We seem to have packed a lot into this last month and that often means places we wouldn’t normally choose to visit. We are not as adventurous as some, my youngest brother for example, as we are happy with the protection afforded by arriving en masse with a minimum of paperwork and the opportunity to select tours based on generally good information. They say that travel broadens the mind, but one of the common observations and discussion topics on this ship has been that in many cases, it also broadens the waistline...
Sea days on this trip haven’t been quite as full on as in the past, as we have taken the opportunity to relax whenever possible.
Somehow or other, when putting on a clean pair of shorts, I forgot to pop the Robert Timms coffee bag into the pocket, so breakfast was even lighter than usual. This may have been a big mistake, having not had a decent strong coffee yesterday, so the inevitable signs of caffeine withdrawal crept up on me.
Our port lecture today was Yokohama/Tokyo, the last by Elizabeth Moran. They have always been well presented and although occasionally, info is a bit out of date, at least you get a better map than the one issued by the ship, which is often next to useless with the ship location often not marked at all. Her slides of notices in public toilets and on the subway were entertaining. (See pics)
No luck at morning trivia...
Once again there was a curry on the menu – chicken this time and as I write this, I am not too sure whether the curry had anything to do with feeling off colour later or it was just coincidence.
Afternoon trivia – 12/20. We are fairly consistent.
We went to the early (6:30pm) show which starred accordionist Ross Maio. We had seen Ross last year on the Dawn and he is one of my favourites on the ship. I think that back in NZ, Murray Wallace and the Thorpes would have appreciated this show. With no backing tracks and just the synthesiser built into the accordion, 4 speakers on stage, his playing is just superb.
Dinner was a celebration as Mick & Pat celebrated 50 years of marriage so the champagne flowed. Although I only had one glass, washed down with water, I wasn’t feeling the best. It appears that like the Sun Princess, we have now been hit by too many people being well and truly off colour, so hygiene standards have been tightened. No salt pots on the table, nor butter and bread rolls. The waiters served them instead. The same applies in the buffet where all food and drink has to be via the waiters. The Captain puts the increase in gastro problems down to the less than hygienic conditions in some of the Asian ports, but no doubt the usual Princess coughs and splutters from many people who choose to freely circulate and spread their germs, doesn’t help.
I was OK to go to the show, which was a rehash of “Piano Man”, with the same music but different costumes. This was the first show by the replacement cast. A pleasant enough show.
A half strength hot chocolate as a late drink fir a change so not too sure if that is going to help or hinder!
Clocks forward 1 hour again tonight and Vladivostok tomorrow.
Apparently on leaving Vladivostok, there will be no internet access for the following two sea days.
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