CRUISING SOUTH ATLANTIC OCEAN - DAY 54

A Look At What Is Happening Today:

Lots Of Enrichment Activities ✔  Dinner At Silk Road ✔ 

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Although we dined at Prego last evening, these are the dinner menus from the Crystal Dining Room.

Last night we had dinner with Cruise Consultant Daniele Puma.  For those of you who have not yet sailed with Crystal Cruises there are three Cruise Consultants who swing between both the Crystal Serenity and the Crystal Symphony.  One is on vacation at any given time while the other two are working and by moving between the two ships they have familiarity with both ships which assists them in answering questions about each ship.  While on the ship, a guest wishing to book another Crystal Cruise(s) can meet with them to start their on board booking and the guest(s) will receive a discount for booking the cruise while on board.

We have known Daniele since 2007 when he was working at the reception desk on the Crystal Serenity.  In 2009 we sailed with him on the Crystal Symphony when he was in a different role and have sailed with him on several other cruises including last year.   He has worked in other positions including the Concierge Department, and also as an assistant to the Hotel Director.  The last time we dined with him was with Crystal Society Hostess Jaque Brown on an Alaska sailing on board the Crystal Symphony.  He is a very kind, sincere and a true professional.  

We had a wonderful time with Daniele.

Daniele with two of us before we sat down for dinner.

Anne Marie with Daniel and with Specialty Restaurant Maitre d' Antonio Santomero.

We each began our meals with salads and we didn't take a photo of them.

We then had one of the two additional entrees which was a pasta dish as an appetizer.

The sauce and the other ingredients added to the pasta gave it a terrific taste.  We didn't take the photo until after our Waiter, Costa had added pepper to Keith's pasta.

For our entree all three of us had the Chilean Sea Bass.  This entree was added to the menu sometime after we were on the Serenity last year replacing another seafood item.  We think this is a wonderful addition.  We will order this entree when either one of the additional two entrees is not a seafood entree or one that we prefer.  The Chilean Sea Bass is not only very tasty with the way it is prepared and the items that accompany it but also is very moist.

Normally, Keith will have a large order of Steamed Vegetables but last night he changed it up and asked if he could get some Grilled Vegetables.  The vegetables were terrific but more then Keith could eat so Daniele and Anne Marie also tried some.

We had a wonderful time with Daniele, enjoying a fabulous conversation.  We also thoroughly enjoyed the excellent service, cuisine and ambience of the Prego Italian Specialty Restaurant.

Shortly after we finished dinner, we attended a special World Cruise Event.  This event was for all guests on this segment of the World Cruise.  There were two showings; one at 8:30 PM and the other at 10:30 PM.  

The show was written exclusively just for last night.  The idea for the theme normally is identified sometime during the summer of the World Cruise providing time to bring on board any props/costumes which might be needed for the show.  A few weeks before the performance the script, music, song and dance are written and all choreographed by the on-board entertainment department.  The show included lead male and female vocalists Michael and Julia, along with special singers Karen and Dave, dance instructors Curtis and Beverly, cruise director Gary Hunter, world cruise hostess Elise Ivy, assistant cruise director Scott Mitchel, music director Marty Silverstri as well as the galaxy orchestra under the direction of Raphael Derkson.

These are some of the decorations that were at each entrance way to the Galaxy Showroom.

The story background was that the Antarctica Penguins are tired of the freezing cold and have journeyed north to warm Chile.  However, they now find themselves in Ushuaia, Argentina were they are confronted by the fiery Flamenco and Tango dancers who challenge them to a dance off.  The question is what type of dance can those Penguins do?

We enjoyed the show and it is always amazing how these shows are put together on the cruise and when they are performed you would think they are shown night after night as they are performed flawlessly.

Keith took a couple of photos after the show began but we want to note he was not using his large SLR camera and we were sitting at the last row of the theatre.

Beverly and Curtis.

We slept very well last evening and from the moment we put our heads on the pillow it seemed that we fell asleep immediately.  The Serenity left port at approximately 9:00 PM.  The seas were fairly calm but you could feel a little swaying of the ship which is a reminder that after all we are at sea.

Today marks the first of two consecutive sea days as we sail to our next port of call in Puerto Madryn, Argentina.

Keith began his day with his regular workout at the Fitness Center.  He enjoyed the workout and he listened to one of the lectures that were given the other day along with some national news.  After the workout, he had coffee in the Lido Café. 

He brought some coffee back to the room for Anne Marie.  Anne Marie did a portion of her morning walk rather then the entire one hour as we were having breakfast earlier to our room then normal, since Anne Marie had an early appointment at the Salon to have her haircut.  Shortly after her cut, she finished her morning walk.

There were lots of activities on the schedule for today.  There were so many good ones to choose from that we had to prioritize what we would do.

There were two interesting lectures given this morning and they had a lot to do with our upcoming visit to Buenos Aires, Argentina.  

Ken Rees gave the first one and he covered Buenos Aires.  The talk was titled “Don’t Cry or Me, Buenos Aires – The City of Evita.”  In this talk, Ken Rees did a great job of covering the history of Argentina and the city of Evita including points of interest during our stay.  The talk was very well attended and quite interesting.

Following Ken's talk, Dr. Jay Wolff spoke about the Wild Days Of Eva Peron.  He spoke about how she went from being born into poverty, to eventually becoming very wealthy.  Dr Wolff's presentation was also quite interesting and he always seems to include little known facts so there is always something new to learn from his lectures.

Adding to the topic, in the afternoon Tom O’Keefe spoke about Argentina but from a different angle.  He spoke about how Argentina went from being among one of the richest countries of the world at the start of the twentieth century to in many ways a developing nation by the start of the twenty-first century.

The World Games also continued with three major activities today which included mixed doubles shuffleboard, golf putting and mixed doubles table tennis. As usual, golf putting, or as we call it, Putt Putt or Miniature Golf, was set up in the Crystal Plaza.

We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe.  We each made a nice salad entree.  Each day several of the items change at the luncheon buffet.  There is someone making salads that are also on the Crystal Dining Room luncheon menu and some of the hot foods also mirror what is on the menu.  Many of the other hot food change as well from the seafood to meat to the cooked vegetables to other sides.  Even some of the salad items change with two to three types of greens offered each day.  Usually, we will add to our salads either chicken or one of the seafood items.  There is also a soup of the day, cheeses, sandwiches and several other items to choose from.  Plus, there are many desserts and fruits to enjoy.

Right after lunch, Keith went down to the Crystal Plaza to play in the Golf Tournament.

Keith loves sports and plays several of them but he is not a golfer.  A few years ago he placed third in the golf-putting tournament whereas many of the golfers did not do so well.  He just went up and played the course like it was Putt Putt.

Today, Keith didn’t place in the top three but did as well if not better then some of our golf friends. 

He had a lot of fun and that is what the games are all about.

Keith With Golf Pro John Clark.

Keith With John Clark's Lovely Wife Pauline Clark

Keith with Daniel Mullowney on left whose title for the World Games is the Chairman and with Raphael Derkson on the right who is also the Band Leader of the Galaxy Orchestra.

In the afternoon, Anne Marie walked for another hour and also she attended Yoga.  Keith worked out at the Fitness Center and also met up with friend Bob.

This evening we will be dining at Silk Road with friends Sandra and Bill who organized the dinner and with friends John and Linda.

This evening’s entertainment is called “Around the World” with Naki Ataman who will cover music from 19 countries around the world.  

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

Keith and Anne Marie