WELCOME TO PUNTA DEL ESTE, URUGUAY - DAY 64

A Look At What Is Happening Today:

An Unexpected Day At Sea ✔  Early Evening Event At The Officers Quarters ✔Dinner At Crystal Dining Room ✔  

Before dinner last evening we attended Sabbath Eve Services which were conducted by Rabbi Morrie.  Rabbi Morrie has been the Rabbi for all of the World Cruises we have been on.  As background, Crystal Cruises will have a Rabbi on for the entire World Cruise along with a Minister.  They have a Catholic Clergy on board for all voyages.

During other times of the year a Rabbi will be on each of the two ships for some selected voyages  including Passover, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, the Holiday Cruise and if Chanukah falls prior to the Holiday Cruise the Rabbi will also be on that cruise as well.

There was a very nice turnout for the service and we met some new guests who just boarded the Serenity the other day.  As usual the Rabbi added a little humor to the service during his welcoming and ending talks and also did a tremendous job leading all of us in prayer.  Like on land, at the end of the Service there is a Kiddush (refreshments) following the service including Jewish Challah and even Chopped Liver along with other food items. One of the daughters of a World Cruiser who we know and one other woman lit the candles and sang the prayer to a tune that most of us had never heard of before.  They did a nice job and it was very well received.

Afterwards, we had dinner in the Crystal Dining Room.  These are the dinner menus.

Our dinner guest was Monsignor Wilbur Davis who prefers to be called Father Wil who is the Catholic Clergy on board the ship. 

One of the nice things about taking long cruises is the opportunity to have the opportunity to get to know many fellow guests very well and likewise to have the opportunity to spend a good deal of time with fellow crew members, entertainers and with those who are part of the enrichment team, including the Clergy.   We previously sailed with Father Wil on the 2008 and 2010 World Cruises and during the 2010 World Cruise we enjoyed several discussions with Father Wil over lunch.  

Often we talk about the ship becoming a small village over the  course of the World Cruise and the bonding that takes place as many of us experience the entire adventure together.  This bond is strong and continues to get stronger as you sail with familiar people either year to year or every few years.  In the case of the Clergy in addition to Rabbi Morrie and Monsignor Wil, we have also sailed with Pastor Ed on two full and one part World Cruise and we see the Pastor and his wife often and all of this just adds to the sense of community on-board the ship.  It is a very unique experience and often very difficult to convey just in written words.

We enjoyed a thoroughly wonderful conversation with Father Wil and we learned so much from him as we covered a nice range of topics.  We had asked him several questions and it was great to get his thoughts.  This dovetailed quite nicely with conversations we had with the private guides we had in Cartagena, Panama City and Lima as they are Catholic, as is Anne Marie.

We look forward to sharing additional conversations with Father Wil.  

There were fewer guests in the dining room then normal.  This often happens the day after a formal night as on formal nights the majority of guests prefer to dine at the dining room.  Often the following day guests choose to dine at one of the other dining venues including Tastes which offers casual dining on most evenings, Prego or Silk Road.  Even The Bistro with its snacks in the evening is an option for those who want to have a lighter meal and there is always room service.

We enjoyed wine during the meal.  Anne Marie asked our Sommelier Jiri for another wine that was not one of the two wines poured that evening but is also part of the inclusive wines and she had a Sauvignon Blanc.  Keith had mentioned to Jiri the other night that he wanted to try the inclusive Red Wine that was on the menu one time when we were not in the Crystal Dining Room which was recommend by friend Bob.  It was Chateau L'Horpitalet and Keith enjoyed that wine.

We began our dinner with salads. Keith had his regular standing order salad and Anne Marie had the Heart of Butter Lettuce Salad.

We had spoken to Head Waiter Augusto the other night and since we were not in the Crystal Dining Room for the formal night we had made arrangement to order Anne Marie the Broiled Maine Lobster and Keith the Broiled Fillet of White Sea Bass which were both on the Gala Welcome Dinner Menu.  Keith also tried a small piece of the lobster and that is his plate in the photo.

