April 30

 

I’m tired tonight and my cruise buddy has written so many notes, I asked her if she is going to write “War and Peace 2” tonight.  But like you, I look forward to seeing what I missed.

Talk number two was this morning. “You Create: Photography.”  All about taking better pictures whether on your cellphone or digital camera.  After the talk a lady asked me if I had published a book, and I thanked her for the compliment, and told her no.  But I have been asked that before.  Maybe later. Nah!

We bought our  shuttle tickets from Southampton dock to LHR so we can get on Delta 37 and fly home.  $200 for the two tickets, but it’s the tariffs I’m sure.

You remember the kerfluffle on boarding day about the UK ETA that I’d paid for, but only have proof of one and had to buy another one for Mom.  Well today I contacted the folks I bought them from and they sent me duplicate receipts.  So other than the extra expense that is settled.

While we were taking care of the shuttle tickets a lady in a wheelchair joined the line for Guest Services. The sign on her chair is great:

Humor

At dinner tonight -- Asian and very good -- we posed for a picture with Astri and Fushawn.  She is from India, he is from China.  I sent the picture earlier to the JAMM kids and Michael sent back a funny gif saying something about no gang signs (Fushawn's "peace" sign). I explained that he is Chinese and it must be to ward off tariffs.

Astri and Fushawn with your favorite cruisers

 The show tonight was Ventriloquist Kevin Johnson -- he’s on YouTube. The funniest show we’ve ever seen and one of the best all around performances on our travels.  Check it out.  Funny stuff.

Tomorrow is Bermuda, docking at King’s Wharf – where we know where everything is.  Miniature golf, rum cake shop, glass blower, pharmacist, shopping mall.  So out and about.

Ok, like I said earlier, I’m tired tonight, so I’m going to give the keyboard Mom/Granny/Bonnie.

 

Hello all you kids in radio land….. 

Well, we were up at 7 and got ready for the day, at least I did. We headed for the Windjammer for breakfast and were of course greeted by “Washy Washy” . I always wash my hands and he uses the sanitizer. That stuff makes my rings yucky. Not a whole of people up here yet since we turned the clocks ahead last night.  After breakfast he needed to go back to study and dress for his talk. 

So I headed out to explore the ship. I started on deck 11 where the windjammer is located and headed out the door onto deck 11. At the other end of deck 11 is the Solarium (Adults only) part of the ship. Really nice, lots of loungers, 2 huge hot tubs and a pool. I walked all the way around to the other side and came out onto 11 into the “Smoking” zone. Yuck!! Stinky. 

So I found a set of stairs on my left heading up to deck 12. As I proceeded up the flight of stairs I passed the roped off zones for the concierge suites and the pinnacle. You can only sit in these elevated seats if you have the right colored key card. I soon emerged onto deck 12 where the walking/running track is located. So I decided to have a go at it. I made a half mile, yeah me. Probably have done more than a mile today because I have walked up and down many flights of stairs. It is difficult to walk around the track, (right hand lane for walkers, left hand lane for runners), because on both sides at the rails they have casitas you can rent and sit in all day covering the lane for walkers. So I am often in the running lane as I go around. So I could see the shadows of people approaching from behind on one side and I would move out of their way. On the other side I just checked often behind me so I could get out of the way. The weather was absolutely wonderful. Nice wind blowing and sun shining. 

I found some things we didn’t know where they were, for example the free ice cream cone station (but it didn’t open to 11am)  is just outside the Windjammer and the steps up to 13 and the miniature golf course is at one end of the walking track. 

Well after walking an exploring I decided to head back to the room. It was a little after 9 and he needs to go to the theater about 9:30. I was a little creaky by this time so I decided to ride the elevator down. I took one of the glass ones and I saw the most amazing piece of art work hanging between deck 10 and 11. WHOA! We went after lunch to see it and take a picture. (He will try and send a picture of it) It was made entirely out of wires and spools of different colored  thread! They made a great picture using the different colors. Probably more than 50,000 spools!

The spools of thread art.

Well, we started our card tournament after lunch. Found a table in the Windjammer and began the tournament after lunch. Well! It ain’t looking good for me.

 He told you about buying the shuttle tickets. Almost $200 for about an hour and a half bus ride from the port to the airport. Wonder what UBER would charge?

 I had also insisted he check to make sure he had a ETA visa to get into the UK. He wrote to the people he had bought ours from and was able to get the documentation for him and me even though Royal Caribbean had already made me buy one before they would let me on. I already had one but they did not believe us because the confirmation of the order only had his name on it. So now I have two! When I had been walking back to the cabin earlier one of the crew storage/work areas door was open. I saw a crew member was scraping up loose paint up off the floor. Curious. Well when we came back from the talk for him to change out of his coat and tie we smelled this horrible smell on our hallways back to the cabin. They had painted the floor and the door was hanging open and it was horrible. It was still bad when we walked to and from supper tonight.

