DAY 62 - DAY FIFTY FOUR ON THE CRYSTAL SERENITY

These are some additional photos from Segment 2 of the World Cruise.

Before dinner last evening we met in the Crystal Plaza with friend John and Linda.  We seem to be the big drinker with each of us having a Perrier some with ice and others without ice.  LOL.

We had dinner in the Crystal Dining Room.

From Left to Right, our waiter, Lazlo, Keith, Anne Marie and our Senior Waiter, Ivana.  We have had Lazlo for the entire World Cruise and Ivana just since Hong Kong.  Lazlo has been terrific.  Very efficient and works so very hard.  Ivana is already a doll.  She  has confidence, is very efficient, does not miss a beat and after the first night knew all of our preferences and we have already enjoyed a lot of laughs with her.

With many people either on tour or just tired, the Crystal Dining Room was the quietest it has ever been for first seating dinner, and it had the fewest people dining since we boarded the ship on January 5.

Dinner was just fantastic from service to cuisine to the overall ambience of the dining room.  We are in great hands with the superb wait staff team.

Head Waiter Augusto suggested that  we have the Ahi Tuna which was the entrée for an appetizer and he had the Senior Waiter order each of us a very small portion of it.  His recommendation was terrific.  It was not too much, very tasty and it was cooked nicely.

We then each had a salad for our next course.  Anne Marie asked for Spinach and Eggs, which was not on the menu, and Keith had his standing order salad.

Augusto made our entrée.  It was a Penne Pasta, with a spicy sauce and Lobster and all we can say is wow.  

From time to time the Head Waiters prepare different desserts in the Crystal Dining Room and when they are doing this you can smell the aroma.  While we were eating our salad, all of a sudden Keith smelled something and knowing it didn't smell like the aroma of one of the desserts he said to Anne Marie "I wonder what that is?".  Anne Marie could see that it was Augusto preparing our entree over at his station and as she was starting to answer Keith the light bulb went on in his head and they both at the same time said Augusto.

The entree was just outstanding and we really enjoyed it.  The photo shows Keith’s bowl, which was quite a bit larger than what Anne Marie had.  Keith thinks that Augusto and Anne Marie are trying to get him to eat more.  LOL, but he is right.

For dessert, Keith had his mixed berries while Anne Marie had the non-fat Butter Pecan Yogurt which she enjoyed.

We also enjoyed the wine that our Sommelier, Javier, recommended.  He tries to change things up for us each night and he pours the wine so well which we enjoy but requires him to stop by the table more often and we really appreciate that and whether it is a wine we are having for the first time or one that we have had before he explains about the wine and the vineyard and describes the wine and he also takes the time to answer any and all of our questions.

We didn't make the show last night and went back to our room after dinner and read and wrote.

We both slept very well last evening as we are sailing to our next port of call which is Ho Chi Minh City.

Keith was up first and read and wrote.    Since he was taking the indoor cycling class, he did not do a workout on the Elliptical Machine.

After he finished,  Keith stopped by the Lido Café for coffee and when he finished he brought coffee back to the room for Anne Marie.  We then went on a one hour walk on the Promenade Deck. The weather was very nice.  About half way into our walk, we saw friend Elaine and we walked with her for awhile.  As was the case for the past few days, there were several security officers who were posted on the Promenade Deck looking for any suspicious activity related to other boats in the sea.

Since this was a sea day there was lots on the schedule to enjoy.  We watched the Daily Morning Show featuring Cruise Director Rick and World Cruise Hostess Stacey while we had breakfast in our room.  They covered some of the highlights today including the lecture that will be given by the former POW, Lee Ellis.  They got on the subject of the Ambassador Hosts who dance with the ladies who are traveling by themselves and noted that there are ten Ambassador Hosts on board the ship for this segment of the World Cruise.

From there, Keith went to his Spin (indoor cycling) Class. Fitness Director Michael pushed us harder today than in several weeks.  Four of the five people in the class are in very good shape.  It was a fun class and Keith welcomed the increased challenge.

 Anne Marie stopped up to take photos and then she went to the Crystal Plaza where she read and wrote eland spoke with several guests.  When Keith finished his class, he changed and met up with Anne Marie.  We spoke with some guests including one who just joined the ship in Hong Kong who we have known for several years and we spoke with many of the Senior Officers who stopped by to say hello.

Anne Marie also attended the get together for Knitting.  It's a great way to spend time with fellow guests and to catch up on things going on around the ship and to knit.

We also turned in the invitation to the next World Cruise shoreside event which is coming up soon in Singapore.

