Our Waiter Grenold enjoys adding a face to Anne Marie decaffeinated cappuccino coffee each evening.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
HIGHLIGHTS FROM YESTERDAY AND TODAY
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There are always so many items that we can highlight for each day ranging from some of the enrichment programs to our days in port. Instead we wanted to highlight the “kid” in all of us. Last night we thoroughly enjoyed the Ventriloquist performance by Gary Hunter who with one of his puppets brought out the “kid” in all of us. While we all know that the puppet is only a puppet it doesn’t take too long for most of to forget all of that as we begin to mainly focus on the puppet. We laughed and laughed and laughed and had tears rolling down our eyes. We first saw Gary Hunter perform in 2005 and each time we see him perform with one of several puppets that he uses from Mr. and Mrs. Tweed to the Baby to last nights character each show does, in fact, bring out that “kid” in us and likewise for most of the members of the audience.
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We wanted to begin by saying that today marks the start of the last week for us on the ship until it is time to depart the ship in Singapore on March 15. We have continued to enjoy an absolutely wonderful adventure since our trip began and we look forward to the last seven days as our adventure slowly comes to an end.
Before dinner last evening, we stopped by the Crystal to say hello to Pianist John Mentis and to listen to him play a few songs. We also spoke with some fellow passengers before it was time for dinner. One of the passengers we spoke with was a woman who was on the full world cruise last year who we really never seemed to run into and is on two legs of the world cruise this time around. She is playing team trivia on the team that sits right next to us. We enjoyed talking with her.
We enjoyed a wonderful dinner in the Crystal Dining Room last evening. The theme for the dinner was the Neptune Dinner.
This menu had so many wonderful items to choose from.
Appetizers featured Gratinated Seafood Crepe on Tarragon Tomato Butter, Marinated, Smoked Swordfish with Caponata Salsa, Pecorino and Arugula, and Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Pesto Crostini, Marinated Olives and Tossed Baby Greens. Soups featured Cream of Mussels with Saffron and Puff Pastry Palmiers and a Duck Consommé with Tortellini and Pumpkin. Salads featured a Mixed Greens Tossed Salad that was toped with small Monte Christo Sandwiches and a Heart of Boston Salad that was accompanied by Roasted Peppers, Eggplants and Anchovies. The Pasta Special featured Cavatappi Pasta “Boscaiola” which was Italian Pasta with Pancetta, Mushrooms Onions, Tomatoes and Cream, Drizzled with White Truffle Oil. The Salad Entrée was Grilled Sea Scallops on Mixed Lettuce, which was accompanied with Cocktail Tomatoes, Zucchini, Olives and Pine Nuts. Main Fares included Seared Fresh Ahi Tuna, Veal Oscar, Whole Roasted Capon, and a Surf n Turf, which featured a Filet Mignon and a Broiled Lobster Tail. Traditional Main Fares included a Grilled Chicken Breast and a Grilled Black Angus Rib Eye Steak Entrée. There were lots of Vegetarian and Lighter Side selections available including a Golden Fried Tofu and Mushroom Spring Roll entrée, which was served on Stir Fried Vegetables. Sweet Finales included “Bugs Bunny” which is Carrot-Zucchini Cake, Marble Vanilla Coconut Tapioca and Blackberry Sherbet and “Duo of Citrus” which is Lemon Meringue Tart and Frozen Orange Yogurt. The Sugar-Free Desserts included a Chocolate Brownie with Diet Ice Cream and Mascarpone Pudding with Berry Stew. There were also lots of Classic Desserts to choose from and of course the wonderful Cheese Trolley.
We began our meal with a very nice Caesar Salad that Giuseppe prepared for us. We then enjoyed a low sodium chicken broth and then for our entrée we had the Seared Fresh Ahi Tuna, which was outstanding. For dessert Anne Marie had the sugar free chocolate brownie with the diet ice cream and Keith had a bowl of strawberries and a fat free frozen yogurt.
Afterwards, we went to the variety showtime. The show featured Cruise Director Gary Hunter who is also a Ventriloquist and Roy Firestone who is well known as an interviewer particularly in the area of sports who for this show sand and did impersonations of sports legends and also some entertainers. It was a wonderful show.
We slept very well last evening as we continued to sail to our next port-of-call in Darwin, Australia.
Once again, Keith was up early and back at the Fitness Center where he enjoyed yet another great workout on the Elliptical Machine. This was one of those days when he first started his exercise that he wondered if he would make it through the entire workout but after he got through the first thirty minutes he started to go into overdrive and actually went at a higher speed and a great resistance than normal. So, who can figure? He watched the lecture given by Tom Faranda yesterday on the television that spoke about the future of China and Asia with emphasis on how well they would survive over the next ten years. He has several many interesting predictions. He worked out for ninety five minutes and did some stretching and then walked over to the Lido Café to bring some coffee back to the room. He chatted with Lido Deck Stewards Ross and Nat. He also spoke with a fellow passenger following his workout who noticed the other day that Keith puts in a long workout each morning so the two compared notes on working out.
A little while later Anne Marie woke up and she walked for an hour on the Promenade Deck. At 8:00 AM there was a knock at our door and it was Alexander with our breakfast which we enjoyed as we watched the ship make its way into port.
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. It has a population of approximately 125,000 inhabitants making Darwin the most populated city in this sparsely populate territory.
Darwin has grown from a pioneer outpost and small port into one of Australia's most modern and multicultural cities.. Its proximity to Asia makes it an important Australian gateway to countries such as Indonesia and East Timor.
Darwin is recognized as having the most youthful population in all of Australia. This city enjoys warm weather throughout the year.
One of the highlights of the city is the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens, which was founded in 1886. Another notable place is the Australian Aviation Heritage Centre which is one of the major aviation museums in all of Australia. There are also several parks including the Charles Darwin National Park and the Crocodylus Park.
We took the first shuttle into the city and the shuttle drive took about ten minutes. We had some on and off again rain drizzle. We visited a couple of parks, the Parliament Building, and walked several of the city streets.
When we returned back to the ship we had lunch up at the Lido Café. In the afternoon Anne Marie took another one your walk and then she wrote and read and spoke with some fellow passengers. Keith played Paddle Tennis and also read and wrote and also spoke with some fellow passengers.
Later this afternoon I will be taking my final spin (indoor cycling) class of the cruise.
This evening we will be dining in our room for the final time. Instead of Pizza, this time around we will be enjoying several delicacies from the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant in our room. We will post all about that tomorrow.
TODAY’S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY……
“If you haven’t any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble.” - Bob Hope
Keith and Anne Marie
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