While we dined in Silk Road last evening, we thought we would begin by posting the last nights dinner menu from the Crystal Main Dining Room.
We had a wonderful time with Ashley and Kelly last evening. We had such a wonderful time and conversation that we dined for close to three hours. They hosted last nights dinner and we thank them so very much for their friendship and for their kindness.
Before dinner we took care of a couple of items at the reception desk and we saw Crystal Dining Room Maitre d' Mario Gallo and we spoke with him for a little while.
We do have a running talk with Mario as to who is the thinnest, Keith or Mario. We will let you be the judge.
We then went to the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant with Ashley and Kelly who hosted the dinner. We had an absolutely wonderful time with them. Food was great and none of us was at a loss of words. We greatly appreciate Ashley and Kelly's thoughtfulness and kindness.
We had a wonderful time with Ashley and Kelly last evening. We had such a wonderful time and conversation that we dined for close to three hours. They hosted last nights dinner and we thank them so very much for their friendship and for their kindness.
Before dinner we took care of a couple of items at the reception desk and we saw Crystal Dining Room Maitre d' Mario Gallo and we spoke with him for a little while.
We do have a running talk with Mario as to who is the thinnest, Keith or Mario. We will let you be the judge.
We then went to the Silk Road Japanese Specialty Restaurant with Ashley and Kelly who hosted the dinner. We had an absolutely wonderful time with them. Food was great and none of us was at a loss of words. We greatly appreciate Ashley and Kelly's thoughtfulness and kindness.
We all began the meal by sharing a nice sushi/sashimi platter with all of our favorites.
Keith and Kelly also ordered salads. We had no idea but when our entrees arrived we realized that we had all ordered one of the two lobster entrees on the menu. Keith also had ordered steamed vegetables while Anne Marie had white rice. We had fruit plate with sherbet for dessert and Anne Marie had a decaffeinated cappuccino while Keith had Green Tea. It was a lovely evening and we were there for almost three full hours.
For those of you who are familiar with Silk Road our server for the evening was Sheila who we have known for several years. She was assisted by Richi. Richi and Ruel began working at Silk Road this voyage after many many years working as Lido Deck Stewards. We are really thrilled for them and congratulated each of them on their new positions. Our Somellier was Oleg who we have also known for quite sometime. Kelly selected two wonderful wines; Chardonnay and Cabernet.
The good news is that when we arrived back to the room we moved the clocks back one hour.
Keith was up early and enjoyed his workout at the Fitness Center. Two other people worked out with him. After changing and putting up some laundry he walked up to the Lido Cafe for some coffee. While this first photo shows empty tables there were a few guests sitting in the back of the cafe.
Keith all set up with coffee and his iPad
Afterwards, Anne Marie took a one hour walk on the Promenade Deck. The weather was beautiful.
We then enjoyed breakfast in our room with a beautiful view of Grand Turk from our verandah.
This is our second time to this island. Our first time was in January, 2010 with the family. A short while after we docked, one of the Holland America ships, the Eurodam, arrived to port.
The island is quite small and its length is approximately seven miles and one half miles and it widest portion is about three and one half miles. It is popular because of its beaches. Another major attraction is for its diving. There are about 8,000 residents on the island. They import most goods but do have a wide array of local fish. Grand Turk is the Capital of the Turks & Caicos Islands. Chirstopher Columbus first made landfall on his initial voyage to the New World in 1492 on Grand Turk's Guanahani Beach.
We walked over to Grand Turk at around 9:00 AM. The weather was gorgeous. We enjoyed the best weather of any place we have visited so far. In general, the weather has been in the low 80's for most of our ports of call.
We chatted for a few minutes with Reverend Rod Broker who is the Protestant Clergy on board the ship and his lovely wife Doris. As we had mentioned we first sailed with Reverend Rod and Doris in 2007. They are truly wonderful people with a great outlook about life.
We had wanted to see the Mercury Capsule that Astronaut John Glenn flew in and decided to take a private Island Tour that also included a stop to see the capsule. Our driver and tour guide has lived on the island his entire life. It was evident as he seemed to know everyone we passed as we made our way around the entire island and during our stops.
We stopped for a little while in one of a couple of small areas with tourist shops. It also provided us with nice views of the Caribbean Sea.
We also visited the Lighthouse which was built in England in 1852. Adjacent to the Lighthouse is a former Naval Base which is now a College.
We had a little scare as Anne Marie walked right in the path of someone she first thought was a Pirate
As we made our way around the island we passed an area that had excellent views of the Caribbean Ocean where we saw many beautiful homes. During our tour we also passed several churches of various faiths. At one point where the width of the island was relatively small we could see the Caribbean Sea to our left and the Atlantic Ocean to our right.
We then stopped to view the Friendship 7 capsule which carried Astronaut John Glenn and was launched on February 20, 1962.
Before we returned back to the ship we walked around the shopping area near the pier. Most of it was funded by Carnival Cruise Line and then they lease the buildings to the stores and other establishments.
It is home to one of the Margartaville establishments.
There is a nice beach right at the pier area.
We enjoyed our little private tour around this relatively small island. For the local residents it looked to be a nice place to live. Our driver said that at night that residents can leave their windows open without fear of crime.