 Well, yesterday while I was working on my first crochet project something was not right. I finished one of the 10 I need to make for Mother’s day and it was not right. At first I thought it was one of the skeins of yarn I bought not being the right kind. So I started a second with the other colors and it wasn’t working either. I tore apart the first one I made and most of the second one, I read the pattern over and over again but couldn’t find what I was doing wrong. So I put it away and we went to bed. It took me about an hour when I woke up in the middle of the night to figure out what I thought I was doing wrong. This morning I tried and yeah I figured it out. The pattern is not quite written clearly. I now have completed 2 and have 8 to go. What’s an hour sleep.

 Well, he is sitting on the couch reading his book and he is sleepy so I will say goodnight. It has been a good day and I am looking forward to visiting Bermuda and having a fun day tomorrow.

 By the way supper was Chinese oriented tonight. It was okay.

 Love you all, Mom, Granny, Bonnie

 

PS:  Hey Mac that was some good bass guitar playing. But I couldn’t see your handsome face and beautiful smile. And Luke you better watch out your little brother is coming for you!!

April 29, 2025

 

A good day at sea. I did my first talk at noon today, “Tempest in the Atlantic,” about a hurricane that saved one new world colony, started a second, and helped create a great work of art.  Tomorrow, “You Create: Photography.”  It was formerly called “The Camera on You Phone.”  And the next day is land-ho – we will be in Bermuda.

Well I asked Bonnie to make a couple of notes for me so I would remember to tell you in tonight’s blog.  She did.  Gave me the note and I’ve lost it and I only remember one of the two things on it.  She can tell you the one I remember and maybe she’ll remember the one I forgot.  Good grief!

Barring that, tonight at dinner – and a great dinner it was (escargot, seafood linguini, and apple crumble with vanilla ice cream) – a gentleman came to our table, he of the couple sitting in the window that the JAMM Kids saw in an early picture and after excusing himself for interrupting us said that he and his wife have reservations tomorrow night in one of the specialty restaurants and would we like to sit in the window tomorrow.  Yes, we said.  How very nice.

Tonight’s show was excellent – The Long Run Rocks, an Eagles tribute band.  We knew most of their songs, including, of course, the show closer “Hotel California.”  There was one fan who stood and danced during many of the song.  I should not be critical of the woman’s shape, because my  shirts come with a lump in them, but – she wore a tight, slinky red dress that was definitely not made for a body with a ponch.  She didn’t seem to care as she moved around to the music.  But back to the band.  The best part (and they are very good singers) was the outstanding guitar work.  Wow!

Since I can’t remember what I forgot, I’ll turn the  keyboard over to Bonnie and you can enjoy her reminiscing.  And hopefully she’ll remember what I don’t.

Well, here I am. We have turned our clocks up for our first one hour loss and of course he has the first talk tomorrow at 10 when most people will think it is nine!! We will see how many people come. The three speakers are back to back to back tomorrow.

Well, they had advertised a 2h learn to knit class. I said “oh boy” I will go to that. So at 10 am I was in deck 5 dining hall all ready to learn. In there was a lady as old or older than me with a duffle bag stuffed with a bunch of odd colored balls of yarn all different kinds of yarn. Also in the bag were knitting needles of all sizes and kinds. She began by having you sign in and give your email address. I was the second person to sign in. Then, she handed some yarn to the first lady and needles, asked if she knew how to knit, then gave here a paper with two short lines on it and said here are the directions for a potholder and here is what you do. Then she proceeded to explain to her how to do what it said on the paper. Then as she was turning around a third lady came in as old as we were. She signed in and said she had made one of the things on her display table and wanted to make another. She knew how to knit. So ignoring me she found some yarn and needles and proceeded to start her off showing here how to start. By this time there were now about 20 or so people in there signing in and wanting to learn. She is still working with the 3 rd lady. She told people to sign in and find a seat and at this point I left. It was total disorganization. There is no way you can go around 20 or thirty people one at time and give individual instructions and materials. I was frustrated.

So I went out to find a seat and wait for David to come up and do his talk. I was going to go into the theater but the Crown and Anchor folk were having their private affair with the Captain to hear who had the most points etc. So I sat in the promenade. They started a warm up stretch class right in the middle of the promenade from one end to the other. There were probably 50 to 75 people lined up in the middle footpath. Fortunately I was off on the edge in a chair. The crew leader up in the cross over up in the air started his music and off they went for the next 30 minutes. People trying to go from one end of the ship to the other were blocked. They were weaving in and out on the outside through chairs and tables where people were sitting. Crazy!!

David finally found me and we headed to the theater for his talk. Maybe 150 people and the talked seemed to be well received. We will see who shows up tomorrow for his photography talk.

