DAY 100 - DAY 94 CRYSTAL SERENITY

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

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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.

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​This is the menu from ​Silk.

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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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