7 days of sailing across the Atlantic Ocean
Here we go! I’ve been dreading this since we boarded the ship, but the forecast looks good and I’m cautiously optimistic that it won’t be completely horrible. My goal is to make it through drug free, but we’ll have to wait and see. I am looking forward to having a bit more down time. It’s been pretty busy lately and a little overwhelming.
Day One
The weather is fabulous, and the seas are only 4 feet which is ridiculously calm…I’m in heaven. I had my first omelet for breakfast, and it was delicious. Mike attended a cooking demonstration this morning by Chef Panos where he got to taste Caribbean chicken fillet and fresh guacamole; he said it was really good. I stayed in the cabin to work on getting the next blog out.
We had lunch out on the back deck in the sunshine and then we attended a lecture on ‘Fascinating Things You Never Knew About the Caribbean’. After a quiet afternoon of puzzling while Mike walked laps, we had dinner and went to bed early. Unfortunately, I wake up a lot when we are underway, so I haven’t been getting much sleep.
Day Two
After another night of disrupted sleep, I spent pretty much all day in the library working on puzzles. The seas were a little bigger today, but I still felt good. I like to be midship as much as possible when we are underway because the movement is significantly less. Mike did his usual laps and attended the ‘Mysteries of the Deep’ lecture.
Before dinner we headed to the Neptune lounge for Port Talks on Barbados and Grenada our next two ports. After dinner we went to the Picture Quiz and failed epically on naming celebrities from their photos. We stayed up late working on puzzles.
Day Three
I’m not sure if staying up late helped or what, but I slept a little better last night. Maybe I’m just getting used to the motion of the ocean…fingers crossed. We had every intention of attending the lecture on ‘Atlantis – The Latest Evidence’, but the pool was calling. Mike got his laps out of the way early and we headed up to enjoy the pool deck. Both pools were open, and Mike swam while I dangled my legs in. It was very relaxing.
We got cleaned up in time to go to the Mixology Class which was a lot of fun. Mike got behind the bar and mixed up a Long Island Iced Tea, a Mai Tai, and a rum and coke for me. Dinner tonight is in the seated dining room, and we are celebrating a fellow passenger’s birthday. The food was excellent!
We rounded out our evening with a show from Comedian Lenny Windsor.
Day Four
I slept! Pretty decently in fact. Still free of my Sea Bands and tablets, but to be fair the seas are still very calm. We had breakfast followed by another cooking demonstration with Chef Panos. Today he was making Grey Goose Vodka and Smoked Salmon Pasta. He told us about how the cruise industry saved Grey Goose from bankruptcy in 2002. Mike indulged a couple of premade sample bowls and then managed to scoop the plate made up during the demonstration. After lunch Mike went out to do his laps while I took care of some housekeeping items. Our hats and backpack needed a good scrub! Afterwards we headed up to the pool deck and spent the afternoon floating around the pool and chatting with friends.
In the evening Comedian Lenny Windsor gave a talk on Benny Hill, a British comedian and actor that was very famous in the 60s and 70s. Lenny worked with him for over 7 years, so had some inside stories to share. It turns out his life was pretty tragic, but it was interesting to hear about it from Lenny’s perspective.
Day Five
We had yet another time change overnight; we’ve been working our way to Caribbean time by moving an hour back every 2 days. Today after breakfast Mike headed out to do his laps right away and I did my Spanish Lessons and worked on a puzzle in our room. A fellow passenger lent me her puzzle board since she isn’t with us for the crossing.
When Mike was done walking, we headed to lunch and afterwards we attended the Port Talk for St. Lucia. We have a ton of back-to-back ports coming up, so they are doing port talks in advance. The port talk was followed by Napkin Folding in the Thistle Restaurant. A couple of our servers taught us how to fold napkins, and I thought it was great. Mike was a little less interested, but still participated. We wrapped up the day by the pool and then got cleaned up for dinner.
This evening’s festivities consisted of a Talent Show in which residents and crew entertained us. They were fantastic and we had a great time. We are fortunate to share our floating home with some very talented individuals.
Day Six
We had a hard time getting up this morning, but I’ve learned that my motion sickness is best managed with a full stomach, so I couldn’t afford to miss breakfast. Mike did his laps while I did my Spanish and read on my phone and then we went for lunch. There wasn’t much on the schedule that interested us today, so after lunch we headed for the pool deck. We floated along and laid in the sun for a little too long, but it was lovely. The ocean state has changed a little and the waves are a bit higher today, but nothing drastic. The pool turned into a bit of a wave pool, and we sloshed back and forth.
Before supper there was a Meet and Greet/Mixer for the residents that have joined us since Belfast. We attended for a bit, but it got crowded quickly and we excused ourselves. After supper Comedian Lenny Windsor put on another show for us. He will be leaving the ship in Barbados, but it’s been fun having him around.
I’ve been spending a bit more time in the cabin because I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed with constantly being surrounded by people. We’ve made some great new friends, but I’m used to having a lot more time alone. We are working on finding balance and adjusting to this new lifestyle. It’s a little easier in port because we take off and do our own thing for most of the day and then hang out with people in the evenings. The crossing has been smooth and filled with activities, but also offers little escape from people in general. Tomorrow will be our last day at sea for a couple of weeks and we are looking forward to exploring the new destinations.
Day Seven
Today was much the same as every other day. We had breakfast, Mike walked, I read and then we went for lunch. Once again there wasn’t much on the agenda that appealed to us today, so after lunch we headed up to the pool deck. This time we liberally applied sunscreen and sat in the shade when we weren’t in the pool.
The waves are still a little choppy and I’ve had a slight headache all day, but I’m still band and drug free! I’m determined to make it through the week. It will be interesting tomorrow to see how I feel on solid land.
In preparation for our arrival in Barbados they hosted a pirate themed party to get us in the mood for the Caribbean. The party was on the pool deck and despite the heat we had a blast. We didn't have costumes, but we had rum!
Land Ho!
Well, we officially survived our Atlantic crossing. It went way better than I expected and I’m incredibly grateful for calm seas. We had a really good week, and it was nice to have some down time. And I made it without using my sea bands or taking anti nausea medication at all! I’d like to say I officially have my sea legs, but reality is the sea was very calm, so still to be determined.
We are gearing up for a ton of back-to-back ports, so we will be super busy for the next little while. It’s a relief to have the crossing behind us and to be able to focus on the upcoming ports.
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