Days 2 and 3.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Our 2nd day at Sea.
Today we really learned how to relax. We slept late and got up to breakfast around 9:00. Discovered that I don’t particularly care for kippers. Glad I also ordered a waffle and my assorted fruits. We took a stroll around the deck after breakfast. John headed down to the cabin and I went to check my email in the Blue Lagoon. At 11:00 all the specialty restaurants had a demonstration in the Bamboo Lounge showcasing their signature dishes and taking reservations. I collected John and we went up to Spinnakers for lunch. There’s a lot of assortment but nothing really exciting. I had some salad and pizza. It was just something to eat. Then we went out to the pool area and there was a barbeque going on with burgers, hot dogs and chicken. Boy did that look good! We stopped at the library and John took out a book to read and we went down to our stateroom and read and took a nap. We had dinner in the Venetian Dining Room. We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table shortly before 6:00. I guess this was “lobster night” which means a lobster tail and slice of broiled grouper with basil mashed potatoes and some cubes of vegetables and two asparagus spears. Not a bad dinner. John had roasted NY Strip. I wondered what the difference was between the “broiled” NY Strip and the “roasted” NY Strip was…the roasted strip was slices of meat rather than a chunk of meat that you had to slice. I had chocolate ice cream for dessert. I’d like to see the kind of cow it came out of. For evening entertainment we went to Dazzles Lounge for Jose and Patti’s Music through the Decades show. They’re very good and very popular. Actually there are lots of good entertainers on board. After the show we went to the Blue Lagoon for a snack before bed.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Bermuda-day 1
When we woke up this morning we were docked in Bermuda. There were clouds but no rain. We went to breakfast up in Spinnakers and then grabbed the cameras and backpack and walked off the ship. We wandered around the dockyard area discovering a shop of Bermudian Crafters, the Bermuda Glassworks, The Bermuda Rum Cake Co (I couldn’t go in there because I had some peanut protein bars with me and someone in the factory has a severe peanut allergy). We went through the Clocktower Shops…lots of ways to separate you from your money. I was looking for a gift for Kendra and maybe something for myself. I didn’t want something that was made in China. I found out that the shells that were for sale in the form of jewelry are all imported (they might be crafted in Bermuda but it is illegal to take shells from the Bermudian waters). I finally settled on a painted shell for Kendra and then I saw a jewelry store with a stone called Luckystone, made of 4 different colored quartz crystals. It was very pretty so I got a pendant and pair of earrings set in sterling. John found a rooster wandering around the gardens. We headed back to the ship for lunch. We ate in the Venetian Dining Room. It was practically empty. I had Vietnamese Spring Rolls and a Cobb Salad. No chance of gaining weight with the portions they serve. After lunch I grabbed my Kindle and went up on Deck 12-13 to read in the sunshine. Actually in spots it was quite warm. Today seemed like the best day so far and, being in port, most of the kiddies were off the ship so it was practically deserted around the pool until about 3:00.
We had dinner at Cagney’s Steakhouse tonight. The food was delicious. I had a “colossal shrimp cocktail”, wedge of lettuce and a 5 ounce filet mignon with baked potato and spinach. The meat was as tender as any I’ve ever had. John had surf and turf and lobster bisque. It was a lovely meal. Now we’re going to head up to the lounge for Jose and Patti’s Neil Diamond tribute.