There were a couple of lectures on the morning program which Keith watched when they were rebroadcasted.   

On selected cruises a Grand Gala Buffet is offered once per sailing and today was one of them.  This buffet featured an array of wonderfully prepared appetizers, entrees and desserts.  We tend to avoid the buffets being on the ship for such a long time but some on the full World Cruise enjoy them and many who are on one or maybe a couple of voyages usually eat there.

Keith watched as they were setting up the buffet and took a couple of photos of that.  When they do the next Gala he will try to take photos of each table after everything is set up.

A tremendous amount of effort goes into the preparation of the buffet including not only the preparation of the buffet but the set up by both the galley team but also the wait staff as well as the service during the gala and of course the clean up.  The amount of care that goes into the presentation is as if it is the first time they are doing this as they want everything to be right.  The finished product is clearly a work of art.

At Noon Keith was off to Team Trivia.

We enjoyed our typical lunch which is a nice Salad Entree.  Afterwards, Keith played more Paddle Tennis and Anne Marie had Yoga which was moved up 30 minutes earlier than usual and then she walked outside.

Tomorrow we arrive to Ho Chi Minh City in the afternoon.  Since the ride to and from the port should be around 45 minutes each way we likely will not visit that day since we have three and one half full days there and have also been there on two other voyages. We have a full day tour for the following day with dear friends Bob and Glo which Keith arranged for the four of us several months ago.

This evening we will be dining at Prego.  It is Black Tie Optional attire on the ship for this evening and also later in the evening is the Crystal Society Reception honoring those who have reach certain milestones in terms of completed Crystal Cruises Voyages.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY…..

"Find the good and praise it."  - Alex Haley 

Keith & Anne Marie

DAY 61 - DAY FIFTY THREE ON THE CRYSTAL SERENITY

We wanted to begin with a few photos taken during the second segment of the World Cruise.

Last evening before dinner we attended a World Cruise Around the World Event at the Officers’ Quarters which include the Captain’s, Hotel Director’s, Chief Engineer’s and Vice Captain’s Quarters. 

The themes were Japan, China, South Africa and England.

World Cruise Hostess Stacey and Cruise Director Rick with Anne Marie.

Ross with Anne Marie.  He had Vodka with some mixers.

Assistant Cruise Director Scott.

Afterwards, we went down to the Crystal Plaza and sat with friends John and Linda.

We were back in the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.

We began our meal with an appetizer.  Head Waiter Augusto made Keith Tuna Tar Tare and Anne Marie had Shrimp Cocktail.

We each had a salad.  Keith had his standing order salad and Anne Marie had a Caesar Salad.

We both had Halibut as our entrée and we shared various vegetables.

For dessert, Keith had his usual mixed berries and Anne Marie had a sugar free Brownie with Ice Cream.

Javier our Sommelier prepared both a white wine and a red wine for us.

We had a great time and we enjoyed a lot of great laughs with the fabulous wait staff.

We slept very well last evening.  The seas were very calm as we sailed to our next port of call in Chan May, Vietnam. 

As usual, Keith was up first and he worked out at the Fitness Center.  He was back on the Elliptical Machine with his longest workout on that machine since a few weeks ago.    Afterwards, he had coffee at the Lido Café and he brought coffee back to the room.

We went on a nice one hour walk and we walked on the Promenade Deck.  When we began our walk it was light jacket type of weather but as the sun began to rise it started to warm up.  There were four security personnel on the Promenade Deck watching for anything suspicious such as small boats.  We also saw the Pilot Boat.

A short while later we had breakfast in our room.

We did not go into port nor take any excursions.  Previously we have done a couple of different tours including visiting Da Nang, and China Beach and other historical sites and we didn’t think it made much sense to return.  Instead, we just enjoyed the ship, other than Keith going onto the pier and stopping off at an area where items were being sold.

We sat in the Crystal Plaza and ended up speaking with several guests and crew members.

Later we had lunch at the Lido Cafe and we each created our own Salad Entree.

In the afternoon, Keith played Paddle Tennis for two hours.  The weather was great and he really enjoyed who he was playing with and the games.

Anne Marie walked and then she worked on her knitting.  She has also purchased additional knitting kits so she has enough projects for the remainder of our time on the Serenity.  She also picked up another needlepoint kit and is enjoying doing the needlepoint as well.  Keith met up with dear friend Bob as well.

We made a sea day of today and it worked out perfectly for us.

This evening we are back in the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.

