DAY 90 - CRUISING THE YELLOW SEA

Enjoyed Another Wonderful Dinner In The Crystal Dining Room Last Evening  ✔ Enjoyed A Great Day At Sea ✔


We wanted to mention that while many parts of the world are experiencing record highs that has not been the case in China.  The weather has been quite a bit cooler than expected and it is further compounded with the lack of sun.  Yesterday, was very cool in Shanghai and, as a result, several guests stayed on the ship as we did.  The forecast over the next few days calls for cooler weather as well.


We did take advantage of the time on the ship to get organized for the upcoming three day/two night land program in Beijing.  This program begins two days from now.  While we are on the program we will not be updating our Blog and will do a combined update shortly after we return back to the ship.


Speaking of Beijing and the cooler weather we have packed several items that we brought along for the last segment of the World Cruise, especially for our one day stop in Russia and our stops in Alaska.  We knew Beijing would not be hot this time of the year but did expect it to be warmer than the current weather conditions and we expected Shanghai to be quite a bit warmer than what we experienced there. 


Anothed item that we wanted to note from the World Cruise Shoreside event the other evening was how nicely the tables were set.  All of the tables had white tablecloths, and each chair had a white chair cover, plus there were centerpieces on each table, along with a lazy susan on each table.  When you walked into the room it was very elegant and made for a dramatic presentation.  We are sorry that we did not get a photo of the entire table and chairs but it really added to the overall look and feel of the room.

Last evening we were back in the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.  These were the dinner menus.

The dining room was very busy and almost had the feel of a formal night.   This is likely because between the World Cruise event, several guests on evening tours and several guests arriving back to the ship from the overland programs many guests did not dine in the dining room the previous night so many of the guests dined in the Crystal Dining Room.  Those at larger tables were likely sharing their experiences with one another from the previous night(s).

We each began our meal with salads.  While Keith had his standing order salad, Anne Marie enjoyed the Heart of Lettuce Salad which was accompanied with Marinated Grilled Vegetables.

For our entree, we asked Headwaiter Augusto if they could take the Grilled Halibut Fillet from the Salad Entree along with side items from the Grilled Dover Sole Entree.   This worked perfectly.  We also had a side order of Steamed Vegetables and Keith also enjoyed an extra side order of Brussels Sprouts.

Anne Marie had the sugar-free Tiramisu for dessert and it was simply delicious and Keith had mixed berries.

The highlight of the evening was the Concert Performed by Concert Pianist Min Kwon.

The Serenity sailed for our next port of call at approximately 8:00 PM.  Once again, we slept very well and enjoyed the gentle rocking of the ship.  Having stayed up past Midnight the night before, we enjoyed a very good nights sleep.

Keith was up early in the morning and back up to the Fitness Center.  He enjoyed a nice long workout on the Elliptical Machine.  There were a few guests working out  at the same time.  Anne Marie worked out before breakfast.

We enjoyed our regular breakfast of oatmeal and a banana, along with stewed prunes for Keith, while we watched the Daily Morning Show with Cruise Director Rick Spath and World Cruise Hostess Elise Ivy.  We called in and correctly answered one of the trivia questions correctly.

After a couple of days in port, it was nice to have a sea day.  One of Crystal Cruises core strengths is the extensive enrichment program that is offered on sea days and today was no exception.

There were three lectures given by an extraordinary and talented team of lecturers.

 The first one was given by Destination Lecturer Ken Rees who spoke about the two revolutions of China.  He covered the revolution by Mao and then he spoke about the current revolution which has taken place over the last two decades as China has gone from isolation to being a world-wide manufacturing powerhouse.  As usual, Ken's lecture was very informative, plus he through in some good humor and we enjoyed his photos.

The second lecture/talk was given by Celebrity Guest Speaker Regis Philbin.  He spoke for about thirty minutes and talked about his new book and some of the key points he has learned in life.  One was that if others make a big impact on you to let them know.  He mentioned that he regretted that when he had the opportunity to let Bing Crosby know how much he admired him starting in his own youth but having learned from that experience was glad that he let Joe Dimaggio know how much he looked up to him when he watched the New York Yankees play during Dimmagio's career.  He covered some high and low points in his career but in both cases spoke with passion.

He also did a Question and Answer session.

There were some funny moments with the audience.  One was when he left the podium and walked over to the area where a guest was in the front row with his wife and Regis had noticed that he was reading  book.  Another funny moment came when one of the guests arrived about twenty five minutes into Regis' talk and walked all the way towards the front looking for a seat and Regis moved the stool from behind the podium and offered the seat to the guest.

Thankfully, although we were in the front row we were paying attention!

At the end of the Q&A, the ships photographer took photos with guests posing with Regis.  We had our photo taken. These are photos that Keith took of Regis.

At Noon we had the third of five Team Trivia sessions of this segment of the World Cruise.  We did tie for first place having correctly answered twelve of fifteen questions correctly, but we are still four behind the top team with only two games to go.  Win or lose, our team is a lot of fun and in the end that is what counts.

There was an Asian Buffet up on the Lido Deck today but we ended up just having salad entrees.

By late morning the good news is that the sun did come out, but it was too cold for Keith to play Paddle Tennis or for Anne Marie to walk outside.

Instead, Anne Marie worked out at the Fitness Center and Keith read and wrote and also met with friend Bob.

In the afternoon, Celebrity Lecturer Jim Brochu presented, Joan Crawford - Always the store.  As usual, Jim gave an outstanding talk and through Jim's talks we have learned a great deal about famous actors/actresses.

This evening we will attend the Crystal Society Reception, and dine at Prego with two special guests.  The evening attire is formal which always adds to the ambience throughout the ship.

TODAY'S THOUGHT FOR THE DAY....

 “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; An optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill


Keith and Anne Marie