We returned to the Crystal Cove for a pre-dinner drink. We do enjoy the Cove at this time of the evening as we see lots of people and enjoy the music of Pianist Richard Pucci. On some voyages by the time we arrive it is way too crowded so we will go to another venue such as the Avenue Saloon. However, we find the Avenue Saloon can be too quiet at the time we go. So far the Cove is working out well. Richard played a medley of Beatles songs. They included some special songs written by Paul McCartney,John Lennon and George Harrison. We enjoyed dinner at Waterside for the third consecutive evening. These are the dinner menus. We enjoyed three wonderful courses; Seared Scallops for Anne Marie and Tuna Tartare for me; Dinner Salads for each of us, as well as Whole Roasted Basil Marinated Monkfish. One word repeated three times sums this up. Delicious, Delicious, Delicious. Waiter Fernando who assists Senior Waiter Kirsten. Head Waiter Augusto. We slept pretty well last evening given that Anne Marie is under the weather. Those of you who have read our blogs know our previous routine and those of you new to the blog are starting to get a good idea of our early morning routine. It is pretty much the same routine everyday with a few exceptions. Today, there were no exceptions. Keith was up early and worked out on the Elliptical Machine. With the internet slower than we have experienced the last eighteen months Keith is taking advantage of the early hours when less people are contending for bandwidth to work on the blog which he did this morning. With very few people up he also did a load of laundry. We enjoyed breakfast in our room thanks to butler Rao. By 8:00 AM we arrived to Cartagena, Colombia. Around the time of arrival Keith arrived to take his first indoor cycling class of the cruise. As it turned out the class was only Keith. The instructor had a cold and while he would have taught the class Keith said he would just do his own class with his own music. The instructor would have taught but Keith knows what it is like to teach when one is not feeling well so he was happy to do his own class. As they say there is next time. Our first visit to Cartagena was in November, 2010 and including that trip this will represent our seventh visit to this port city. The city has a population of close to one million people, making it the fifth largest city in all of Colombia. It is the most popular tourist city in all of Colombia. The city has its old town area but also a new very modern area on the other side of the city with close to 50 skyscrapers. Cartagena also has several beautiful beaches, many nice places to enjoy dining, music, dance and drink. While some people do not care for this city, we do enjoy it. Although we didn't do this today, the key is to get away from the port and to travel about 30 minutes into town where there is a lot to explore. We also find it to be safe and with each succeeding year continues to improve. They have significantly increased their tourism over the past few years with many ships calling on this port during the cruising season. On three prior visits we toured this city extensively including a private excursion we booked with Crystal Cruises in 2013. We have visited the walled city, the 400-year-old monastery of Convento de la Popa, the Cathedral along with several other area attractions. Because we have toured the major areas of the city, we decided not to book a tour. Instead, the plan was for us to both walk around the area near the pier and possibly take a taxi into town. With Anne Marie under the weather she stayed on-board Serenity and Keith walked the area near the pier. It is an industrial port so you need to walk in the area for pedestrians. Crystal has two complimentary port shuttles running between the ship and stores. One of the things we enjoy about cruising this time of year is the weather. While it is winter back home with the humidity today felt like summer. As in the past there are some shops and an areas with greenery and some wildlife. You never know what you will see in terms of wildlife. Some years we've seen Deer but not today. The Holland America Eurodam was in port with us. As usual Crystal crew were busy while we were in port keeping the outside of the ship looking nice with paint. We enjoyed lunch at Waterside and in the afternoon Anne Marie went on a short walk inside the ship and rested and Keith played Paddle Tennis with several people This is today's Daily Reflections Program. Cheers,
Anne Marie & Keith
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