"Kind words are short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless."  - Mother Teresa

Keith & Anne Marie

DAY 60 - DAY FIFTY TWO ON THE CRYSTAL SERENITY

These are some photos from our tour on the Junk Boat.

Our tour guide.

Additional Photos from inside the Cave.

This is just a very small portion of the area we walked to after the tour selling items.  It went on for about a couple of blocks.  As they say, welcome to Vietnam.

Last evening we dined by ourselves at Prego and enjoyed a nice quiet meal there.

The purse is a gift to Anne Marie from our Son, Eric, and Daughter In Law, Kara.

We each began our meal with salads; with Keith enjoying his standing order salad and Anne Marie having the Caesar Salad.

This was Keith's entree which was one the two additional entrees.  This one was a snapper which was hidden below the vegetables.

Keith enjoyed a small side order of vegetables; well maybe it was not so small.

Our waiter was Costa and we learned last night that his contract was extended until the end of the World Cruise so that was great news for us.  

Anne Marie went with the Veal.

We had a great time and since it was relatively slow when we arrived it gave us more time to speak with Costa and one other waiter along with Head Waiter Mario and Maitre d' Antonio.

When we got back to the room we read, wrote, Anne Marie did some laundry, and caught up on news from home.

We slept well as the Serenity was anchored for the evening.  Tender service ran between the ship and shore till around 11:30 PM.

Keith awoke first and did reading and writing and then had coffee at the Lido Cafe.  As he was leaving he brought coffee back to the room for Anne Marie to enjoy.  We then took a nice walk on the Promenade Deck.  For about half our walk we walked with friend Elaine.  We enjoyed the sunrise.

We did not go ashore today as the last tender was returning at 11:00 AM and there really was nothing more to see so we stayed on the ship.  There were some people who took early tours this morning and some who didn't get a chance to shop as we did when we returned from our tour (although we did not purchase anything) 

Overall, the program was planned to make this a sea day for those staying on the ship.

We had breakfast in our room at the same time we do on sea days. Afterwards, Keith did take the Spin Class being offered which was why he didn't go on the Elliptical in the morning.  We had three new people in the class today.  Fitness Director, Michael, went with a new CD and the music was quite good and it was a great workout.

While Keith was in Spin, Anne Marie sat at the Crystal Plaza and read and wrote and then spoke with several guests and with Cruise Director Rick, Hotel Director Josef and Captain Birger.  

A little while after Spin Class, Keith had a haircut at the Salon, which was his third of the cruise.  He really felt like he needed one so this turned out a great day to have made an appointment.

They also added a Team Trivia game to the schedule since this voyage only has four sea days.  Our team did well today getting 12 of 15 questions right.  One that we got wrong included what will Earth's Sun be called when it eventually goes dark.

We also enjoyed salads for Lunch as we do on almost all days we are on the ship.  We find it filling, healthy and we enjoy it.

Anne Marie walked in the afternoon. Keith tried to play tennis but no one was around so he ended up reading and writing and then later in the day met with dear friend Bob.

This evening we will be dining at the Crystal Dining Room and look forward to an enjoyable time.

We also have a World Cruise Event and we will post all about this tomorrow.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY……...

"As we walked around Vietnam in many ways it is difficult to believe that the war ended a little over forty years ago.  While there are signs of the war in some of the places around the country including Ho Chi Minh City, there were no signs of war where we were. Today, the vast majority of Vietnamese were not alive or too young to remember the war." - Keith & Anne Marie

Keith & Anne Marie

DAY 59 - DAY FIFTY ONE ON THE CRYSTAL SERENITY

Last evening we dined at the Crystal Dining Room.  The attire was Black Tie Optional and the Theme of the Menu was the Captain's Gala Dinner.  These were the dinner menus.

Before dinner, we sat at the Crystal Cove with friends John and Linda.  We also had our formal photos taken at each of three stations that were set up for photographs.

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner in the Crystal Dining Room.

We began dinner with salads.  Anne Marie had the Captain’s Salad, which is always a terrific salad.

Keith went with his standing order salad.

For the entrée, Anne Marie had lobster, which is always her favorite.  It was Broiled Fresh Lobster.

Augusto was not sure if Keith would like the seafood entrée so he pre-ordered Keith Sea Bass, which Keith did have and it was very tasty and moist and it was a thick piece.  Keith also tried the Line Caught, Fresh Barramundi. It is thin and two slices were served.  Keith thought it was very tasty.

We also shared side orders of Peas and Fresh Asparagus.

For dessert, Anne Marie had the sugar free Chocolate Cream Swan and Keith had the Fresh Berries.

