Christ Church Cathedral
Botanic Gardens
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Christ's College Cantenbury
Anne Marie getting ready to get into Gondola
View from the Gondola
Friday, February 18, 2011
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NOTE: We were asked by about the menu at Tastes. This is the dinner menu for Tastes that we pulled off the Crystal Cruises Web Site.
Appetizers, salads & soup
Lobster and Shrimp Cocktail with American Cocktail Sauce Tastes’ Signature Baked Garlic Snails*
With Baguette
Tossed Mixed Lettuce with Roasted Red Beets, Caramelized Pistachio Nuts, Smoked Cheddar Cheese and Asparagus Tips, Tossed in Raspberry Vinaigrette*
Deconstructed Caesar Salad – Heart of Romaine Lettuce Tossed with Styrian Pumpkin Seed Dressing, Sprinkled with Parmesan Cheese* and Garlic Croutons
One Hot Soup and One Chilled Soup, Made Fresh Daily stir-Fry & noodles
Seafood Lo Mein – Stir-Fried Udon Noodles with Shrimp, Bay Scallops, Calamari & Asian Vegetables in a Delicious Chili-Garlic Sauce
Pizza and Pasta
Pizza “Margherita”
Traditional Pizza with Fresh Basil, Oregano, Homemade Tomato Sauce and Mozzarella Cheese
Additional Toppings: Ham, Salami, Mushrooms, Olives, Peppers, and Chili Flakes Pasta Special – Ask your waiter for tonight’s special pasta.
Main dishes
Broiled Fillet of Black Pepper-Crusted Alaskan Salmon
With Sautéed Garlic Spinach, Blood Orange Hollandaise and Sun-Dried Tomato Mashed Potatoes
Lemon Maple-Basted Rotisserie Chicken Half
With Mushroom-Rice Pilaf, Broccoli and Natural Jus
Pan-Fried King Crab Cake & Corn Pancake Tower
With Roasted Bell Pepper Salsa and Saffron Aïoli
Grilled Garlic Marinated Lamb Chops
With Grilled Rosemary Polenta & Roasted Root Vegetables, Served with Mustard Seed Gravy
Side dishes
Sautéed Garlic Spinach* Broccoli* Mashed Potatoes Roasted Root Vegetables Grilled Rosemary Polenta
Desserts
Banana Split “New Style” Tastes’ Signature Coconut Crème Brûlée
With Vanilla Ice Cream White Chocolate Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce and Rocky Road Ice Cream Selection of Five Cheeses* and Crackers Assorted Chilled Seasonal Fruits*
Freshly Frozen, Nonfat Yogurt and Sherbet, Made Daily Assorted Ice Creams and Topping from Scoops
Christchurch, New Zealand
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We can’t say enough about the beautiful town of Christchurch. We were fortunate to have wonderful weather, which allowed us to walk all around the town. As we experienced in all the other ports of call in New Zealand, we found the local people to be very friendly and to have a very nice sense of humor. The town is just lovely. We enjoyed the architecture of many of the buildings, the beautiful flowers and landscape and the overall beauty of the town. We just love New Zealand.
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Last evening we dined at the Prego Italian Specialty Restaurant.
Before we post about last night’s dinner, we wanted to highlight the items on the menu of the Main Dining Room.
The soups were Cream of Butternut Squash and a Chicken Consommé.
The salads were a Chopped Salad and an Iceberg Wedge and each salad was accompanied by a nice variety of items.
Fusilli Boscaiola, which is Italian Pasta with Pancetta, Mushrooms, Onions, Tomatoes and Cream, Drizzled with White Truffle Oil, was the Past Special.
The Salad Entree was Shrimp Cobb Salad.
Main Fares included Broiled Fillet of Turbot,Wiener Schnitzel, Baked Cornish Game Hen, and Beef Short Ribs. The TraditionalMain fares are Grilled Sirloin Steak and Broiled Salmon Fillet.
The Vegetarian Selections included a Vegetable Lasagne along with other items and there was a nice selection of Lighter Side items to choose from.
The Sweet Finale was “Chocolate and Peanut Butter Express with Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake, Peanut Brittle and Peanut Butter Ice Crea and a “Duo of Pumpkin” which was Pumpkin Cheesecake with Butter Pecan Ice Cream and Pumpkin Mousse with Caramel Sauce. The Sugar-Free items were Kiwi Delight and a Rhubarb Strudel with Diet Ice Cream. There were lots of Classic Desserts along with the Cheese Trolley.
As we mentioned, we dined at the Prego Italian Specialty Restaurant. Maitre d’ Antonio seated us at a window table and we spoke with both Antonio and Head Waiter Bruno about the evening’s food special. Our waiter for the evening was Boban who we have on most evenings that we dine at Prego. He is a true delight.
