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