After we returned to the ship, we had lunch at the Lido Cafe. We were joined by Ashley and Kelly. Afterwards, Anne Marie took a nice long one hour walk on the Promenade Deck while Keith played Paddle Tennis with many of the regulars plus Ashley joined in as well. Anne Marie also sat out at the pool and Keith chatted with fellow guests.
This evening is the Captain's Reception followed by the Captain's Farewell Dinner in the Crystal Dining Room. Tomorrow night will mark the last night of the Holiday Cruise and those passengers leaving the ship will disembark in Miami on the morning of January 4.
For those of you who are familiar with Silk Road our server for the evening was Sheila who we have known for several years. She was assisted by Richi. Richi and Ruel began working at Silk Road this voyage after many many years working as Lido Deck Stewards. We are really thrilled for them and congratulated each of them on their new positions. Our Somellier was Oleg who we have also known for quite sometime. Kelly selected two wonderful wines; Chardonnay and Cabernet.
The good news is that when we arrived back to the room we moved the clocks back one hour.
Keith was up early and enjoyed his workout at the Fitness Center. Two other people worked out with him. After changing and putting up some laundry he walked up to the Lido Cafe for some coffee. While this first photo shows empty tables there were a few guests sitting in the back of the cafe.
Keith all set up with coffee and his iPad
Afterwards, Anne Marie took a one hour walk on the Promenade Deck. The weather was beautiful.
We then enjoyed breakfast in our room with a beautiful view of Grand Turk from our verandah.
This is our second time to this island. Our first time was in January, 2010 with the family. A short while after we docked, one of the Holland America ships, the Eurodam, arrived to port.
The island is quite small and its length is approximately seven miles and one half miles and it widest portion is about three and one half miles. It is popular because of its beaches. Another major attraction is for its diving. There are about 8,000 residents on the island. They import most goods but do have a wide array of local fish. Grand Turk is the Capital of the Turks & Caicos Islands. Chirstopher Columbus first made landfall on his initial voyage to the New World in 1492 on Grand Turk's Guanahani Beach.
We walked over to Grand Turk at around 9:00 AM. The weather was gorgeous. We enjoyed the best weather of any place we have visited so far. In general, the weather has been in the low 80's for most of our ports of call.
We chatted for a few minutes with Reverend Rod Broker who is the Protestant Clergy on board the ship and his lovely wife Doris. As we had mentioned we first sailed with Reverend Rod and Doris in 2007. They are truly wonderful people with a great outlook about life.
We had wanted to see the Mercury Capsule that Astronaut John Glenn flew in and decided to take a private Island Tour that also included a stop to see the capsule. Our driver and tour guide has lived on the island his entire life. It was evident as he seemed to know everyone we passed as we made our way around the entire island and during our stops.
We stopped for a little while in one of a couple of small areas with tourist shops. It also provided us with nice views of the Caribbean Sea.
We also visited the Lighthouse which was built in England in 1852. Adjacent to the Lighthouse is a former Naval Base which is now a College.
We had a little scare as Anne Marie walked right in the path of someone she first thought was a Pirate
As we made our way around the island we passed an area that had excellent views of the Caribbean Ocean where we saw many beautiful homes. During our tour we also passed several churches of various faiths. At one point where the width of the island was relatively small we could see the Caribbean Sea to our left and the Atlantic Ocean to our right.
We then stopped to view the Friendship 7 capsule which carried Astronaut John Glenn and was launched on February 20, 1962.
Before we returned back to the ship we walked around the shopping area near the pier. Most of it was funded by Carnival Cruise Line and then they lease the buildings to the stores and other establishments.
It is home to one of the Margartaville establishments.
There is a nice beach right at the pier area.
We enjoyed our little private tour around this relatively small island. For the local residents it looked to be a nice place to live. Our driver said that at night that residents can leave their windows open without fear of crime.
After we returned to the ship, we had lunch at the Lido Cafe. We were joined by Ashley and Kelly. Afterwards, Anne Marie took a nice long one hour walk on the Promenade Deck while Keith played Paddle Tennis with many of the regulars plus Ashley joined in as well. Anne Marie also sat out at the pool and Keith chatted with fellow guests.
This evening is the Captain's Reception followed by the Captain's Farewell Dinner in the Crystal Dining Room. Tomorrow night will mark the last night of the Holiday Cruise and those passengers leaving the ship will disembark in Miami on the morning of January 4.
TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY.....
“We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.” -Vince Lombarde
Keith and Anne Marie
Even if I have to say it myself - the FOUR of us looked very good in that photo last night at Silk Road! The pleasure was all ours and we are looking forward to our next get together.
ReplyDeleteYes the four of you did look very good. And it looked like you were really enjoying your evening. Enjoying reading and keeping up with you. And Keith you are skinnier!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteFor sure Keith, you are the thinner of the two. It was so interesting for me to ee the space capsule. I had no idea it was on that island. I'll have to cjeck it out when I visit there the next time(I usually get no further than Margaritaville. :) )
ReplyDeleteKeith, you are without a doubt, definitely thinner than Mario! I didn't know the space capsule was there either! Enjoy checking your blog daily!
ReplyDeleteLoved the photos of all the balloons and confetti on New Year's Eve! So festive!
paws10