We began our dinner with the salad that we enjoy at Prego and then we each enjoyed a beef consommé before our entrée was served.
The entrée was wonderful and is one of the best entrees we have had. We had the fish entrée special for the evening, which was the grilled John Dory Fish with Asparagus Risotto with tomatoes and a lemon lime foam sauce. It was just spectacular. The head chef for Prego came out to our table and we said bravo. We can’t say enough about the presentation and the quality and the taste of the entrée. We also had a nice side order of vegetables.
We each had a decaffeinated cappuccino and Keith enjoyed a plate of mixed berries while Anne Marie enjoyed a fruit plate.
We sent down a bottle of wine that we had purchased in Auckland and it went perfectly with the fish.
As we were eating we agree that many of the meals that we get on board the ship such as the one we had last evening truly exceed the food that we can get at a restaurant on land. Of course, nothing compares to the wonderful service on the ship as well.
We slept very well last evening. Captain Okland said that it would be windy which it was but the ship did well.
Keith was up at his early time as usual and enjoyed another nice morning workout on the Elliptical Machine. He worked out for 90 minutes and then did some stretching. Given where we are now sailing we were advised in today’s daily program that satellite service would be spotty so it has been more difficult to get the24 hour news stations so Keith watched a movie during his workout.
Since many of the tours began early this morning about mid-way through his workout there were about five others working out. He stopped by the Lido Café for some coffee and spoke with some of the Lido Deck Stewards such as Mel. and Brian. This morning will be a busy day in a consolidated period of time during breakfast at the café due to the tours.
Anne Marie walked for one hour on the Promenade Deck and we then enjoyed breakfast in our room.
We arrived to Picton, New Zealand at 7:00 AM.
As soon as we arrived we could see the sheer beauty of this town just from our verandah.
Picton is a town in New Zealand’s Marlborough Region. It is located in close proximity to the head of the Queen Charlotte Sound. It has a relatively small population of just a few thousand inhabitants.
Many tourists visit Picton so that they can explore the Marlborough Sound. There is a ferry service that takes passengers across the Cook Strait over to the North Island. The Marlborough Sounds include river valley and islands, which are a legacy to the Ice Age.
The town has a nice selection of arts, crafts, and souvenirs and a wide choice of accommodations and also has many waterfront cafes and fine restaurants. The restaurants feature a wife selection of seafood.
Many excursions will take visitors to the major wine-growing region, which produces Marlborough wines.
We originally booked a wine tasting excursion but decided to cancel it as it was a morning tour and we didn’t want to do wine tasting in the morning. Instead, we decided to go into town. While a complimentary shuttle was available we opted to walk into town ourselves. It was about a ten-minute walk into town.
It was easy to find our way from the cruise ship pier over to the town as we just followed the winding pathway lined in blue paint. This made it very easy to circumvent the pier. Once in town we walked up and down the main streets passing the hotels, stores, cafes, a food store, pubs and other establishments. We also walked over to a residential area where we could view the harbor and we saw a variety of homes. There were several small retirement communities and we also walked by several charming bed and breakfasts. The area was beautiful and we enjoyed panoramic and picturesque views of the harbor and the surrounding area.
We could not have asked for better weather. It was a bright, sunny day with nice temperatures. We spoke with several shopkeepers who all said the same thing. They said this was perfect weather and that often the weather changes and can be quite rainy. As we noted in Christchurch, the weather can play a key role in how much one can do in port and what the overall experience is like. We have visited areas of the world in the summer where the weather was unbearably hot and then come back in the fall and the Spring and we had a much better time during the Fall and spring. Conversely, other areas of the world might be more enjoyable in the summer months.We also stopped off in an open area where many of the locals were selling items that they made themselves and we did make a purchase of a hand crafted wooden item.
Each of the local people that we spoke with was very kind and pleasant, as we have found throughout New Zealand. We really enjoyed our short time in Picton.
We were only in port until 1:00 PM so we got back to the ship before Noon.
Once back on the ship, Anne Marie had her haircut at 12:00 Noon at the on board salon. She made a last minute appointment, which is why she had her hair cut at Noon. Keith played paddle tennis while she was getting her cut.
The Lido Café featured several Bavarian Specialties along with complimentary beer but not knowing when they would finish Anne Marie’s cut decided to order lunch to the room. We enjoyed a very nice salad entrée in our room.
Since we sailed at 1:00 PM, the afternoon program included lots of activities as it would on a sea day. There were presentations and lots of activities.
Anne Marie got in a nice long afternoon walk and Keith did the one-hour in door cycling spin class.
This evening we will dine in the Main Dining Room and afterwards we will attend a special program titled The Sounds Of Music. This show will include complimentary cocktails. We will post about all of this tomorrow.
TODAY’S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY………
‘We set sail on this new sea because there is knowledge to be gained.” - John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Keith and Anne Marie
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