DAY 33 - DAY TWENTY-FIVE ON THE CRYSTAL SERENITY

Before dinner last evening we sat with friends John and Linda in the Crystal Cove as we do on many evenings.

The evening attire was elegant casual.

We dined at the Crystal Dining Room after being away for two nights.  

The theme for the dinner was the Neptune Dinner.

The dining room was quite busy.  Early seating is by far more popular than late seating.  In addition, the night before many guests were dining elsewhere such as at one of the three Specialty Restaurants.

We each began our meal with Salads.  Anne Marie had a Spinach Salad topped with Smoked Salmon.  Keith had his standard salad.

The menu featured a Surf n' Turf and Anne Marie changed it up to be a Turf n' Turf with Broiled Lobster Tails only.    As you know by now she loves Lobster.

Keith asked for Salmon which was not on the menu, although you can get it on any night and it does not need to be special ordered in advance.  He asked for it to be plain.  This is the naked Salmon.  

However, we asked for side orders of Peas, Asparagus, and Sautéed Onions and in this photo the the Salmon is now surrounded with vegetables.  He also had a baked potato on the side.  

For dessert, Anne Marie had a sugar free Chocolate Brownie a la Mode.  It was delicious and she shared a portion of it with Keith and we both agreed that it didn't taste like a sugar-free dessert.

Keith went with the Mixed Berries.  Senior Waiter, Ayan, knows by now that Keith enjoys fruit as his dessert so he just brought a dessert menu to the table for Anne Marie.  One night Keith will need to shake things up.

After dinner, we went to the Avenue Saloon for about 45 minutes before attending the show performed by Vocalist, Jamila.  She performed twice once at 8:30 PM and the second performance at 10:30 PM.

In 2005, she was hired as the newest member of the legendary and world renowned member of the 5th Dimension.  She was a hit with all of us.  She sang a wide range of songs including one of the famous songs performed by the 5th Dimension in the 1960's.  She has a beautiful voice.  We had never seen her perform before and she might be new to Crystal Cruises.  They used a small venue which made the evening much more intimate and that was absolutely perfect.

The good news is that upon returning back to the room we set the clocks back on hour when we returned back to the room.  It is so nice to sail East to West.

On our bed was a nice letter from World Cruise Hostess Stacey Huston.  She provided some information about the upcoming World Cruise even on January 31st which will feature entertainment and a dinner.  We look forward to this event.

We slept very well last evening as we continue to sail toward Guam which is our nexus port of call. Overall, seas were relatively calm.

Keith was up very early and enjoyed the benefit from the one hour change of the clocks.  He worked out on the Elliptical Machine.
He watched one of the lectures which was given the day before about Social Networking (internet) which gave advice on do's and dont's.  He also watched a news broadcast.

Keith did some laundry and his next stop was the Lido Cafe.  He enjoyed coffee and he spoke with Lido Deck Stewards; Max, Ross, Jun, Liebert and Benjamin.  At that hour they are busily putting out a wide range of the cold foods including cereal, fruit, yogurt and other foods and also assisting the few guests who are up there with coffee, juice or other beverages.

Keith brought back coffee to the room for Anne Marie and a short while later Anne Marie was on her one hour morning walk.

We enjoyed breakfast in our room as we watched the Daily Morning Show.  As they do on most mornings they cover some previous day/evening highlights and talk about some of the highlights for the current day.  They have been bringing on people from enrichment and also from other areas of the ship to speak about special programs which are offered on this adventure.  They also do some trivia.  It is very unscripted and there are a lot of laughs. Today, they had Richard Roth from CNN on the show for an interview.  Richard Roth has a great sense of humor and between him and Rick and Stacey there was lots of humor and laughing.  It was great.

Once again, there is lots of enrichment activity on the daily Reflections Program and more than ever before on any of the World Cruises we have been on.  This is a copy of today's activity schedule.  If you click on the program you can make the size larger.

Shortly after breakfast Keith was back at the Spin Class as the classes have mainly been held at 8:30 AM.  Anne Marie got ready and then she stopped by the class to take some photos and video.

Keith realized from comments from two guests that all of that salad he eats must be paying off.  The woman to the next of him said she has never seen anyone move their legs as quickly as he does.  Then as Keith was leaving someone we know who had just finished his workout on the Elliptical Machine said the same thing.  So, Keith felt like the Energizer Bunny.

Fitness Director, Scott, taught today's class.  He had a great playlist.

We are not praying.  Rather we are in a position for a fast (yes Energizer Bunny Fast) spin.

Humor always makes the class more enjoyable at sea and on land.

Keith met Anne Marie over at the Crystal Cove.  We chatted for awhile with Hotel Director Josef when he stopped by and we also spoke with Cruise Director Rick who came by as well.  We also briefly spoke with the Vice Captain, Chief Engineer and the Food & Beverage Manager.

Anne Marie also worked on her Needle Point while at the Crystal Cove.

Speaking of Needle Point, Anne Marie completed her first kit of this cruise.

Anne Marie also attended Knitting.  They have been having get-together's for both Kitting and Needle Point on most mornings up at the Palm Court and Anne Marie has been going to many of these.  The guest work on kits that have been given out or they might even bring their own projects and some also talk to each other as they do either Knitting or Needle Point.

Keith attended one of the two Lectures which was given by General Anthony Zinni who spoke about three key Island Campaigns during World War II.  This included Pearl Harbor, Guam/Siapan/Tinian and Okinawa.

Today being a sea day was also Team Trivia. Anne Marie played today so that Keith could do some other things.

We enjoyed lunch together and to no surprise we each had a nice salad entree.

The afternoon brought more fitness activity with Keith playing Paddle Tennis and Anne Marie walking and attending the Yoga Class.

Heat was the operative word outside, but we prefer heat over cold, rain and wind so we have no complaints.  We realize that when we make it to Japan it will be very cold there.

Anne Marie worked on her knitting and also Keith got together with good friend Bob.

We also caught the third lecture of the day on TV which was given by Michael Freedland who spoke about Hollywood At War which focused on Hollywood during World War II.

This evening we will be dining at the Crystal Dining Room with two friends who will be joining us for dinner.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY……

"A hug is like a boomerang - you get it back right away." - Bill Keane

Keith & Anne Marie