This is the White Sea Bass.  Keith had two portions of the sea bass.  It was very moist.  It is not a flaky fish and Keith enjoys most types of fish so this one was good for him.

For dessert, Keith had the mixed berries and Anne Marie had the sugar free Lemon Pound Cake with Diet Ice Cream. Keith tried some of the cake and we both enjoyed the dessert.

After dinner the entertainment was the Production Show, Million Dollar Musicals which is a salute to songs and dance from the silver screen.  It features the Crystal Ensemble of Singers and Dancers as well as the lead Male and Female Vocalists and The Galaxy Orchestra.

We slept well as we sailed to our next port of call at Punta Del Este, Uruguay.  We could feel the movement of the ship more then in the past few days as it was fairly windy outside.  Last evening, as we were getting ready to leave port, Captain Okland advised that the forecast calls for high winds for today.  He particularly noted that this could make tendering a little more rough in the afternoon since our stop at Punta Del Este involves tendering.  This forecast was a preview of more things to come.

Keith got up early and was back in the Fitness Center for his early morning workout.

Afterwards, he stopped by the Lido Cafe for coffee.  It was fairly quiet but after a little while some of the regulars came by including friend Linda who Keith spoke with for a little while.

Anne Marie also walked before we had breakfast in our room.  Because it was windy, and there was a light drizzle and lightening Anne Marie walked inside the ship.  It was at this point that Keith said to Anne Marie that it did not look possible for us to go into port.  He was right.  Before not to long, it started to downpour.

About 15 minutes later, Cruise Director Gary Hunter made an announcement that the local authorities had closed the port so it would be impossible for Crystal Cruises to offer tender service.  As such, today would be a sea day and Gary noted that they were busily adding activities to the schedule and a program would be delivered to everyones stateroom.

Keith worked out again in the Fitness Center and Anne Marie did needlepoint and Keith met her at the Crystal Cove after he was through working out.

A little later in the morning Cruise Director Gary Hunter made another announcement noting that the programs would be out soon and he covered the activities that had already been added.  This included an iPad course, Team Trivia, Bridge, and two lectures.  He also noted the shops would be open at 10:00 AM and provided the time that the Casino would be open for those guests who enjoy the Casino.

We looked over the schedule when it arrived to the room.  What struck us is that this unplanned sea day of activities likely has many more activities that you would see on almost any ship at sea on a regularly planned sea day.  It is just an example of the talent that is on board the ship and the flexibility that exists should something like an unplanned cancellation of a port occur.

We thought we would share the revised schedule so you can see all of the activities, most of which were added to the original schedule.

After Gary's announcement Keith continued to read in the Crystal Plaza and Anne Marie continued with her needlepoint.  Some fellow guests and officers came by to speak with us.  We did learn that the agent from the port authority who had come onto the ship earlier this morning will be sailing with us until tomorrow as he could not get back off the ship since the port was closed.  We're sure he'll enjoy his one day cruise on the Crystal Serenity.

We went by the Photo Studio to look at some photos that we had taken on Formal Night.

Later on in the morning Keith went back to the Fitness Center for the third and what he thought was the final time of the day and he spoke with friends Bob and Glo who were also working out.  Anne Marie continued to work on her needlepoint.

We went to the Lido Cafe for lunch and enjoyed another salad entree.

The sun began to makes its way through the clouds and while there was some movement of the ship we enjoyed fairly good seas.

We were able to do Face Time with our son, Eric. Eric was able to give us a nice tour of the new house that he and our Daughter-In-Law recently closed on. The house looked beautiful and we are very happy for them.

In the afternoon, Keith read, wrote and ended at the Fitness Center one final time.  He also met up with friend Bob and a few other guests.   Anne Marie worked walked and also took the afternoon Yoga Class.  

Before dinner this evening we will attend a special World Cruise Event.  It is called "Down South America Way" and is a visit to the Officers Quarters.

This evening we will be back in the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY............

“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” -  Milton Berle

Keith and Anne Marie