We went to the buffet for lunch and then to the room for a nap. The room steward only straightens rooms once in the mornings. After nap we dressed and went to dinner. I had a salad, chicken cordon bleu, and ice cream. Enjoyable. Then, off to the show. We found great seats and the show was very good. The band was dressed in blue jeans and a variety of shirts and shoes. No fancy duds.

Then, we headed back to the room. They were having the Captain’s welcoming thing on the promenade, champagne, dropping balloons, etc. So we decided to go down to 2 and walk to the other end of the ship where our room is. Oops! You can’t walk from one end of the ship to the other on deck 2 or 3. So back upstairs to 4 and across through the casino, which is HUGE, and to the back and then down to 2 and left, left, left turn to our room. We were thrilled because the cabin steward had brought us ice and a paper copy of compass so I don’t have to try and use my phone app.

Well, we have turned the clocks forward the first of six times in total for the cruise and when I finish this we will head to bed. His talk is early so we will start early tomorrow.Having great weather so far. Not too cold or hot.Love you all. Mom, Granny and Bonnie

PS: I walked probably 15 flights of stairs!!! (And – this is David – she walked 78,296 steps, working on her 1,000,000 steps).

PSS: Hey TATE did Mom show you the teddy bears, haha!!s

 

 

 

May 28, 2025

 

Well, I think I’m ready to  begin the first blog.

All went well until we began to approach security.  There is a new requirement for going into Merry Olde England – you have to have a visa called ETA – which I paid for for both of us back in January.  One email, two ETAs, attached electronically to our passports.  But no!  When we were approaching security they wanted proof that we had bought it.  Unfortunately the email only had my name on, so we had to buy another one for my bride.  A bit of a stressful hassle, but it is done.

After finding our room we went for a light lunch because we had a big breakfast.  Back at the room our luggage was here and we unpacked for a while, then went to supper.  As usual we were assigned “my time” dining, which is always late (not our time at all) and I asked the young lady at the dining room service desk to switch us, and we have a table for 2 that looks out the window, so we can see the waves roll by.

I’m only doing 6 talks on this cruise, although there 8 days at sea.  That’s what RCI wanted, so that’s what I’m doing.  Four are at 12, one at 10 and one at 11.  Remember we are going to start springing forward soon, so keep that in mind as we sail.  And right now text isn’t working – maybe won’t for the whole cruise, but Whatsapp is.  So use that to text, because that’s on WiFi

A good supper: tilapia for me and fried chicken for Bon.  Excellent wait staff: Astria and Fushawn.

We didn’t go to the welcome aboard show, we are kind of tired and raggidy, and I need to study for tomorrow, and Mom wants to regale you with her version of today.

So TTFN, and hereeeee’s Bonnie

Well, “here we are back in the car” Name the movie!  Yes we are on board and sailing. We were slightly delayed in getting on but that is a story for another day☹. Needless to say I was extremely upset and the one young woman “attempting” to help was quite rude and mean!! I could say more but I won’t.

Our room is in the interior of Deck 2. Go left, go left and left again! Not close to anything except maybe supper. It is the lowest level of guest cabins. Maybe 20 feet long and 8 feet wide overall. There is a couch and thank heavens not a gazillion pillows on it. And believe or not he actually has a chair and not a stool. Good for his back. The bathroom has a round shower and it has a diameter of maybe 4 feet. Typical. I have 3 very small drawers and 2 wire shelves in the closet for my clothes.  We have a drug drawer, a suitcase acting as a laundry hamper in the closet. I have 3 things on hangers. There is a smaller cooling fridge like under the desk. They provided me a drop cord so I could plug in the c-pap machine, you can not bring a drop cord on board, it's forbidden. Typical bed, 2 twin beds pushed together. We actually have one of the end cabins on our very interior corridor. And our keys worked the first time. We found the suitcases out sitting in the hall at the end of our corridor earlier so we brought them to the room. Really haven’t seen anything of our cabin steward. Name is Rob I think. So no ice in the cabin tonight. We went up to the buffet after supper for him to get ice and water in his bottle for tonight and I refreshed my drink.

We thought about going to the show but I am tired. I will do puzzles for a while, brush my teeth, and wash my face. Then I will take my drugs and go to bed. His talk tomorrow is at 12.

We really do have a very nice table for supper. Almost a window table.

I brought three crocheting projects along and I will get the first one started tomorrow. I hope to finish all 3. Good to have a goal, haha!

Well, I need to go. He needs to study. Love to you all.

P.S.:

AMY, Jack, Mac, Luke and TATE, thank you for the card and goodies. Tate I loved your picture.

P.S.:

Jennifer have a good time.

P.S.:

Karen: take it EASY! .

Really do love and miss you all.

Mom, Granny and Bonnie