Each night the waiters come around with some type of small cookie or petites fours  and, we always say another time but tonight they really looked great so Anne Marie selected one for Keith and a smaller cookie for herself. 

We had sent down a bottle of wine, which was a French Chardonnay (Burgundy) called Puligny-Montrachet, Etienne Sauzet, 2010.  It was quite good an unlike a California Chardonnay it was not buttery and there was nor was it oaky. 

All in all it was another wonderful evening at the Dining Room.

Keith woke early in the morning and enjoyed a nice workout on the Elliptical Machine.  He watched the lecture given by a former POW who served in the USA military during Vietnam.  He has taken that experience to enhance not only himself but to work with others as a coach.  He took what was a grueling experience and used it to have a positive impact.  There are a lot of good lessons from his experience.  This will be his first time in Vietnam since he was released.

Afterwards, he went to the Lido Cafe for some coffee and then when he got ready to return to the room he also got Anne Marie some coffee.

We walked for about 30 minutes outside on the Promenade Deck and we enjoyed the views as we walked.  Two security guards were on each side of the deck watching very closely for any small vessels.  Anne Marie saw this yesterday as well.   The skies were overcast and there was a little fog which actually adds to the aura of this area.  A couple of photos from 6:30 AM local time.k

We had Rao bring breakfast earlier than normal so we could get ready for our private tour.  

We arrived to Hongai/Halong Bay on time and we took the tender over to the tender pier with dear friends Bob and Glo.  Keith had arranged a private tour for the four of us.  We had taken a Junk Boat two years ago and decided to return again, but this time on a private tour.  Unlike in 2012 when we wore clothes to keep us warm such as our North Face Jackets, Fleece, and Hat, this time the weather was much The weather was quite a bit warmer than our visit in 2012.  It was foggy but we still enjoyed the scenery.

The tour was great.  It was just the four of us in a Junk Boat which could have held 30 or more people.  We had the tour guide, a captain, and two other assistants.  The tour took us to several areas of Halong Bay, and included a stop at a cave which was amazing and even an amazing lunch.  Halong Bay is a Unesco Site and most recently was selected as one of the Seven New Wonders of the world.

We were able to see various grottoes, caves, huge rock arches, limestone outcroppings and secluded coves.  It is a magical area to cruise with all of the spectacular scenery and offers those who visit this site a very unique and pleasurable experience.

Many of the formations are limestone and schlist and most have been names.  Names include Pelican, Man’s Head and Pair of Roosters.

Halong Bay is not only a Unesco Site but also was recently selected as one of the New Wonders Of The World.

We first took the tender from the Serenity over to the tender pier.  From the pier we met up with our tour guide and driver and were driven about 10 minutes to where we picked up the first of two boats.  We were taken on the boat that you see in this photo and then we put life vests on.  From there we were taken over to the Junk Boat that awaited us.

Our tour guide had a good sense of humor.  When we first got in the van which could hold ten people he said we were going to make a stop to pick up other people.  When there was silence, he said just kidding.

Before we arrived to the small boat he showed us an even smaller boat that if we were lucky could hold four people and said that was for us. Then he said just kidding.  

When we got in this smaller boat he said this was the Junk Boat and this time we said "not".  We laughed and he did too.

Anne Marie with Glo

Keith with Bob.  Keith does not do rap.  He had his hat on backwards as he was taking photos.

We then arrived to the Junk Boat and we didn't get a photo of the exterior of the boat but have a photo of a similar Boat that you will see shortly. The interior could easily hold 30 people plus people on top.  We first sat on top.

After cruising for a while and seeing lots of areas around Halong Bay we were taken to one of the caves.  Very few people get the opportunity to see a cave.  We were taken from the Junk Boat and then we boarded the smaller boat and were taken over to the Cave. The Cave was first discovered in 1998 and is amazing.  The photos do not do it justice.  We spent close over 45 minutes touring the cave.  We had to walk up a lot (and we mean a lot of steps) and you needed to walk very carefully.  

Two of the men who navigated each boat we went on.

One of the Fish Markets we visited.

The men had Tiger Beer and the Ladies had a Local Beer.

After we returned from the tour we walked about ten minutes over to a market where there were lots of goods were being sold.  We spent about thirty minutes there and then we walked back to the tender pier to take the tender back to the ship

Later in the afternoon, Keith met up with Bob and Anne Marie read and wrote.

It was an absolutely wonderful day.

This evening we will be dining at Prego

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY…….

"Good Morning Vietnam". - Robin Williams

Keith & Anne Marie