February 13, 2015

During the night we passed Puerto Rico and in the morning were cruising east of the passage between Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic. Temperature is 24 C with wind 18 knots South East. The sky is blue with some fluffy white clouds. Ship speed is 18 knots heading 300 (about north west) The swells look gentle, but are three metres high, making the sea look like endless moguls undulating into the horizon.

We slept in, about an hour, then had breakfast in the dining room on Deck 3 and timed our arrival with Elaine and Rod, so shared a table for four. Then changed to walking clothes for a 30 minute (3 km ) circuit around Decks 14 and 15.  To refresh ourselves we went to Café al Bacio where Larry had the IGLU coffee frappé and I had iced tea. Next, we browsed the shopping boulevard and watch a presentation on how to grill meat properly. At 1 p.m., on Deck 14’s Skyview Lounge there was a 30 minute rumba dance lesson attended by eight couples.  The dance floor was large and no one bumped into anyone even though the ship was rocking, forward and back as well as side to side. We walked through the Solarium and the pool was closed.  The water was sloshing over the sides.  The outdoor pools are smaller and were still in use as were the 6 hot tubs. Then for lunch we went to the Bistro on Five on Deck 5 for salad and crepes before returning to the stateroom to work on the blog and get ready for dinner.

We danced to one song played by the Blue Velvet jazz band before dinner. Tonight was the last of the three Formal nights. The photographer teams had set up at their photo stations with different backgrounds and were having people pose for pictures before going to dinner or leaving dinner.  All eight of us were seated at our dinner table tonight. We both ordered a glass of wine, then for appetizers a large scallop with a dab of seasoned mashed potato, followed by French Onion Soup or Kale salad. The entrées selected at our table were: Lobster Tail, Beef Wellington or Lamb Chop.  There was a pause in the service when the Cruise Director introduced some of the chefs and kitchen staff and the waiting staff to allow the dining room patrons to thank the staff for their hard work and they paraded around the dining room as the patrons cheered and waved their white napkins. Dessert was Baked Alaska or a lemon jelly roll.

After dinner, the Grand Foyer on Deck 3 was filled with dancers, so we climbed the stairs to Deck 14 to dance at the Skyview Lounge with a larger dance floor. The pre-recorded dance music was playing and there were four tables used but we were the only ones using the dance floor at first.  Another couple danced two songs but we had the floor, at least two times the dance area of the Grand Foyer, mostly to ourselves for 45 minutes.  It was a challenge dancing with the ship rolling under you and never sure if the floor will be higher or lower for your next step, or if the ship will shift suddenly sideways.  One couple in attendance who are part of the Winnipeg group called us over and asked if we were instructors. We checked our ship account to be sure that the multiple excursion credits had been applied so we can use it to buy photos on Saturday.

Clocks are moved back one hour overnight to Eastern Standard Time (EST).

We are passing the eastern side of the Bahamas islands. The current temperature is 22 C and wind is 15 knots.  Steps today were 13,070.  No pictures today.