The next two days are spent at sea. The skies have been mostly overcast with some showers. A few rainbows brighten the sky. Temperatures are in the low 80's. Very comfortable for me.
On Tuesday we go to the Tuscan Grille for breakfast. A perk for Elite members. Coffee, danish and a few cold items to choose from. Nothing cooked to order. The danish was fresh and I was told the coffee good, something I know nothing about as I never drink any.
The shore excursion presentation was informative, not because I have never been to these ports before, but because I can't keep one straight from the other.
Most venues on the ship are cool, but not as cold as they were on the Harmony. The cabin is very typical, and most notably the door to the balcony is the easiest to open and close that I have ever encountered. It seems that I always get one that sticks or has a broken lock.
No wine, soda or even a glass of water on this cruise. Like I said, the perks are not the same.
Most notable was the "Beyond the Podium" presentation by a guest speaker. He is going to do 5 presentations about the brain, including one on aging. Very appropriate for the passengers on this cruise. I hope I remember to attend all of them. Yes, how the brain remembers is part of his talk.
The ship is less than full with about 2100 passengers. A few are first timers, and probably the number of passengers under 21 could be counted with your fingers.
Historically there is a crowd waiting to get into the Sky Lounge for coctails between 5 and 7. Now that they are allowing passengers to enjoy cocktail hour at some (not all) of the other venues around the ship, the lounge is relatively empty. The bar service in the Sky Lounge is excellen as one expects. This will be my goto location before dinner for the remainder of the cruise.
Dinner service the second night was better, probably because we brought our drinks with us into the dining room. My steak was perfectly prepared and I splurged and had apple pie ala mode again for dessert.
The headliner entertainer is Ashlie Amber, a young singer with an excellent voice. I had seen her the previous day walking around the ship. Without a doubt the most outrageous hairdoo and dress of anyone on the ship.
Unimpressed with the offerings in the Tuscan Grille, and not wanting to fight the masses in the buffet, We order room service for breakfast the next day.
The seas remain slight, the skys mostly cloudy with passing showers. A few passing ships are seen in the distance. One looked like a cruise ship, but it was too distant to identify.
Room service was prompt, and a call to the cabin seconds before arrival worked very well. This may just become the norm for breakfast on this ship even though as a rule I don't care for room service.
The skies remain overcast all day. A few showers are thrown in to discourage the sun worshippers. It doesn't seem to matter much. The chairs around the pool remain full. Many bodies are burned, their owners fooled by the overcast skies.
Back to the sky lounge for cocktail hour just before 5. Our waiter, the same as the previous night, mixes my gin with some brand of sparkling water intstead of clubsoda. I try it, and decide club soda is really better so for my next drink I specifically ask that he use club soda. It is then that I learn that they are out of club soda. I don't know if that is just in this bar, of for the ship. I will know tomorrow,
Executive chefs for the cruise industry are always trying to come up with unique menu ideas. One that I had not seen before is roasted duck on fried wild rice. I give it a try. Well I can see no indication that the rice was actually fried, but it was a good combination. Service continued to be good, and the head waiter almost had a smile tonight.
The production show this evening is the singers, dancers and acrobats in "Topper". I remember the name from previous cruises on this ship, but really don't remember much about the show. It is a typical production show.
The seas remain at about 3 feet, just under the point where there are white caps. A quick check with the app on my phone reveals the ship roll is +/- .5 degrees, and the pitch is zero.
Tomorrow we are scheduled to arrive in St. John's Antigua at about 10AM.