of you might remember from the Today Show as he was the Medical expert for that show and also for some of the other news programs on NBC. We visited the Museum of St. Helena which contains two floors of exhibits. We walked inside of St. James Church. We strolled the Castle Gardens which was beautiful and as we walked the area we thought that this was the same area that Napoleon visited. There is a sense of history. Nearby is the Castle which we visited. We walked up and down the main streets and spoke with several locals who were very friendly to us. There were more vehicles than we remembered from our first visit and lots of taxis and tour vehicles. We also visited some markets and other stores to see the types of items that are sold. It is fun to see new ports of call and return to others which we have visited before. This one was special as it is a charming and quaint area and allowed us to relive memories which we created on our first World Cruise. On our way back to the tender we spoke with Alex who is the Manager of Shore Excursions. This is Alex's fifth World Cruise. We chatted with Nat who we have known for almost 25 years. Nat's first World Cruise was on-board Crystal Symphony in 1995. Back on Serenity we enjoyed lunch at Marketplace. After lunch Keith played singles Paddle Tennis with a fellow guest who boarded in Cape Town. This is his and his wife's second Crystal Cruise having sailed one time ima 2014. Keith met him on the cruise at the Paddle Tennis courts. It was hot, hot, hot and humid, humid, humid. LOL. Anne Marie walked outside on the Promenade Deck. As we post this we are enjoying the rest of the day on the ship. This evening we are attending a very special dinner. More on that tomorrow. Following is the daily Reflections Program. Cheers, Anne Marie & Keith ON THE ROAD AGAIN TO ST. HELENA - DAY THREE OF THREE DAYS AT SEA Bob glad you are enjoying the posts. Thank you. Football is a tougher one. We (Keith) like a few teams of today so won't mention them all. In the past liked Jets (back with Joe Namath) and we were both big Washington Redskin Fans during the first Joe Gibbs era with them and also San Francisco 49er fans when Joe Montana and Steve Young were there along with Coaches Bill Walsh and George Seifert. Gilly, thank you for your comments and we hope to see St. Helena assuming the weather and seas cooperate as they did in 2007 and the tender service runs. We arrive there tomorrow. We began last evening with a pre-dinner drink at the Avenue Saloon. We enjoyed a nice conversation with one of the bartenders who returned from Holiday in Cape Town. She was on board for the Holiday Cruise and the seven day January cruise. When we first met her a few years ago she worked in the lounges serving drinks and like many members of Crystal Cruises she has moved into higher positions. These are the dinner menus from Waterside where we ate. We dined at Waterside for the second consecutive night. We wanted to mention the wine. We began with a White Chardonnay recently brought on board from the Sellenbosh region of South Africa. This one was not only unoaked but also unfiltered. While the majority of winemakers filter wine to make it clearer and more stable some do not as they think it strips the wine of some of its flavors and aroma. The wine was unique. We might not have identified it as a Chardonnay. We enjoyed it. Keith also had the Red 4 Vina Robles, Red wine. He enjoys this wine as he also enjoyed the Vina Robles Cabernet wine and we get the latter wine at home as well after discovering it on a few years ago on-board Crystal Serenity. We have enjoyed many of the inclusive wines and that local wines have been brought on-board in places such as Australia, New Zealand and most recently in South Africa. We began with appetizers; Tuna Tartare for Keith and from the modern menu Seared Scallops for Anne Marie. Both were delicious. Our next course was a starter salad. We forgot to get a photo of the salad. This one was very creative as in addition to the mixed greens and egg it also was accompanied with a small Monte Cristo Sandwich. We both had the Pan-Fried Sea Bass Fillet for our entrée which was delicious. The fish was cooked to perfection and the sauce that accompanied it, beet beurre blanc, was very tasty and enhanced the overall flavor of the entree. We have found the food at Waterside to be some of the best food we have ever had. We also had a similar experience on Crystal Symphony last May after they converted the former Crystal Dining Room to Waterside. We find the food to be moist, hot, tasty and to have very creative presentations. We do think that the food benefits from the move to open dining where food comes from the galley and in very short order is placed on the table and the efficiencies that come from the Senior Waiters taking the orders via iPads where they are electronically sent back to the galley. The featured entertainment included two performances given by Concert Pianist Rusten Hayroundinoff and two showings of the Rock & Pop-A-Mainia Show featuring the Crystal Ensemble of Singers & Dancers and the Crytal Showband. As usual there was live music in several of the lounges. There was also two showings in the Hollywood Theatre of the motion picture Leave No Trace. The overall quality, diversity and the quantity of the evening entertainment offerings has been amazing. We slept well as we are sailing to St. Helena. We began the day as we normally do with an early morning workout for Keith followed by coffee and breakfast in our room. While Keith had personal training, Anne Marie walked inside the ship. Keith also had a second massage in two days to work on his muscles. Anne Marie had an appointment to have her hair cut at the Salon. There was lots on today's program including several wonderful lectures. Robert Cassie spoke about St Helena. Eugene Robinson spoke about Donald Trump and what contributed to his election and a future view of the electorate. We watched Eugene Robinson's talk on the Television in the afternoon. He was very informative and left a lot to think about. He did note that every fifty years there has been some major changes in politics. An example was African Americans supporting the Republican Party at the turn of the Century and by the 1960's who that reversed with them aligning with the Democratic Party. Fast forward to the 2016 election and he spoke about Donald Trump getting the nomination and Bernie Sanders almost getting the nomination and how unexpected that was and that it might be what the future holds for awhile. Specifically, that many of the electorate are looking for non-traditional candidates. As they say time will tell. He covered many other items. He is a very good speaker. Other highlights include a tour of the galley in the afternoon and this evening stargazing with the Chief Electrical Engineer. I did this a few years ago with him and a former Astronaut and it was an amazing experience. We saw the space station, the Hubble Telescope, two planets and the Southern Cross. We enjoyed lunch at Marketplace and after lunch Keith played Paddle Tennis for over two hours and Anne Marie walked. We watched the lecture given by Eugene Robinson and as I post this we are enjoying the rest of the day on Serenity. We have some special events over the next three consecutive nights starting this evening. This will include a late evening for us between a later than usual dinner at Prego and an event that we will be attending late tonight. Below is a copy of the daily Reflections Program. Cheers, Anne Marie & Keith |
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