October 14, 2022
We got up on another 23 hour day. Breakfast and then back to the room for the mandatory Covid 19 antigen self test. Our room steward was right on time delivering the test to our room at 9:30. Easy enough to follow the instructions provided by the ship’s doc. 10 minute wait for results. Red = good, Blue = bad. Of course ours were fine. We took a photo, showed them to room steward and off to the gym.
The ship was rolling quite a bit and it really influences the workout. I was doing a plank and rode up the crest of a wave. Wow. Major pressure. I almost lost form. It does make for some exciting elliptical or treadmill workouts.
The captain announced at lunch that all of the antigen test results were not yet in. My guess is that he will not say anything until the 15 days to slow……….I mean the 7 day mask mandate is over. He will then announce that everyone has tested negatively but out of an abundance of caution, the mask mandate will stay in place for another week.
Team trivia has become the most popular game on the ship. The 1 pm general knowledge trivia in the Crow’s Nest is perfect. Not too crowded and there is always people looking for others to join them. The 4:30 pm team trivia is packed. It takes up a good portion of mid ship deck 5. The game hosts vary between a woman from Colombia and a woman from Argentina. Deciphering the pronunciation of words is the real challenge. The actual trivia is secondary. Accenting the wrong syllable is usually the case. Is it IN-sur-ance or in-SUR-ance? In this case it was the citizens of Tibet. ti-BET-ans. TI-bi-tans just doesn’t sound the same. Why do Tibetan women grow long fingernails on their little fingers? Struggle for a minute and then tell your partner that is must be for ??????? Did you guess picking their noses? One of the questions was about Freddie Mercury’s birthplace. I’m not a fan at all but the answer is Zanzibar. We will be visiting there on this trip.
Another outstanding dinner in the dining room. I prefer the dining room to the Lido because the chef has already decided what side items go with each dish. The same food is available in the Lido but you decide on sides and quantities. Too much work.
The evening entertainment was Polish cellist Mariusz. He played an electronic cello shaped like a thick broomstick. No acoustical qualities. Just electronic pickups. He was obviously a very accomplished musician. He open with the Sabre Dance and had a very mixed repertoire. Meditation was performed beautifully. I could do without the Queen tune. He said he used to travel with both his acoustic and electric but the electric is just so much easier to travel with. I would have preferred the acoustic. Much sweeter sound. I give the performance a 9.
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